Braves March to the Finals in a Thriller

ALBION - Battle Creek picked the best time of year to finally figure out how to win the close ones, as they topped Boone Central 49-48 Thursday night in the C1-8 boys subdistrict final. After going the entire season without winning a game decided by a single possession, the Braves notched their second straight such victory, after edging O'Neill in the semis.
The contest went back and forth through much of the 1st half, with the Cardinals pulling away late in the 2nd period, thanks in large part to Jaxon Lipker, who poured in 10 points in the paint, all off offensive-rebound putbacks. Battle Creek found an answer for him in the 2nd half, shutting out Lipker for the remainder of the game. Brant Benes made up the difference by chipping in 9 points for Boone Central.
The Braves 3-headed monster of Blake Borchers, Jaxon Kilmurry and Michael Wragge each tallied 14 points, while Jaxon Mettler contributed 7 to round out the scoring. After trailing by as much as 11, Battle Creek rallied to tie it midway through the 4th. The Cards then went back up by 2 in the final minute and had a chance to ice it from the charity stripe, but missed both free throws.
That set up a fantastic finish with 3.9 left, as Mettler found an open Wragge on the inbound, who drained the game-winning three. A desperation heave by the Cards hit the rafters and that was all she wrote. Battle Creek advances to the district final against Auburn Saturday, while the season is over for Boone Central.