Wesclin's varsity boys bowlers placed fifth in the 14-team Belleville East Sectional, and Wesclin junior Tyler Meadows knocked down 1333 pins in the six-game set to qualify for the state tournament individually. Three Wesclin bowlers finished in the top 20. Meadows rolled a 632 series in the morning session, then a 701 in the afternoon. Tyler Feist was 18th individually, with a morning series of 598 and an afternoon total of 606. Ryan Bahl was 20th, rolling a 615 morning series and 568 in the afternoon. David Koontz rolled a high game of 202, and Reid Ritzheimer rolled a 198 game as part of a combined 1099 series. Paxton Bizenberger rolled a high game of 190 and Ryan Meddows 186 to team up for a 1089 series.

The Warriors were in third or fourth place for most of the day, but Belleville East edged out Wesclin by 23 pins for fourth place. "They did a great job," said Wesclin coach Terry Howard of the Warriors' performance. "It was a very consistent effort in both the morning and afternoon sessions."

Wesclin's varsity and junior varsity girls rolled a four-way match with Mascoutah, Centralia, and Belleville West. For the varsity, Katelyn Bateman rolled a high game of 178, and Elexus Lohman 173 to lead Wesclin. Ericka Ervay had a high game of 153, Mikaela Fischer rolled a 145, Courtney Gilley had a high game of 162, and Emily Baumgartner's high game was 158. Baumgartner's high game of 177 led the jayvee girls.

Wesclin's boys basketball team got a Cahokia Conference Mississippi (Large School) Division victory Friday night, then lost to a Kaskaskia (Small School) Division opponent on Saturday.

The homestanding Warriors avenged an earlier defeat at the hands of Red Bud by downing the Musketeers 61-58 Friday night. Wesclin senior Alex Wilken was honored prior to the game for having scored his 1000th career point earlier this season. On Saturday, Wesclin traveled to Pinckneyville to participate in the Panther Showcase and came away with a 56-54 loss to Steeleville. Wesclin is now 9-13 on the season.

Wesclin 61, Red Bud 58

Wesclin carried a five-point lead into the fourth quarter and held off the Red Bud charge to claim a narrow victory. Alex Wilken led a balanced offensive attack with 19 points. Brady Kunz added 16, Michael Klein 13, and Daniel Takacs 11 for the Warriors. Alek Sopiars hit a couple of key free throws down the stretch. The win evened Wesclin's conference record at 3-3.

Steeleville 56, Wesclin 54

Steeleville snapped an eight-game losing skid by edging the Warriors in the Panther Showcase at Pinckneyville. Trailing by seven heading in the final frame, the Warriors tied the game with under a minute left, but Steeleville's Darin Winkelman hit a tough shot with 17 seconds left to give them the win.

Alex Wilken scored 21 to lead Wesclin. Michael Klein added 15. Alek Sopiars, Brady Kunz, and Daniel Takacs scored five each for Wesclin, and Chase Klein and Alex Smith added two each.

Wesclin's girls basketball team staged its annual "Pink Game" to benefit breast cancer research last Thursday, but the power of the pink came up just short.

The Warriors lost 52-39 to Red Bud, a significant improvement on an earlier road loss to the Musketeers.

Stephanie Cathcart netted 16 points to lead the Warriors, and Carrie Rakers joined her in double figures with 10. Ali Brueggemann netted seven for Wesclin, and Ali Isenhower, Brittany Rakers, and Madison Rapien each scored two.

Wesclin will play in the Carlyle regional starting Monday, February 6 when the Warriors square off with Sandoval. A win sends Wesclin to another matchup with Central on Tuesday, with a trip to the regional final on the line.

The longest-running seventh grade basketball tournament in the state of Illinois is being staged right here in Trenton this week.

Trenton Knights of Columbus Council 2932 has been coordinating the tournament for 50 years, although this is only the 49th tourney. The tournament was not played in 1982, when record snowfall paralyzed the area.

This year's tournament field includes All Saints Academy, Albers, St. Paul-Highland, Breese District 12, Aviston, St. Rose, Germantown, and Wesclin.

The tournament started Tuesday, January 31, when All Saints and Albers squared off; St. Paul played Breese; and Aviston took on St. Rose.

Wesclin and Germantown play today (Wednesday) at 5:30, followed by two more games.

The bottom bracket plays itself out on Thursday with games at 6:15 and 7:30 p.m. The championship round starts at 5:15 p.m. Friday with the consolation championship. The third place game tips off at 6:45 p.m., with the title tilt at 8 p.m.

Junior High Notes: Wesclin's eighth grade boys basketball team will play in its first-ever regional tournament starting Wednesday, February 1. The junior Warriors open at the Highland regional against the host team.