#1 Viborg-Hurley Cougars (12-1)
Rank+: 176
Best Win: #3 Centerville (52-41)
Wins: Freeman, Irene-Wakonda, EP-J, Wall, Hanson, Dakota Valley, Alcester-Hudson, Gayville-Volin, Wolsey-Wessington, Avon, Baltic, Centerville
Last Week:
- Thu vs. #3 Centerville (W 52-41)
Weekly Schedule:
- Tue vs. Canistota
- Thu @ Bridgewater-Emery
- Sat @ Mount Marty vs. #1A Wagner
The Cougars picked up arguably the biggest win of the Class B season this last Thursday, and have now taken down the #3, #4 and #9 teams in the Top 10.
Viborg-Hurley seems to have a marquee matchup each week, and this bout will be against #1A Wagner in the River City in the girls game of the week.
#2 Ethan Rustlers (10-2)
Rank+: 153
Best Win: #7 Howard (61-54)
Wins: FA/M, Scotland, Wessington Springs, MV/P, Bridgewater-Emery, Menno Corsica-Stickney, Canistota, Mitchell Christian, Howard
Last Week:
- Mon @ Canistota (W 52-22)
- Thu vs. Mitchell Christian (W 75-23)
- Fri vs. #7 Howard (W 61-54)
Weekly Schedule:
- Sat @ Augustana vs Canton
Ethan got another trio of wins of this past week, including their first Top 10 victory over Howard. That’s a huge game not only in terms of confidence, but postseason play; as Howard, St. Mary and the Rustlers are all battling for those coveted Top 2 spots in the Region 3.
Looking ahead to this week, we won’t see the Rustlers play too much, but their matchup in Sioux Falls against Canton should be a good one.
#3 Centerville Tornadoes (10-3)
Rank+: 152
Best Win: #10A Hanson (51-42)
Wins: Hanson, Canistota, FA/M, Gayville-Volin, Burke, Scotland, Irene-Wakonda, Freeman, Avon, T-D/A
Last Week:
- Tue @ T-D/A (W 52-22)
- Thu @ #1 Viborg-Hurley (L 52-41)
Weekly Schedule:
- Tue vs. Alcester-Hudson
- Thu vs. Marty
The Tornadoes battled it out with #1 V-H to the end, but it was the Cougars who took the victory last Thursday.
The game, however, was a great test for Centerville and shows they should be in the mix as one of the best teams in the state.
They’ll also have a great chance over the next two weeks to secure the #2 spot in Region 4B, before a fun matchup with St. Mary to end the regular season.
#4 Wolsey-Wessington Warbirds (11-2)
Rank+: 148
Best Win: Miller (52-49)
Wins: Wessington Springs (x2), Faulkton Area, Kadoka Area, Miller, JVC, Estelline/Hendricks, SBA (x2), SC/W, Highmore-Harrold
Last Week:
- Tue @ SBA (W 73-14)
- Thu @ H-H (W 77-51)
Weekly Schedule:
- Tue @ K/WL
- Thu @ De Smet
The Warbirds picked up another pair of dominant wins this past week, and show no signs of slowing down as they travel to White Lake and De Smet.
Interestingly enough, Wolsey-Wessington hasn’t played at home since January 13th, and they won’t play there against until February 10th.
That’s a long time to be on the road, no matter the sport, but it also shows that the Warbirds are going to be well-tested heading into the postseason.
#5 Arlington Cardinals (11-4)
Rank+: 147
Best Win: #3 Centerville (59-55)
Wins: O-R/R, Castlewood, De Smet, Madison, I/LP, Deuel, Centerville, Colman-Egan, C-G-B (MN), Estelline/Hendricks, Tri-Valley
Last Week:
- Tue @ #6A Florence/Henry (L 61-54)
- Fri @ Estelline/Hendricks (W 52-33)
- Sat @ Augustana vs. Tri-Valley (W 55-36)
Weekly Schedule:
- Fri vs. Deubrook Area
- Sat vs. GPL
Arlington took a tough loss on the road to one of the best Class A teams in Florence/Henry but bounced back with 2 great wins away from home that weekend.
Bouncing back from losses against really good teams can be a great confidence booster for any team. You don’t want any roadblocks to get in the way at the end of the season, and the Cardinals have a tough road ahead while the top spots in their region are still up for the taking.
This week’s matchup against Deubrook Area will be critical for seeding, as the loser Cardinals (#3 seed ) and Dolphins (#4 seed) will almost certainly be put in a tough spot to end the year.
#6 Castlewood Warriors (9-4)
Rank+: 146.9
Best Win: Flandreau (38-31)
Wins: Deubrook Area, Flandreau, Deuel, C/WL, GPL, O-R/R, Pipestone (MN), Colman-Egan, I/LP
Last Week:
- Tue vs. Colman-Egan (W 36-24)
- Fri vs. I/LP (W 56-34)
Weekly Schedule:
- Mon @ De Smet (W 53-44)
- Tue vs. Waubay-Summit
- Thu @ #2A Hamlin
The Warriors are in the same position as the Cardinals, currently sitting one spot ahead of Arlington in a tough Region 2B race.
At this point in the year, you can’t lose any games as the favorites, and Castlewood picked up a great win last night against De Smet.
They’ll have a similar game tonight again Waubay-Summit, before an exciting matchup with Hamlin at near the end of the week.
#7 Howard Tigers (12-3)
Rank+: 146.0
Best Win: #10A Hanson (W 58-55)
Wins: Arlington, Freeman, Colman-Egan, Lyman, SC/W, Menno, Canistota, MV/P, Hanson, Chester Area
Last Week:
- Mon vs. MC/M (W 51-42)
- Tue vs. Bridgewater-Emery (W 51-16)
- Fri @ #2 Ethan (L 61-54)
Weekly Schedule:
- Mon vs. O-R/R
- Tue @ Irene-Wakonda
Howard and Arlington flipped spots this week in the rankings, but Howard is in a good position to move back up the top 10.
And despite a loss to region foe, Ethan, the Tigers still hold the top seed in 3B. Howard now just has to keep knocking down wins, and has two ranked games remaining with #8 Jones County and #1 Viborg-Hurley.
#8 Jones County Coyotes (9-1)
Rank+: 143
Best Win: Kadoka Area (63-38)
Wins: K/WL, Highmore-Harrold, Stanley County, Burke, Colman-Egan, Bison, Colome, Kadoka Area
Last Week:
- Fri @ Gregory (W 52-39)
Weekly Schedule:
- Tue vs. Sully Buttes
- Thu @ New Underwood
- Sat vs. L/FA
Jones County extended their winning streak to 4 games last Friday, and look to keep that momentum going into a difficult part of the schedule. 6 of their final 8 games are against teams with winning records, including #4 Wolsey-Wessington and #7 Howard.
It’s fun to see these matchups late in the season, and will really help the Coyotes prepare for their upcoming matchups in the playoffs.
#9 Wall Eagles (10-5)
Rank+: 139
Best Win: #8 Jones County (48-45)
Wins: Edgemont, Todd County, Little Wound, Newell, Jones County, Bennett County, Chamberlain, Lead-Deadwood, Philip, New Underwood
Last Week:
- NO GAMES
Weekly Schedule:
- Thu vs. White River
- Fri @ Kadoka Area
The Eagles have played the most games so far in the state, so their schedule slows down now with just 5 games left on the schedule.
The important of those games, however, will not cease, as White River and Kadoka Area are right behind the Eagles in region seeding.
#10 St. Mary Cardinals (11-2)
Rank+: 138
Best Win: #6 Castlewood (52-50)
Wins: Howard, Colman-Egan, W-SS, Estelline/Hendricks, Chester Area, E-LB, O-R/R, Castlewood, Madison, Garretson, Alcester-Hudson
Last Week:
- Mon @ Garretson (W 56-43)
- Thu @ Alcester-Hudson (W 52-48)
Weekly Schedule:
- Tue vs. H-BC (MN)
- Thu vs. I/LP
- Sat vs. Mitchell Christian
Welcome to the rankings Cardinals!
Very rarely do you see a team with two Top 10 wins join the rankings over halfway through the season, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles.
There is a lot of good teams in or around the Top 10, and St. Mary finally broke through after a pair of wins last week.
The Cardinals will now look to keep on cruising through this week before a brutal end-of-the-year schedule that features #3 Centerville, #5 Arlington and #9 Wall.
