Holiday tourney champ Carroll’s JV basketball team won the Clinton Prairie JV Basketball Holiday Tourney on Dec 28. The Cougars defeated Tri Central 41-39 in the first game and Clinton Prairie 40-36 in the championship game. The team is pictured (l-r): Front - Assistant Coach Jared Yoder, Blake Cromer, Rickie Burns, Matt Downham, Daniel Huckstep, Logan Gaines, Coach John Filbrun. Back - Andrew Beaver, Seth Johnson, Blake Seward, Jarrid Robertson, Aaron Spesard, Assistant Coach Julie Bush. Photo provided Carroll’s Junior Varsity brought home the championship from the Clinton Prairie Holiday Tourney last week. The Cougars edged Tri Central 41-39 in the first round and defeated their host Clinton Prairie 40-36 in the title game.

Against Tri Central, Carroll built a 12 to 4 lead after one period and maintained a 27 to 18 advantage at halftime. They were up 38 to 28 going into the final six minutes of the game. That’s when they almost gave the game away, connecting on only 1 of 8 free throws. They saw their lead dwindle to 2 points, but that was enough for the win.

In the championship game, host Prairie opened up a 12 to 4 lead but the Cougars regrouped in the second quarter, outscoring the Gophers 17 to 6 to go up 21-18 by intermission. The young Cougars held a slim 29-28 lead after three, but outscored their host 11-8 in the final six minutes to claim the championship.