By Anthony Gorges
JC Post
Boys recap
Same story, different night for the Junction City Blue Jays as they clawed their way back and won a thrilling overtime game over Topeka High School by a final score of 67-64.
Junction City led the majority of the first three quarters and even led by as many as twelve on the night, but that lead vanished late in the fourth quarter as the Trojans roared back and eventually took the lead with less than 15 seconds to go in regulation.
After a timeout by Junction City head coach Nick Perez, Sophomore Lovell Autry drove to the basket, missed the shot, and Junior Larkin Turner missed the putback, but, with less than a second to go, senior Tre Ruffin delivered the game-tying basket to tie the game and sent it to overtime on senior night.
Overtime was another back-and-forth affair that saw Topeka lead by as many as four. The Blue Jays stormed back and took the lead on a corner three-pointer by Junior Jackson Austin with 13 seconds remaining. The Trojans had a three-point shot miss and then fouled Austin, who delivered two free throws with 2.8 seconds left in the game. A half-court heave was no good, and the Blue Jays won the game and the Centennial League Championship.
It is the first Centennial League Championship for Junction City and their first league title since the 2001-2002 season. At that time, Junction City was still in the I-70 League.
In the victory over the Trojans on Tuesday night, Larkin Turner led the way with 24 points, Jackson Austin added 12 points, and Ja'Twaan Williams scored 11. Senior Stewart Mitchell also added 10 points on senior night.
With the win, the Blue Jays secured the Centennial League title and improved to 18-2. Next up for Junction City is hosting Substate next Wednesday, Feb. 28.
Girls recap
The Junction City Lady Jays honored their two seniors Amyah O'Neal and Sara Rexrode on the final night of the regular season. The Lady Jays trailed 9-5 at the end of the first quarter, and then things unraveled from there, losing by a final score of 40-17.
Junction City was led in scoring by Sara Rexrode, who scored 10 of the 17 points.
With the loss, the Lady Jays fall to 1-19 to wrap up their regular season. Up next is their Substate matchup next Tuesday, Feb. 27.