Wildcats lead the North

The Southeast Iowa Union covers 14 high school girls basketball teams, and almost half of those teams reside in the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division.

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Six area teams have been battling for the top spot in the SEISC North, and one squad currently has the lead.

After seven conference games, Columbus is a scolding hot 7-0 at the end of the 2023 calendar year.

The Wildcats stand one game above Lone Tree for first place in the North. Among those seven wins was a 64-58 road win over the Lions on Nov. 28.

Columbus’ win at Lone Tree, at the time, was nothing more than the second game on the schedule for the Wildcats, but now one month later, it proved to be the game that decided who would be on top of the league heading into the new year.

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The Wildcats have had to battle on a few different occasions. Hillcrest Academy played Columbus within 15 points in the season opener. Pekin came within 14 of the Wildcats in Packwood on Dec. 5, and Wapello fell by seven at home on Dec. 12.

Highland is currently sitting third in the North standings. The Huskies are sitting at 5-2 after their first seven division games. Highland holds wins over Hillcrest, Louisa-Muscatine, Pekin and defending champion Winfield-Mount Union.

The Huskies couldn’t take down Lone Tree on Dec. 2, falling 46-22. They stumbled at WACO one-and-a-half weeks later, falling 44-29.

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The Warriors are still in the race, sitting at 4-3. WACO has lost a couple of tough in conference games, dropping a one-point road contest at Pekin and a 10-point game against Lone Tree at home. Sandwiched in between those losses was a 61-43 defeat in Columbus.

Pekin has won two games by just one point. The Panthers started the SEISC North slate with the one-point win against WACO, and they beat Louisa-Muscatine on a home buzzer beater in the last game on the schedule.

WMU and Hillcrest played a thriller in Winfield on Dec. 9. The Wolves topped the Ravens 43-42 on a game-winning free throw in the final five seconds.

SEISC NORTH GIRLS BASKETBALL STANDINGS

1. Columbus 7-0

2. Lone Tree 6-1

3. Highland 5-2

4. Wapello 4-3

4. WACO 4-3

6. Pekin 4-4

7. Louisa-Muscatine 2-5

8. Winfield-Mount Union 1-7

9. Hillcrest Academy 0-8

LEADING SCORERS

1. Finley Jacque (10), Lone Tree 18.2

2. Madisen Kellogg (10), Winfield-Mount Union 16-8

3. Sarah Burton (12), Highland 16.5

4. Ariana Vergara (11), Columbus 16.0

5. Claire Withrow (10), 15.9