92.1 KMZA - 1A-DI Boys Frankfort Sub-State Semifinals
(Valley Falls vs. Doniphan West - click here to listen -- Frankfort vs. Centralia - click here to listen)

It didn't come easy but behind strong finishes the top two seeds in the boy’s 1A-Division I Frankfort Sub-State advanced to the Championship contest on Saturday with wins on Thursday night. Doniphan West took down Valley Falls 72-56 and Centralia topped Frankfort 60-49 earning the right to play each other for the Sub-State Championship on Saturday night. 

Doniphan West 72-56 over Valley Falls 

The contest started off as a see-saw affair with the lead changing hands multiple times throughout the first quarter and was knotted up at 19-19 after one between Doniphan West and Valley Falls. A late push to end the first half and strong play by Clayton Ridout gave the Mustangs an eight-point lead 40-32 entering intermission with Ridout notching 16 first half points. While Valley Falls hung tough the Dragons battled through some foul trouble with key players and Doniphan West worked the lead to double figures late in the third quarter heading into the fourth up 54-43. The Mustangs finished off the game with sound play and free throws to secure the 72-56 over Valley Falls. 

Levi Watts led Doniphan West with 24 points with 16 points coming in the second half, while Ridout finished with 16 and Devin Taylor scored 15 points. Newt Smith and Luke Blevins finished the scoring with nine and eight points, respectively as the Doniphan West starting five played almost the entire game with subbing. Senior starting five all together earned Community National Bank "Player's to Bank On" honors on KMZA. The win moves Doniphan West to 17-4 on the season. 

Valley Falls wraps up their season with a 6-16 record and were led by Hunter Aspinwall who finished the season strong posting 17 points in the loss. Nathan Pickerell chipped in 11 points for the Dragons. 

The win moves Doniphan West into the Sub-State Championship game on Saturday, March 3rd at 7:30pm against Centralia. 

Centralia 60-49 over Frankfort 

A strong energy level early helped Centralia pounce on the early lead going up 9-3, 11-3 and leading 16-7 after the first quarter against Frankfort. The Wildcats over the first four minutes of the second quarter outscored Centralia 12-4 to get within one-point at 20-19 but Centralia pushed the lead back out and the Panthers entered halftime up 30-23 getting a big late bucket by Dylan Boeckman which was a three-point play. Centralia managed to hold off Frankfort's advances in the second half and extended their lead up to double figures leading 44-33 after three quarters and finishing off the contest with free throws to secure the 60-49 win. 

A pair of double figure scorers led Centralia as Daegan Steinlage netted 18 points to lead the way, while Nathan Rempe scored 15 points. Steinlage's performance earned him Community National Bank "Player to Bank On" on KMZA radio. The win move Centralia to 14-9 on the season. 

Frankfort with the loss wrapped up their season with a 9-13 record as a trio of Wildcats tallied double figures. Mitchell Olson led Frankfort with 18 points, while Garret Dalinghaus and Brandon Anderson each scored 14 points. 

The win moves Centralia into the Sub-State Championship game on Saturday, March 3rd at 7:30pm against Doniphan West.