Mountain Grove Panthers become Co-SCA champions

For the first time since the 2018 season, the Mountain Grove Panthers’ basketball team can be called conference champions.
This honor came after they defeated Willow Springs and Salem last week to clinch a share of the South Central Association (SCA) Conference championship.
“I am just excited for our kids,” said Mountain Grove head coach Nick Openshaw. “Not just the varsity, but all the way down. This is the first time we’ve got a piece of the prize since 2018. It’s a testament to the kids we have, but also the foundation that has been laid the first few years here by the seniors before them. We are thrilled for completing our first goal of winning the conference, but have to get refocused on goal two in the district.”
On Saturday, the Panthers traveled to Salem and held off a Tigers’ fourth quarter run to pick up a 63-49 victory.
Mountain Grove finished 6-1 in the SCA, with their lone blemish coming in a Jan. 17 three-point loss to a Liberty (Mountain View) team they would end up beating 10 days later in the Panther Classic.
Mountain Grove held a slim two-point edge in the first quarter against Salem as Brody Emery scored six points.
In the second quarter, Kale Gardner had eight points to push the Panthers’ lead to 27-20 at halftime.

(Read the rest of the story in the Feb. 26 issue of the Wright County Journal.)