Local Sports

AP splits games at GR in 2026 opener

The Aplington-Parkersburg basketball teams opened the new year by splitting at Gladbrook-Reinbeck Monday in games that aired on 99 The Wave and RadioOnTheGo’s YouTube channel. The girls fell 70-52 and the boys won 65-44.

The girls game was a classic tale of two halves. The Falcons opened hot, jumping out to a lead by as many as 12 points. The Rebels fought back to within three at halftime, then ripped off 25 points in the third quarter to pull away. AP scored relatively evenly in each half, but was outscored 45-24 in the second half.

“We came out of the gate really strong,” senior Ava Eddy says. “We executed and we did what we were supposed to and clearly from the score right away you were able to see how we were able to compete. Then I think later on in the game it kind of got away from us. We stopped focusing on what we were supposed to.”

GR’s Elly Sieh rattled off 24 points, most of which came in the second half. AP was led by Kiara Morris with 13 points and Kolbie Wangsness with 11. They’ve now lost five straight.

The boys were efficient throughout the night, especially in the middle two quarters. After a slow first quarter where they led 14-9, they widened the margin to 34-17 at halftime. Luke Jacobson was instrumental in kickstarting the offense, hitting consecutive three-pointers early.

The lead grew to as many as 32 in the second half before the Rebels closed the gap with bench players in the game. Junior Wes Shirk says it was a culmination of the Christmas break practices.

“We had a good week of practice, and I think it was just a good game to show what we’ve been working on,” Shirk says. “I think it was a good game to get back into rhythm of what we’re trying to get our goal for this year. We’ve been really working hard in practice taking care of the ball. I mean we’re getting there, not quite there yet, but we’ll get there eventually.”