Running the gauntlet

At long last, the journey of the regular season for the Carrington Cardinals has come to a conclusion.

Two more Region 2 games were on the docket before the start of tournaments beginning today (March 4) in Mayville, as the Cards were in action for two road tilts in Grafton and Devils Lake.

The first night, February 23, witnessed the second-ranked Spoilers rev up the gas for 67 points in the first three quarters, before putting it in neutral and cruising to a 79-44 win over visiting CHS.

One week ago, the Cards hit the road portion of their home-and-home with the Devils Lake Firebirds, and DLHS, ranked fourth in the final regular season poll, had a slow first quarter start before taking control in the third and winning, 71-30.

In both games, Grady Shipman was the leading scorer, as he put up outputs of 18 points against Grafton and 12 in the loss to the Firebirds.

Five Grafton players hit the double digit distinction, paced by Ryan Hanson's and Kyler Droog's respective nights of 18 and 15 points. The Spoilers now sit at 17-3 overall.

The Devils Lake game featured a big 25-point night from senior Wylee Delorme, which enabled him to get in the 1,000-point club for his career. Delorme connected on five three-point shots.

Beau Brodina was the other Firebird in doubles with 11, as 14 total players scored for Devils Lake to enable them to improve to 19-2 on the campaign.

CHS, 2-20 for the season entering Region 2 Tournament action, will be the number six seed and face one of the top five teams in Division A, whether it be Grafton, Devils Lake or Four Winds-Minnewaukan, as the third seed in the very top-heavy Region 2.

Seeding for the top three teams was undetermined as of press time, but the Cards are locked into the second game of the night following the Thompson/HCV first round game Monday evening which tips off at 5:30 p.m.

Region 2 Boys Basketball

Grafton 79, Carrington 44

at Grafton

Cgtn. 11 15 11 7 44

Grafton 22 21 24 12 79

Carrington: Grady Shipman 18, Taylen Mehring 9, Josh Bickett 6, Grady Idland 5, Ryder Bickett 2, Owen Hagel 2, Drew Matt 2. Totals: 19 FG, 1-1 FT, 9 fouls. Three-pointers: Mehring 3, Shipman, Idland.

Grafton: Ryan Hanson 18, Kyler Droog 15, Braylon Baldwin 12, Abram Sevigny 11, Tony Villarreal 10, Brody Lillemoen 6, Reggie Rice 5, LeeRoy Delgado 2. Totals: 32 FG, 8-11 FT, 5 fouls. Three-pointers: Hanson 3, Baldwin 2, Lillemoen 2.

Devils Lake 71, Carrington 30

at Devils Lake

Cgtn. 4 14 5 7 30

DL 13 22 24 12 71

Carrington: Shipman 12, J. Bickett 7, Mehring 5, R. Bickett 2, Hagel 2, Matt 2. Totals: 11 FG, 6-9 FT, 16 fouls. Three-pointers: J. Bickett, Mehring. Fouled out: Jake Otto.

Devils Lake: Wylee Delorme 25, Beau Brodina 11, Joel Nelson 7, Trason Beck 6, Brett Mertens 4, Parker Brodina 3, Mason Palmer 3, Josh Deckert 2, Kade Fee 2, Drew Hofstad 2, Fausten Olson 2, Brandon Windjue 2, Leo Franco 1, Oliver Wirth 1. Totals: 29 FG, 6-15 FT, 10 fouls. Three-pointers: Delorme 5, Nelson, Palmer.