The West Liberty girls’ basketball team dropped a pair of games last week, falling 61-33 to Mid-Prairie and losing their second matchup Friday on the road to Tipton 43-34.
The Comet girls fall to 1-4 on the season following the losses.
Tuesday, the Comets played host to the Golden Hawks, and trailed from the opening tip-off. The visitors extended to a 20-8 lead after the opening quarter and extended that lead in the second quarter after matching their scoring output, as the Comets trailed 40-14 going into the half.
A low scoring third quarter was the Comets continue to lose ground before offense ramped up in the final quarter, as the Comets outscored the Golden Hawks 16-14.
Friday, the Comets capped their week with a visit to Tipton to continue conference play.
The teams found themselves deadlocked after the opening quarter at 12 all, before the Tiger defense locked the Comets up for five points in the second, and the Comets went to the break trailing 23-17.
The Tigers’ offense was able to extend the lead in the third quarter, as the Comets managed another five points in the third and fell further behind.
A 12-point outing in the final quarter was able to cut the Comet deficit down to manageable, but late timely scoring from the Tigers managed enough points to keep the Comets at bay.
This was the first Comets loss to Tipton since 2019.
Full West Liberty statistics for both matchups were unavailable as of Tuesday morning.
The Comets will attempt to secure win No. 2 on the road Friday against West Branch before matching up against Top 5 Iowa City Regina the following Tuesday before Christmas break.
While the Comets have been on the road most of the time so far, they will play seven of their final 11 games of the season at home.
As the standings sit as of December 12, the Regals top the conference with a 3-0 record (5-1 overall). Behind them is Mid-Prairie (2-0 conference, 4-2 overall) and Tipton (2-1 conference, 4-2 overall). West Liberty maintains fourth place with one conference win.
There is still plenty of time, and ripe opportunities, for the Comets to climb the standings.
While West Liberty has been on the road most of the time so far, they will play seven of their final 11 games of the season at home.