Lady Tigers finish championship year in Div. IV district semifinals

LOGAN — For the past two seasons, the McClain Lady Tigers have showcased their skills on the basketball court with back-to-back conference championships, including this season where they won a co-FAC title and earned 19 wins.

The successful season of No. 3 seeded McClain came to an end on Wednesday evening, as they fell to  No. 2 seeded Logan Elm, 51-42 in the Division IV SE District Semifinals at Logan High School. 

McClain this season not only won a co-championship in the Frontier Athletic Conference with a 9-1 record, but they also had a 15-game winning streak from Nov. 26 through Jan. 22, plus they added another 1,000-plus point scorer in program history when junior Paisley Pryor achieved the milestone on Jan. 22 at Jackson. Against Logan Elm, Pryor led MHS with 21 points with six two-point baskets, two 3-pointers and she was 3-of-6 from the free-throw line. 

MHS ends the 2025-26 season at 19-5 overall as they were also 1-1 this postseason. 

“I felt like we were pretty prepared for the most part. We didn’t really execute like we should, like we should have to be able to win that game, but it happens,” McClain head coach Shania Massie said. “Our shots weren’t falling, and some things didn't go our way, and that’s OK. You are going to have to face adversity, and hopefully they learn from something, especially the underclassmen.”

McClain was within three points of Logan Elm at the conclusion of the first quarter on Wednesday, trailing by a 13-10 score, though they led by three points twice in the opening quarter and held the lead until around the 2:00 mark of the first frame. 

The Lady Tigers opened the game with a 3-pointer from junior Allie Burgess, and though Logan Elm equaled the basket with a 3-pointer by Kennedy Gruff, MHS took back the top spot with two free throws by senior Leah Lovett with 4:31 left in the first frame. 

After the Lady Braves (20-4) tied the score with a basket, Pryor drilled a 3-pointer with 3:14 on the clock for a three-point MHS lead, but six consecutive points later by Logan Elm, including a 3-pointer from Palynn Wray, a layup by Kiki Ingram and a free throw from Kimmy Petty pushed the Lady Braves ahead 13-8 as three of those points were off McClain turnovers. 

Ingram led Logan Elm with 24 points as she made nine two-pointers, one 3-pointer and was 3-of-5 from the free-throw line. 

MHS ended the first with two free throws made by freshman McKenzie West. 

Logan Elm outscored McClain, 11-8 in the second quarter, but MHS got to within one point of tying the score with a basket by Lovett to start the second. Logan Elm answered with seven consecutive points scored by Ingram, including a 3-pointer with 6:03 left in the frame, as that possession also was off a turnover by the Lady Tigers. 

Pryor made it a six-point deficit with two free throw conversions, but the two teams exchanged baskets to end the second frame, with both of McClain’s baskets in that final 3:58 span coming from junior Larah Henson as McClain trailed 24-18 at halftime. Henson finished the game with 12 points off four two-point baskets, one 3-pointer and she was 1-of-2 from the free-throw line. 

The deficit stayed at six points when the third quarter wrapped up as each team scored 12 points, for a 36-30 score headed into the final frame. McClain’s points in the third included a put-back basket to start the third by Pryor, and following seven points all from Ingram (including two steals resulting in four points), MHS trailed by 11 at 31-20. 

A 3-pointer by Henson made things a little closer on the scoreboard, and MHS also had a free throw made by Pryor, followed later in the third with two layups from the junior, as she too had a steal and basket. MHS ended the third with a 6-0 run, as Henson followed Pryor’s two baskets with a bucket as she picked up the loose ball and put it through the hoop with 37 seconds left in the quarter. 

LEHS outscored McClain 15-12 in the fourth quarter, as Logan Elm scored the first four points of the fourth frame off baskets by Gillian Savage and Petty. 

McClain got to within six points of tying the score with 4:04 and 1:14 left in the fourth frame, byt eventually Logan Elm ended the fourth with three free throws on three trips to the line for the nine-point win over the Lady Tigers. 

Other final scoring totals for McClain were: West (2), Burgess (3) and Lovett (4). Team totals for the Lady Tigers were 11 two-point baskets, four 3-pointers, and they were 8-of-12 from the free-throw line. 

More final scoring totals by Logan Elm included: Wray (5), Petty (8), Groff (6), Maleah Gardner (2) and Savage (6). Team totals for the Lady Braves were 15 two-point baskets, five 3-pointers, and they went 6-of-11 in their free throw attempts. 

No. 2 seeded Logan Elm (20-4) will face No. 1 seeded Circleville (20-4) on Saturday, Feb. 28 at 1 p.m. at Logan High School in the district final game. 

Seniors for McClain are Karlee McGlone, Becca Bergstrom, Brie Cummins and Leah Lovett. 

“I’ve had Brie and Leah for three years now, and I have gained a good relationship with them, and they are going to do great things in life,” Massie said. “I just told them in the locker room that I hope they excel and they learn something from basketball so they can take it on in their adult life perspective, whether it is being a mother, in their careers or whatever it is. I’m proud of those girls. They’ve done all these extracurricular activities, and they are a part of a lot of things in our community, and I feel like they have my back and I have their back.

“Becca didn’t play last year but wanted to finish her senior year out, and she did things we needed her to do. She didn’t score a lot of points, but she was definitely a part of our team and helping us do what we needed to do.”

Massie also spoke about the community support for the Lady Tigers. 

“We always have the biggest respect for our community because they are always going to show up and show out wherever we are,” she said. “We’ve had multiple people and sponsors prepare meals for us and all kinds of stuff, and we are just thankful for everything our community does for us.”

BOX SCORE
MHS     10 08 12 12 — 42
LEHS    13 11 12 15 — 51

LOGAN ELM (51) — P.Wray 1 (1) 0-0 5, K.Petty 1 (1) 3-6 8, K.Ingram 9 (1) 3-5 24, K.Groff 0 (2) 0-0 6, M.Gardner 1 (0) 0-0 2, G.Savage 3 (0) 0-0 6. TOTALS: 15 (5) 6-11 51.

MCCLAIN (42) — L.Henson 4 (1) 1-2 12, P.Pryor 6 (2) 3-6 21, M.West 0 (0) 2-2 2, A.Burgess 0 (1) 0-0 3, L.Lovett 1 (0) 2-2 4. TOTALS: 11 (4) 8-12 42.