Trissi Hardin / Raymore Journal

Belton High School freshman Amaya Crowder shoots from the free throw line last week in the Lady Pirates’ 48-15 loss against Kansas City North.

The 2021-22 high school winter sports seasons are past the opening stages, but not to the finish line yet as they work to prepare themselves for that final stretch in around a month.

Teams across Cass County continue to experience highs and lows throughout each season with some teams searching to find consistency and others looking for the finer touches to propel them as the finish line of the season approaches.

The Raymore-Peculiar Panther boys basketball team competed in the North Kansas City basketball tournament last week where the Panthers posted a 1-2 record and earned 6th place in the 8-team field. The Panthers opened the tournament falling 63-47 against Kansas City Rockhurst, which set them up against Kansas City Schlagle on Wednesday night in the consolation semifinals.

The Panthers were able to score their lone victory in the tournament, 69-41 against Schlagle which propelled Ray-Pec to a showdown against St. Pius X in the 5th place game in the tournament.

St. Pius X was able to earn a 64-56 victory over Ray-Pec in the finale leaving the Panthers 6th place in the tournament.

The Lady Panthers, meanwhile, also had three games last week, but the Ray-Pec girls fell in all three contests.

The Lady Panthers opened the week falling 53-28 against Liberty on Monday, then dropped a 66-44 contest against Liberty North on Tuesday and closed the week falling 49-43 against Park Hill on Thursday. The Ray-Pec girls now stand with a 4-11 record and are trying to snap a 5-game losing streak.

The Belton High School boys basketball team competed int eh CW Stesseman Invitational where they went 1-2 and finished in 6th place.

The Pirates opened the tournament Tuesday, falling 66-57 against Columbia Hickman, which set up a contest against Kansas City East on Thursday, which the Pirates won 60-29 sending them to the 5th place contest against Olathe Northwest, which Belton lost 59-51 to finish in 6th place in the 8-team tournament.

The Belton Lady Pirates also struggled last week, falling 48-15 against Kansas City North on Tuesday, to fall to 2-9 on the season.

The Harrisonville Lady Wildcats continued their successful season with a pair of victories last week, topping Kansas City Central 51-31 on Tuesday and closing the week with a 54-32 victory over Smith-Cotton on Friday to improve to 14-1 on the season and extending their winning streak to 13 games.

The Archie High School boys’ basketball picked up a pair of wins last week as the Whirlwind boys topped Jasper 61-24 on Tuesday and followed that with a 79-52 victory over Windsor on Thursday.

The Lady Whirlwinds, meanwhile, also scored two victories as they defeated Jasper 56-32 and topped Windsor 59-21 to improve to 9-5 on the season.

The Drexel Bobcat boys defeated Sheldon 54-31 on Tuesday, but the Bobcat game against Miami on Thursday was postponed until February 14 due to weather.

The Lady Bobcats also defeated Sheldon Tuesday, scoring a 48-45 victory to improve to 11-3 on the season.

The Midway Viking boys were up and down last week as they opened with a 57-45 win over Appleton City, but fell 56-37 on Wednesday to see their seasonal record fall to 7-8.

The Lady Vikings, meanwhile, were also on a roller coaster as they defeated Appleton City 55-40 but fell to Lone Jack 51-28.

The Pleasant Hill Rooster boys defeated Excelsior Springs 69-51 on Tuesday, improving their seasonal record to 4-8 while the Chicks fell to Excelsior Springs 52-49 and now stand with a 4-10 record.

The Sherwood teams were in action on Tuesday at Leeton, the girls fell 65-32 to fall to 7-6 on the season, but the boys score was not reported in.