Raiders roll in district opener, 71-19

MOUNT AYR — As far as Mount Ayr coach Bret Ruggles is concerned, “It’s going to get serious real quick now” after watching his team dispatch overmatched Clarinda Academy Thursday night, 71-19.

The top-seeded Raiders move into the Class 1A District 13 semifinals at home Tuesday against Sidney (12-10), a 62-38 winner Thursday over Fremont-Mills. Tipoff is 8 p.m. after Bedford takes on East Mills in the other semifinal game.

Mount Ayr had a 16-3 lead in Thursday’s district opener after one quarter, and blew open the game with a 17-0 second quarter for a 33-3 lead at the break. Reserves got several minutes of playing time in the second half, including the first two points of the year scored by senior Jordan McAlexander.

“The biggest thing for us was to get back on the floor because it had been seven days since we played Bedford here,” Ruggles said. “Getting a matchup like this in the first (district) game was a result of getting the No. 1 seed and all the work that went into that during the season. We know Sidney has the Jorgensen kid who can shoot the ball real well. They will play hard, but it’s nice to have them here at home and that’s another perk of getting that top seed.”

Dawson Frost led the Raiders with 14 points. His putback near the end of the first half propelled him past 1993 graduate Drew Larsen as the school’s all-time scorer, based on available records. Larsen finished with 1,111 points and Frost now has 1,115 points.

“That’s just a testament to Dawson and how much work he puts in,” Ruggles said. “I’m glad for him.”

Cole Clymer had 11 points for the Raiders Thursday and Isaac Grose finished with 10 points and a team-high six rebounds. Payton Weehler dished out five assists while scoring five points for the Raiders, now 19-2. Cayden Nelson and Elijah Bryant each scored five points for Clarinda Academy, which bows out at 4-16.

Mount Ayr 71, Clarinda Academy 19

Clar Acad (19)—30133

Mt. Ayr (71)—16172612

CLARINDA ACADEMY (19) — (FG FT PTS) Totals — 6 5-109 19. Elijah Bryant 1 3-4 5, Cayden Nelson 2 0-0 5, Emananauel Arredondo 1 1-2 3, Isiah Burrows 1 0-0 3, Joshua Schmidt 1 0-0 2, Mason Schroeder 0 1-2 1. 3-point goals — 2 (Nelson 1, Burrows 1). Team fouls — 21. Fouled out — Arredondo.

MOUNT AYR (71) — (FG FT PTS) Totals — 26 17-25 71. Dawson Frost 6 2-4 14, Cole Clymer 4 3-3 11, Isaac Grose 4 2-2 10, Jaixen Frost 3 1-1 8, Cayden Lambert 2 0-0 5, Payton Weehler 1 3-5 5, Austin Greenland 1 2-4 4, Erik Trujillo 2 0-0 4, Kolben Klommhaus 1 1-2 3, Dalton Elwood 1 1-2 3, Zach Doster 1 0-0 2, Jordan McAlexander 0 2-2 2. 3-point goals — 2 (Lambert 1, J. Frost 1). FG shooting — 26-60 (43.3 percent). Rebounds — 26 (Grose 6, D. Frost 4, J. Frost 3, Weehler 3, Clymer 3). Assists — 13 (Weehler 5, D. Frost 2, Klommhaus 2, Lambert 2). Steals — 18 (Weehler 5, Grose 4, J. Frost 3). Blocked shots — 5 (Clymer 3). Team fouls — 5. Fouled out — None.