Marengo Academy girls, boys to play in state tournament

Published 6:44 pm Tuesday, February 5, 2013

The Marengo Academy girls basketball team (23-2) secured a spot in the AISA Elite Eight state tournament over the weekend.

The Lady Longhorns defeated Jackson Academy and Sparta Academy in the area tournament to advance. Marengo Academy is the No. 1 seed in Class A Region 2.

They will open the Elite Eight at Huntingdon College in Montgomery against Edgewood Academy on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 3 p.m. The winner will advance to the Final Four, and will play the winner of Chambers Academy and Patrician Academy on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 9 a.m.

Email newsletter signup

Head coach Danny Stenz said he feels good about his team’s chances in the first round.

“We’re going to try to keep doing what we’ve been doing,” he said. “We made smart passes and took good shots Saturday against Sparta. If we stay out of foul trouble, we’ll be all right. Edgewood plays a good 1-3-1 defense, but we’re taller then them, so we’re going to work on getting it down low and using our size advantage.”

The Marengo Academy boys also made the Elite Eight state tournament as a No. 2 seed. They defeated Sparta Academy in the first round of the area tournament before losing to Meadowview Christian in the championship game.

The Longhorns will play Lakeside in the Elite Eight on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 1:30 p.m. at Huntingdon College.