Preseason polls had Minnewaukan-Leeds finishing in the middle of the pack in District 8, but so far the Lions are proving a much higher finish is within reach.

The Lions currently share the top spot in the district standings with Langdon. Both teams remain unbeaten.

M-L (8-3) picked up a big district win on Jan 12, knocking off No. 9 ranked Rolla-Rock Lake.

"It was a game you really enjoyed watching as a coach,' said Lions coach Travis Risovi. "It wasn't always pretty, but our girls worked extremely hard, especially on defense. And it was a game they believed they could win."

The Lions have just two more district games remaining, including a Jan. 23 showdown with Langdon. Risovi said the goal is to secure that top spot and the first round bye in the district tournament that goes with it.

Just as important is for the team to continue to play well. M-L has won its last three games, but will be challenged in the coming weeks facing the likes of Langdon, New Rockford-Sheyenne, Four Winds-Warwick, Carrington and Harvey.

"Last year we didn't win many of those games, but we played well and that gave us confidence going into the postseason,' Risovi said. "Yes, we want to win those games, but make sure we continue to play at a high level."

Titans end losing skid

Towner-Granville-Upham pulled out of its mid-season tailspin last week, picking up a win over District 11 foe Sawyer.

After starting the season 3-2, the Titans dropped five in a row before its home victory over the Flashes.

Titan co-coach Malcolm Marcus is hopeful the team can use that win to springboard them into a good second half run. "Hopefully, we can string some wins together,' he said.

Struggles finding the basket continue to plague the team. "We're getting good shots, but we are not knocking them down,' he said. The Titans are averaging about 37 points per game, and need to boost that scoring, if they want to challenge some top-tier competition.

Senior Taylor Stone has emerged as the team's leading scorer, and Marcus is hopeful the team can establish two or three more consistent scorers who can get reach double digits with regularity.

The Titans have a good opportunity to pick up another district win this Thursday, Jan. 21 when they host Drake-Anamoose.

An offensive outburst by Panthers

Rugby coach Jennifer Brossart figured a good offensive effort would lead to a win over District 11 foe Drake-Anamoose, but she was just as surprised as many others by the scoring outburst by her team. The Panthers scored a season-high 81 points, including 26 in the opening quarter en route to a 60-point win over the Raiders.

Another impressive stat was the team's shooting percent. Rugby shot nearly 60 percent from the field. "And those weren't all layups,' Brossart pointed out. "There was a hand in the our face for many of our shots and we were five of six from beyond the arc. It was a very good shooting night."

The kind of night that builds confidence and Brossart is hopeful it will do just that.

The Panthers by no means were running up the score on a lesser opponent. "Coach John Clock (at Drake-Anamoose) knows that and we played a lot of our younger players,' Brossart said.

Comets have key game

Rolette-Wolford has just six regular season games remaining and only two against district opponents.

One of those games is this Monday, Jan. 18 at North Star (Cando).

The Comets have just two wins in the district and a win over the Bearcats would enable them to climb to the fifth spot in the seven-team district, and avoid having to face the No. 2 or 3 seeds in a first round game at the district tournament.

R-W's other remaining district game is against rival Rolla-Rock Lake on Jan. 25.

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