Metro Sports Report

Mount Mercy men trim Simpson

DUBUQUE - The Mount Mercy men's basketball team edged Simpson, 78-74, Tuesday in the first round of the Jon Davison Classic in Dubuque.

The Mustangs were clinging to a 76-74 lead with five seconds left when Tre Wagner stepped to the foul line for Mount Mercy. Wagner made two foul shots to give the Mustangs a four-point lead and clinch the victory.

Wagner and Mychael Brawner scored 17 points apiece for Mount Mercy (10-4). Alex Houston added 15 points and CJ Parker netted 12.

Sam Amsbaugh tossed in 24 points for Simpson (6-4).

No. 6 KCC women make tourney finals

PEORIA, Ill. - Caitlin Sudduth scored 17 points for the second straight game Tuesday as No. 6 Kirkwood topped Schoolcraft, 59-41, in the semifinals of the Illinois Central Holiday Tournament.

The Eagles (13-3) will face NIACC or Illinois Central in the championship game at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

Deleyah Harris scored 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds as Kirkwood won its 10th straight game. Madison Wood contributed nine points and 12 rebounds. Cyerra Hutchins provided eight points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.

KIRKWOOD (59): Harris 3 3-3 10, Lemons 0 0-0 0, Miles 1 0-0 2, Downs 1 2-2 5, Wheatly 0 0-0 0, Oberman 2 1-2 6, Sudduth 6 4-6 17, Voss 1 0-0 2, Hutchins 2 2-3 8, Dampier 0 0-0 0, Jennings 0 0-0 0, Wood 4 1-6 9. Totals 20 13-24 59.

3-point goals - Kirkwood 6 (Hutchins 2, Harris 1, Downs 1, Oberman 1, Sudduth 1).

Mount Mercy women fall to No. 10 club

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - The Mount Mercy women's basketball team gave 10th-ranked St. Francis a good battle Tuesday before falling, 60-56, at a holiday event in West Palm Beach.

Ashley Dolan led the Mustangs (6-10) with 14 points. Abby Herb and Alisa Weiland scored 11 points apiece. Makenzie Zeitler grabbed 12 rebounds.

Charnelle Reed led St. Francis (11-1) with 21 points.

ST. FRANCIS (60): Ekhomu 1 4-4 7, Osusky 3 2-4 8, Reed 10 1-2 21, Jordan 4 0-0 11, Giddings 0 0-0 0, Markovic 3 3-6 11, Brown 0 0-2 0, Rouse 0 0-0 0, Brand 1 0-0 2. Totals 22 10-18 60.

MOUNT MERCY (56): Herb 5 0-0 11, Weiland 4 0-0 11, Harmon 2 2-3 6, Zeitler 1 2-4 5, Thompson 0 0-0 0, Blowers 0 0-0 0, Jordan 3 0-0 9, Sexton 0 0-0 0, Lampe 0 0-0 0, O'Donnell 0 0-0 0, Dolan 5 3-6 14, Lehman 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 7-13 56.

Halftime - St. Francis 35, Mount Mercy 27. 3-point goals - St. Francis 6 (Jordan 3, Markovic 2, Ekhomu 1), Mount Mercy 9 (Weiland 3, Jordan 3, Herb 1, Zeitler 1, Dolan 1).

Help us pick the top stories of 2015

I sat down at the computer Thursday and spent two hours reviewing all the stories we've posted on the Metro Sports Report website in 2015.

I went through the archives day by day, story by story, making a list (and checking it twice) to refresh my memory of everything that's transpired this past year. The goal was to pick a "Top 10" list for 2015, but I quickly ran into a problem.

It's too hard.

The number of big stories was truly amazing and the list got longer and longer as I flipped through each day, each week and each month from Dec. 24 back to Jan. 1. I went backwards, due to the way the stories are archived, so it was like flipping through the pages of a scrapbook from back to front.

Then it hit me: Why not ask our readers to vote for the top stories?

Why don't you tell me, instead of me telling you?

I've put my own informal list together, based on the stories that really touched me or grabbed my interest. The No. 1 story for me was a truly sad one, but it also became an uplifting story as time went by.