Courtwarming 2026: Survive the Upside Down!
Make plans to join us for Courtwarming on Friday, February 13th as we host the Otterville Eagles! Please note: since this is a Varsity-only matchup, the Courtwarming Queen coronation ceremony will take place during halftime of the Varsity Boys contest.
CANCELLED - Encore's show choir event of the Mt. Vernon Mid Winter Classic scheduled for Saturday January 24th, has been cancelled due to incoming weather. They are working on a reschedule date.
Jr. High BLUEBIRDS—LET’S PACK THE GYM!
Tomorrow night, our Junior High Girls & Boys Basketball teams take on the Stover Bulldogs, and they need YOU in the stands bringing the energy!
📍 Location: Junior High Gym
⏰ Game Time: Girls tip off at 5:00 PM (boys to follow)
🎨 Theme: RED • WHITE • & BLUE
Dress out, show your school pride, and get LOUD for our Bluebirds!
🍿 BONUS!
Stop by the Student Council table at the concession stand to check in and show your attendance. If you check in, you’ll earn a sweet treat on Friday at school—don’t miss it!
⚠️ Important Reminders:
When you come to the games, you are here to WATCH and CHEER 🗣️👏
No walking around the school during the games
Have a ride arranged for when the games are over
Let’s show Stover what Bluebird pride looks like. 💙
See you in the Junior High gym tomorrow night! 🏀🐦
The JV game started at 5:30 and Lincoln outscored Cole Camp 6-2 in the 1st qtr. Jarrett Phillips with the Bluebird tally.
Landon Bauer with a 3 mid 2nd qtr, then all Cardinal baskets. They scored the next 14 to lead 22-5 at halftime.
Several layups and a pair of traditional 3-point plays netted Lincoln another 16 in the 3rd. Grant Kullman a single freethrow for Cole Camp. Lincoln 38-6 after 3.
Much better production in the last frame. Colton Mellen a long-distance 3 and Colby Heimsoth a freethrow. After two Lincoln baskets, Cole Camp added 9 points in the last 3:20. Mellen a basket plus free throw, Freddy Hampton a basket and Phillips another 4. Final score of Lincoln 42, Cole Camp 19.
Scoring: Phillips 6, Mellen 6, Bauer 3, Hampton 2, Kullman 1, Heimsoth 1. Grayson Rutherford with 13 for Lincoln.
Very nice 1st qtr effort for the Varsity Bluebirds facing the Cardinals who have only one loss this season. Will Espey with 4 early. Blake Abey followed with 4 also, but Riley Sanders knocked down three 3's to offset. Kolton Phillips put Cole Camp ahead briefly mid qtr, and then another Phillips basket tied it at 14 after 1.
As if a switch had been flipped, Cole Camp went scoreless until the 2:10 mark of the 2nd qtr. Meanwhile Lincoln had added 13. Espey with 2 of 2 freethrows and Abey a freethrow and a basket as Cole Camp trailed 19-30 at halftime.
The Bluebirds went all the 3rd qtr trying to find the basket and came up empty. Surely frustrating but no poor sportsmanship shown. Lincoln put another 11 on the board and so led 41-19 after 3.
Mentioned sportsmanship, and that was evident as the Cole Camp and Lincoln cheerleaders combined for a short routine prior to the last qtr. Yep we are all humans and supporting each other is far better than selfishness!
Colton Dieckman opened the 4th with a basket ahead of a traditional 3-point play from Abey. After a Lincoln freethrow, Philips tossed in 5 narrowing the margin to 13. But a pair of 3's for Lincoln widened the gap to 19.
Three and a half minutes to go, could Cole Camp make another push? Philips with a fieldgoal and 2 freethrows. Burdick and Dieckman each a basket to make it a 37-48 game with 1:15 to go. Lincoln added 2 freethrows to seal a 50- 37 win, but a respectable score for Cole Camp considering a scoreless period and half another.
Scoring: Phillips 13, Abey 12, Espey 6, Dieckman 4, Burdick 2. Riley Sanders led Lincoln with 18, about 5 over his average. Abey 8 rebounds, Dieckman, Kaiser, Phillips, and Espey 4 each. Thank you to Arthur Keuper for writing this article!!!
Varsity played first and Kristin Carl scored 4 early. Lillyann Mellen with 4 mid qtr. Lincoln nailed a couple 3's to offset and make a 10-10 tie with 2 minutes to go. Payten Brandt buried a 3 which helped Cole Camp lead 17-12 after 8 minutes.
Mellen with a defensive rebound turned to a full court run for a layup early in the 2nd. Lincoln senior Rebekah Helland notched a pair of 3's mid qtr making it a 2 point game.
A bag of candy fell off the seats and onto the floor at the 3-minute mark. Several players, including a referee quickly helped pick up and eat (just kidding) the evidence. Cole Camp ahead 26-22 at the break.
Emarie Eckhoff tied the game with a 3 nearing mid third qtr. Cole Camp shooting was about as cold as the outdoor temps, going scoreless for 5:40. Leah Allison then tossed in 4, but Lincoln scored late so a slim 32-30 Cole Camp lead after 3.
Carl with a steal and basket early 4th, then Lincoln added 2. Katherine Timoshchuk a basket for Cole Camp, Lincoln matched it. So a 36-34 score as the 2-10 Lady Cardinals were giving the Lady Bluebirds all they could handle.
After a couple narrow misses, Madilynn Ogle got a 3 pointer to fall at 4:32. Timoshchuk followed with a field goal before Eckhoff added 2 for Lincoln. Finally Mellen and Timoshchuk finished it off with a basket each for a Cole Camp 45-36 victory.
Scoring: Mellen 13, Timoshchuk 10, Carl 8, Allison 6, Brandt 3, Ogle 3, Dieckman 2. Eckhoff paced Lincoln with 12. Mellen 9 rebounds, Allison and Carl 5 each.
Two qtrs of JV followed and it was nearly all red. Lincoln freshman Ciriniti Benham scored 8 of their 10 in the opening qtr. Addison Rodriguez the lone Cole Camp basket. Lincoln 10-2 after 1 qtr.
Lauren Hesse with 3 freethrows in the last JV qtr for Cole Camp. Lincoln added another 10 so the final was Lincoln 20, Cole Camp 5.
Bluebird Basketball: Another three games of basketball took place on January 13th as Cole Camp hosted the Mustangs.
Good start for the JV boys as Micah Davis scored 5, Colton Mellen and Landon Bauer each tossed in a 3. Cole Camp ahead 15-8 after 1 qtr.
Two long range 3's were part of a 10-pt run by the Mustangs in the 2nd qtr, giving them an 18- 17 lead at halftime.
Jarrett Phillips with 4 in the 3rd as the lead switched back and forth. Cooper White hadn't scored until mid 3rd qtr for the Mustangs, but he popped in 7 from there which allowed Northwest a 29-27 margin after 3.
White another three shots from downtown in the 4th. Countering for Cole Camp, a hustling Phillips with a couple steals and three field goals. In addition Mellen scored 8 in the last 1:20, the last 3 on a corner shot to tie the game at 41 end of regulation.
One minute of overtime. Each team with a field goal, but Northwest also with a freethrow so they took the JV contest 44-43.
Scoring: Phillips 12, Mellen 11, Davis 9, Bauer 7, Kullman 4. White with 19 for NW.
The Lady Mustangs have only lost one game this year and are led by a group of talented seniors. One of those is Mary Walker who nailed three 3's in the opening qtr. Lillyann Mellen did her best to offset that scoring 6 for Cole Camp. Northwest up 11-6 after 1.
Nearly same production in the 2nd qtr. Cole Camp scored another 6 while Northwest added 12 to their total. Halftime score of Mustangs 23-12. The Lady Bluebirds were working hard as evidence of rebound totals at the break. Mellen 6, Carl 5, Dieckman 4, Allison 4.
The lead had grown to 15 by the one minute mark of the 3rd. But Cole Camp dug in and scored 7 in a hurry! Leah Allison her second basket of the qtr and Mellen topped off her 8 points in the frame with a 3 at the buzzer. Northwest 34 Cole Camp 26 after 3.
Likely the top female athlete around regardless of sport, Gabby Meyer had 9 points prior to the last qtr. She scored 8 in the final minutes keeping Northwest in control. Final score of Mustangs 44, Bluebirds 34. Still a loss but the Lady Bluebirds certainly gave it a lot of effort and a respectable outcome!
Scoring: Mellen 20, Allison 8, Carl 4, Ogle 2. Walker with 18, Meyer 17 pacing the Lady Mustangs.
Nearly identical Varsity Boys records as both teams are 5-7 on the year. Colton Dieckman with 5 and Will Espey tallied 6 for the Bluebirds in the opening qtr. However the Mustangs with a 12-2 run mid frame held a 19-11 lead after 1 qtr.
Sophomore Hayden Meyer, brother of Gabby, had scored 7 in the 1st 8 minutes. He was whistled for a 3rd foul very early 2nd qtr. Could Cole Camp benefit?
Blake Abey with a pair of fieldgoals and 2 of 2 freethrows. Dieckman followed with a traditional 3 point play and a field goal. Still trailing by 5 nearing halftime, Abey tied the game briefly before a final basketball by Northwest to lead 29-27 at halftime.
Ty Loganbill and Kolton Phillips with baskets mid 3rd, though Northwest was still ahead 38-35. What followed was a delight for the Blue Crew! Dieckman and Abey each 4 points and a steal. Brett Burdick nailed a 3 giving Cole Camp a 46-38 lead after 3.
Just as quick though in the 4th, Donovan Dexter sank a pair of 3's so a 2 point game with 6:15 to go. Dasch Kaiser netted 4 as part of a 7-point spurt. After a Mustang 3, Dieckman 4 of 4 free throws and a very timely blocked shot by Espey to seal a 58-47 win for Cole Camp!
Scoring: Abey 19, Dieckman 18, Espey 8, Kaiser 6, Burdick 3, Phillips 2, Loganbill 2. Dexter with 17 leading Northwest. Espey 11 rebounds, Kaiser 6. Thank you to Arthur Keuper for writing this article!!!