For the sixth time in the history of the Western Trails Conference, the Kimball girls basketball team captured the tournament championship by downing Mitchell 50-42 in the title game Saturday evening at Western Nebraska Community College's Cougar Palace in Scottsbluff.

The Longhorns now trail only Mitchell by one for the most tournament championships in the conference's history.

"You never get tired of it," Kimball coach Ken Smith said of winning the title. "They're all unique in their own way and they're all great. I'm just so proud and excited for these girls. They've worked so hard and have come a long way since the beginning of the year. It was a total team effort again."

A day after surviving a grueling, double-overtime slugfest with Bridgeport in the semifinals on Friday, Kimball was faced with a Mitchell squad making its first appearance in the championship game since 2003. It also was the fourth meeting of the season between the squads. The Longhorns won the previous three by a double-figure average.

"To beat a team four times in a row is hard. Mitchell has been improving so much and I knew we were going to get their best shot," Smith said. "I think we were a little tired physically at times from [Friday's] double overtime win against Bridgeport, but I think the biggest key was our quick start to the first quarter and third quarter. We were able to build a nice lead and then did what we had to do to hold on at the end."

Trailing 5-4 in the early stages of the opening quarter, Kimball grabbed control with a 15-0 run that pushed the Longhorns into a 19-5 lead with just over six minutes to play in the first half. The run was sparked by 3-pointers from Shelby Vogel, Jessica Hanks and Darbi Klinkhammer.

Mitchell did its best to stay within striking distance as the Tigers clawed back within just 24-17 at intermission. The Tigers' charge in the second quarter was led by Andee and Chalsey Grentz, who scored all 12 of Mitchell's points in the frame. Chalsey Grentz's back-to-back 3-pointers in the final minute closed out the half strongly for the Tigers.

Kimball looked to have put the game on ice after scoring 14 of the first 18 points of the third quarter to build its advantage to 38-21. However, Mitchell closed the frame on an 8-0 run highlighted by a three-point play by Nicole Houston following a steal.

The Tigers continued their charge in the final quarter eventually closing within just four on two different occasions. But Kimball's ball-handling poise and steady aim at the free-throw line helped the Longhorns prevail down the stretch.

Despite the setback, Mitchell coach Kenna Hubbard lauded her team's effort and will to not give up throughout the game.

"All season long I've said our girls have so much competitiveness and such a will to win. It was exciting to see them fight to the end tonight," Hubbard said. "It was a hard-fought game. Kimball's a great team. This was the fourth time we've seen them this season and I thought this was the most success we had against them. It's always disappointing when things don't turn out the way you hope, but I'm proud of our girls. Making it this far was a big goal for us. We played some great basketball this weekend."

Klinkhammer led three Longhorns in the double-figure scoring column with 18 points. She also collected a team-high six steals and pulled down eight rebounds. Annie McCloud scored 11 points and had nine rebounds, while Tori Reader finished with 10 points and five big blocks. Reader was 8 of 10 at the foul line.

Havannah Newens led Mitchell in scoring with 16 points. She also led the Tigers on the glass with seven rebounds. Houston added eight points and five rebounds.

Kimball (13-7)............................14 10 14 12 - 50

Mitchell (10-11)............................5 12 12 13 - 42

KIMBALL

Darbi Klinkhammer 18, Annie McCloud 11, Jessica Hanks 6, Shelby Vogel 5, Tori Reader 10.

MITCHELL

Liz Cunningham 3, Chalsey Grentz 8, Havannah Newens 16, Andee Grentz 7, Nicole Houston 8.

* * *

Bridgeport claims third place

Sydney Faessler scored 15 points with four 3-pointers to lead Bridgeport to a 44-41 win over Morrill in the consolation game of the Western Trails Conference Tournament on Saturday.

Ashley Stevens tallied a double-double performance of 13 points and 12 rebounds for Bridgeport, who led by as many as 14 in the second half.

Alex Howell led Morrill with 15 points and eight rebounds. Kady Lower added 12 points and seven rebounds for the Lions.

Morrill shot 10 of 11 at the free-throw line, while Bridgeport was 8 of 12.

Bridgeport (13-5).....................11 14 13 6 - 44

Morrill (12-5) .....................8 12 7 14 - 41

BRIDGEPORT

Tara Harding 6, Jada Huck 5, Dina Cantu 2, Sydney Faessler 15, Brittany Hutson 3, Ashley Stevens 13.

MORRILL

Taylor Cooper 4, Kady Lower 12, Morgan Nortness 1, Alex Howell 15, Kayla Jacobsen 9.