The Exira-EHK Spartans were able to take over the game in the second half and defeat the Boyer Valley Bulldogs 59-43 on Thursday night in Elk Horn. The Spartans only led by a point at the end of the first quarter but got the lead to 12 by half. The lead stayed near the 10 point margin for most of the second half but the Bulldogs did climb within 6 at one point of the third quarter. The Spartans took full control early in the fourth quarter to advance on in the postseason.

Senior point guard Cole Burmeister had a nice night for the Spartans, dropping in 20 points to lead all-scorers in the contest. After the game Burmeister said the Spartans did a better job of trying to push the ball of the floor against the resistance from the Bulldogs.

The Spartans improved to 20-2 on the season and will now face the Audubon Wheelers in the Class 1A District 15 Semifinals next Tuesday night. Burmeister said the Wheelers will be a tough challenge.

Boyer Valley finishes their season with a record of 10-12. Lucas Berens was a force inside for the Bulldogs, finishing with 17 points.

We’ll have coverage of that Exira-EHK vs. Audubon game on Tuesday night. That game will be the second half of the Semifinal doubleheader at 8:00pm. The first game of the night will feature the AHSTW Vikings against the Ar-We-Va Rockets and we’ll have that game as well, set for a 6:30pm start.