Rubber Match: Blackcats and Spartans Meet for SVHT Championship...Again
- Russ Conwell
- Dec 29, 2025
- 2 min read
SESSER — For the third straight season, it’s Goreville and Waltonville playing for the Sesser-Valier Holiday Tournament championship.
How did we get here?
Goreville opened the week with a 79-63 win over Red Bud. Senior Zech Green went nuclear. 27 points. Seven threes. Six of them in the first quarter. Game was never really in doubt.
The semifinal was a completely different story. DuQuoin led with nine seconds left. Two seconds on the clock, Green drives and finishes the game winning layup. Goreville survives 45-44 and punches its ticket. Green finished with 10 points, while junior Nick King led all scorers with 17. For DuQuoin, senior Amir Grant had 15 and sophomore Andrew Jones added 14. The Indians will play Altamont in the third place game.
Waltonville’s road to the title game started with a blowout. 91-43 over Marissa/Coulterville. Seniors Gage Peterson (25 points) and Ryley Stewart (16 points) led the way for the Spartans.
The semifinal against Altamont was a grinder. Altamont went on a 13-2 run in the third quarter to grab a 40-35 lead. Waltonville responded, took a 45-42 lead after three, then closed it out by outscoring the Indians 17-7 down the stretch. Peterson finished with 23 points, junior Witten Devor added 14, and the Spartans escaped 52-47.
So here we are. Goreville. Waltonville. Again. Both teams are ranked top 15 in the latest NestoHoops 1A rankings by Aaron Britton. Who is winning it for the rubber match?
FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS from SVHT:
Altamont vs Waltonville: https://youtu.be/f9AWk8Q55nM
DuQuoin vs Goreville: https://youtu.be/viXdRNdV7tU
SVHT Championship last two seasons:
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