Championship Games are Set for Class AA Boys and Girls

The top seed in both Class AA Girls and Boys advanced to the championship games, while a seventh seed also managed to book their trip.

On the girls side, Sioux Falls Washington was able to pull away from Harrisburg in the second half securing the win 52-42. Washington will have the opportunity to win their third consecutive championship.

Aberdeen Central used a strong second quarter to jump out on O'Gorman. The Golden Eagles, led by Paiton Burckhard's 25 points, finished off the second seed Knights 63-53. Aberdeen Central is now 23-1 following Friday's win.

Washington and Aberdeen Central will meet for the AA Girls Championship Saturday night at 5:00.

The Warriors will have the opportunity to "sweep" both titles as the boys advanced after surviving a tough game against Pierre. Sam Siganos finished with 23 points, but his last four points might have been the most important. Siganos hit a 14 foot jumper with 2.5 seconds left in the game to take the lead by two. On the inbound, he jumped the lane and came up with a steal leading to a foul and two more free throws. Siganos would cash in and send Washington to the AA Boys State Championship game with a 61-57 win.

Not many people at the start of the tournament had Sioux Falls Lincoln and Rapid City Stevens in the championship semifinal round. Both teams pulled off the "upset" on Thursday night and advanced as the 6th and 7th seeds. Lincoln, as the 7th seed, previously lost to Stevens twice during the regular season by one point each time. This meeting would prove to be much different.

Lincoln would jump out to a 21-10 advantage at the end of the first quarter. They never looked back. The Patriots would go on to win 63-45 behind Nolan Burchill's 16 points. Tommy Jensen also added 15, and Lee Ransom had a great night of shooting finishing with 12 points.

The two city rivals Washington and Lincoln will meet for a championship for the second consecutive year. Lincoln won last year's South Dakota Class AA Boys Championship with a 47-45 win.

Class AA Girls/Boys Saturday Schedule
Girls: 10am - Mitchell vs. Roosevelt (Sioux Falls Arena) 7th/8th place
Girls: 10am - Rapid City Central vs. Rapid City Stevens (PREMIER Center) 7th/8th place
Boys: 11:45am - Rapid City Central vs. Aberdeen Central (Sioux Falls Arena) 5th/6th place
Boys: 11:45am - O'Gorman vs. Roosevelt (PREMIER Center) 5th/6th place
Girls: 1:30 - Harrisburg vs. O'Gorman (PREMIER Center) 3rd/4th place
Boys: 3:15 - Pierre vs. Rapid City Stevens (PREMIER Center) 3rd/4th place

Championship Games - Both games can be heard on ESPN 99.1. Jerry Palleschi will have the call.

Girls Championship: 5:00 - Aberdeen Central vs. Washington
Boys Championship: 7:30 - Lincoln vs. Washington