The Ava Bears advanced to the semifinals of the Springfield Blue and Gold Tournament but lost their final two games on Wednesday and Thursday.
Still, the Bears finished better than ranking, taking fourth place in the Gold Division of the bracket.
On Wednesday night, the Bears, seeded fifth, lost to top-seed Glendale, 77-61, and in the third-place game Thursday the Bears fell to No. 3 Branson, 70-52.
Ava 6-5 senior Pete Leonard led all scorers Wednesday with 24 points.
Senior guard Trae Shelton led the Bears with 19 points in the loss to Branson on Thursday.
Read more in next week’s Herald.
