SIDNEY - The Sidney Lady Raiders and Red Raiders endured a challenging weekend, facing a pair of ranked opponents on both Friday and Saturday. On Friday, the Class C-1 No. 2 Gothenburg Swedes used relentless defensive pressure to hand the Class B No. 4 Sidney Lady Raiders a 64-53 home loss.

Gothenburg junior and University of Nebraska–Kearney recruit Zoe Beveridge scored 10 first-quarter points, while Nebraska Wesleyan commit Halsey Thomalla added nine in the opening period. The Swedes forced eight Sidney turnovers in the quarter and closed on a 9-0 run over the final 2:29 to take a 21-12 lead.

Gothenburg’s pressure continued in the second period, forcing nine more turnovers and stretching the lead to 37-21 at halftime. The Swedes controlled the third quarter as well, forcing nine additional turnovers and outscoring Sidney 22-12 to build a 59-33 advantage.

Sidney showed resilience in the fourth quarter, outscoring Gothenburg 20-5, but the early deficit proved too much to overcome.

Laramey Misegadis led Sidney with 14 points. Beveridge and Thomalla each finished with 21 points for Gothenburg.

The Lady Raiders fell to 11-2, while Gothenburg improved to 13-2.

In the boy’s half of the double-header, the Red Raiders were at full strength for the first time this season, welcoming senior Keian Kaiser back from a football injury, but came up short in a physical battle with Class C-1 No. 5 Gothenburg.

The game was tightly contested from the opening tip. Gothenburg sophomore Kingston Koehn banked in a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Swedes a 14-12 lead after one quarter.

Keian Kaiser paced Sidney with eight second-quarter points as the game was tied 27-27 at halftime. Gothenburg edged ahead 45-42 after three quarters, then clamped down defensively in the fourth, holding Sidney to just two field goals and six points to seal the win.

Kale Kaiser led Sidney with 16 points, while Keian Kaiser added 13. Boone Tederman scored 14 points for Gothenburg, and Kash Koehn chipped in 12.

Gothenburg improved to 13-2, while Sidney dropped to 4-10.

On Saturday in Ogallala, the Class B No. 4 Lady Raiders suffered another close loss, falling late 68-65 to the Class C1 No. 5 Ogallala Indians.

Sidney struggled early against Ogallala’s pressure, as senior Addison Slama hit two three-pointers and junior Aniston O’Neil scored nine points in a 22-10 first-quarter surge.

The Lady Raiders responded in the second period behind Reagan Nesbitt, who scored eight points, and a strong showing at the free-throw line, where Sidney went 8-for-11. Sidney scored 24 points in the quarter but still trailed 36-34 at halftime.

Both teams scored 13 points in the third quarter. Sidney briefly took control in the fourth when junior Taylor Sprenger knocked down her third three-pointer to give the Lady Raiders a 50-49 lead, and later extended the advantage to 62-53 on a Sprenger layup with 2:47 remaining.

Ogallala battled back and tied the game at 65-65 on a free throw by sophomore Shayden Rasby with 48 seconds left. Moments later, Rasby tripped Kierra Schrader near midcourt, forcing a turnover. O’Neil capitalized, drilling a three-pointer with 35 seconds remaining to lift the Indians to the win.

Sidney, who fell to 11-3, was led by Nesbitt 20 points and 10 rebounds, while Schrader added 13. O’Neil scored 22 points while Slama and Rasby each adding 16 as Ogallala improved to 14-1.

The Red Raiders opened strong against the Class C-1 No. 1 Ogallala Indians, but the top-ranked team pulled away for a 74-48 victory.

Kale and Keian Kaiser combined for eight of Sidney’s 11 first-quarter points as Ogallala held a slim 13-11 edge after one period.

Ogallala’s all-state guard Sawyer Smith took over in the second quarter, scoring 15 of his game-high 19 points as the Indians built a 38-23 halftime lead. Ogallala continued to pull away after intermission, outscoring Sidney 21-14 in the third quarter and cruising to the win.

Keian Kaiser led Sidney with 14 points. Ogallala placed four players in double figures, led by Smith’s 19. Sidney fell to 4-11, while Ogallala improved to 13-0.

Both Sidney teams will compete in conference tournament play this week. Ogallala enters the Southwestern Conference Tournament as the top seed, while Sidney will play in the Western Conference Tournament in Scottsbluff and Gering beginning Thursday.