The ACGC basketball teams entered 2019 winners of five consecutive contests. The new year though has not been kind so far to the gold and black. The Chargers dropped another pair Saturday afternoon, this time to the Exira-EHK Spartans in non conference action.

In the girls game, the Chargers fell behind early with a six-point deficit and nine turnovers committed after the first eight minutes. The margin would remain within single digits for the majority of the game, but ACGC’s inability to keep the Spartans off the free-throw line cost them the 52-63 setback. The Chargers allowed a season high 26 completed free throws off 39 attempts. Sophomore Tatum Grubbs led all scores with 22 for the Spartans while Chloe Largent led all Chargers with 13.

The boys dropped a lopsided affair for back-to-back nights as the Spartans cruised to a 77-38 victory. The first quarter was close, but the Spartans outscored the gold and black 24-4 in the second to take a 44-19 lead into the locker room. Senior Cole Burmeister led all scores with 22 points while Nelsen and Younker had eight each for the Chargers. Bryce Littler’s bid at a school record nine consecutive games with double digits fell three points shy as he finished with seven.

The girls fall to 6-6 and the boys drop to 4-7 on the season. Both squads will head to Boone County on Tuesday as they tangle with the Madrid Tigers in a WCAC doubleheader.