The high school girls basketball season keeps bouncing along, with some local teams faring better than others. A couple of them will meet in the annual Candy Cane Classic taking place next week at Gibault Catholic High School.

Columbia (5-1) picked up two easy wins of late.

On Saturday, the Eagles won 53-19 over Mascoutah. Jordan Holten had 14 points and six rebounds. Ava Langhans added 12 points and Sam Schmuke contributed 10 points with five steals.

On Thursday, it was a 70-21 win for Columbia over Wood River. Schmuke led the way with 19 points and six steals. Holten added 13 points and six rebounds. Kinley Jany chipped in with 11 points. 

Schmuke leads Columbia in scoring this season at 16.2 points per game. The school’s all-time career steals leader is also averaging six steals per contest.

The Eagles play Thursday at Salem before opening the Candy Cane Classic on Monday against New Athens at 6 p.m.

Gibault (5-2) will conclude the opening night of the Candy Cane Classic at 7:30 p.m. Monday against Riverview Gardens. 

A full tourney bracket is pictured below.

The Hawks lost 44-41 to Belleville West on Monday, getting 12 points from Kamille Grohmann. Hope Chambers added five points and 10 rebounds. 

Gibault trailed 12-3 after the first quarter on Monday but battled back to make it close.

Last Tuesday, the Hawks won 44-33 over Chester. Kamille Grohmann led the way again with 18 points and eight rebounds. Karmon Grohmann added nine points and 14 rebounds. 

Kamille Grohmann is averaging nearly 14 points per game this season for Gibault, which hosts Maryville Christian on Friday.

Waterloo (3-5) lost 59-32 to Marion on Saturday, getting 10 points from Mallory Thompson. 

On Friday, the Bulldogs lost 44-40 at Triad despite a 14-point night from senior Kristin Smith. Waterloo made only three of 23 three-point shots in the contest.

Last Tuesday, Waterloo won 47-42 over Red Bud. The ‘Dogs trailed by three points after the third quarter but rallied to emerge victorious. 

Aubrey Heck had 17 points, six rebounds, six assists and five steals for Waterloo, which plays Wednesday at Affton and hosts Mascoutah on Friday. 

Dupo (1-4) lost 53-23 to Marissa on Thursday. 

The Tigers play Thursday at O’Fallon First Baptist Academy.