The Kenai Central and Soldotna girls basketball teams both fell in opening day games at the Lady Lynx Prep Shootout tournament Wednesday at Dimond High School, putting both peninsula teams into the Maroon Bracket of the tournament.

The Bartlett girls took control in a 49-27 win over Kenai. The Kards will play South Anchorage today at 4:30 p.m. South lost to Wasilla on Thursday.

Later in the day, the Ketchikan girls beat Soldotna 37-36 on a last-second shot. AJ Dela Cruz connected on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to seal the win for the Kings.

The loss dropped SoHi into a 6:15 p.m. matchup with the loser of the Dimond and Palmer game. The results were not available as the Clarion went to press.

The Stars trailed 19-16 at the halftime break, but came back to take a 25-24 edge at the end of the third quarter, setting up the late drama.

Class 3A/4A hoops WPI standings released

The second release of the Win Percentage Index standings were unveiled Wednesday afternoon by the Alaska Schools and Activities Association.

Currently, the Nikiski girls would be the only peninsula squad that would be guaranteed a state berth if the season ended today. The Bulldogs sit fourth overall — down one spot from the opening WPI release on Jan. 25 — among 19 teams in the standings, with a perfect 8-0 record against fellow 3A competition. Only Barrow, Bethel and Sitka stand above Nikiski. The Seward and Homer girls currently stand 15th and 16th, respectively.

In the 4A girls standings, Kenai Central dropped a spot to 10th from the Jan. 25 release, but are only two spots behind the West Anchorage girls, who would be the last “wild card” team to make it to state if the season ended today. The Kardinals have a 3-4 record against fellow 4A opponents. The Soldotna girls currently sit 12th with a 5-7 record against 4A teams. Wasilla tops the 4A girls list.

In the 3A boys standings, the Homer boys sit 13th with a 6-6 record against 3A boys teams, while Seward is 15th at 2-7 and Nikiski is 17th with a 1-5 record. Monroe Catholic currently sits atop the 3A boys list.

In the 4A boys standings, Soldotna currently sits 17th with a 4-7 mark against 4A boys teams, while Kenai Central is 19th with an 0-10 record. The Wasilla boys top the 4A list.