The Homer girls basketball team opened up play at the Grace Hardwood Classic in Anchorage with a 69-44 victory over Aniak.

The Mariners move into the semifinals today at 8:15 p.m.

The Mariners had a 25-5 lead after the first quarter. For Homer, Sailey Rhodes had 18 points, Marina Carroll had 10, Kaylin Anderson had nine, Laura Inama had eight, Kelli Bishop had six, Rylee Doughty had five, Kappa Reutov had three and Delilah Harris had two.

Valdez Elks Tournament in Valdez

The Seward girls and boys both lost to Lathrop on the first day of the tournament, falling into the consolation bracket. The Seward boys play Eielson at 9 a.m. today, while the Seward girls play Eielson at 10:30 a.m.

The Lathrop boys topped Seward 50-38, taking a 9-4 lead after a quarter, 17-11 lead at halftime and 37-30 lead after three quarters.

Tyriq Luke paced the Malemutes with 15 points, while Mekhi Briggman had 11. For the Seward boys, Trey Ingalls had 13 points, Tommy Cronin and Max Pfeiffenberger had seven, John Moriarity had five, Connor Spanos had four and Sam Koster had two.

The Seward girls dropped a 66-21 decision to the Malemutes. Lathrop put 11 different players in the scoring column. For Seward, Sequoia Sieverts had seven, Anevay Ambrosiani had six, Katelyn Lemme and Selma Casagranda had three, and Hannah Schilling had two.

Ninilchik Invitational

The Kalskag girls, Ninilchik boys, Cook Inlet Academy girls and CIA boys claimed wins on the first day of the tournament.

The Ninilchik girls dropped a 40-39 contest to Kalskag. The game was tied at 17 after a quarter, then the Wolverines led 26-23 at halftime and 34-31 after three quarters before Kalskag made a comeback.

Eliza Wise had 12 to pace Kalskag, while Jade Robuck paced the Wolverines with 23. Also for Ninilchik, Maddi Cooper had eight, Rian Ofstad had five, and Rachel Okonek and Mia Denboer had two apiece.

The Ninilchik boys topped Kalskag 59-44, taking a 21-10 lead after the first quarter.

Ben Botero had 14 for the Wolverines, while Thomas Nelson had 13 and Jake Clark each had 13. Also for Ninilchik, George Nelson had 11, Cody Blossom and Jaylin Scott had three, and Cole Hadro and Jacob Mumey each had two.

In the early girls game, the CIA girls defeated Nikiski JV 35-28. The Eagles led 12-8 after a quarter, 15-12 at halftime and 27-23 after three quarters.

Anna Henderson had 18 points for the Eagles, while Linnea Dohse had seven, Annika Castenholz had six, and Kaitlyn Liles and Jamie Hyatt had two points apiece. Bryli Mullin paced the Bulldogs with 12 points.

In the early boys game, CIA topped Nanwalek 81-43, taking a 24-15 lead after the first quarter and a 46-22 lead at halftime. For CIA, Ethan Boyd had 21 points, Cole Moore had 17 points, James Boyd had 13 points, Mason Zeigler had 11 points, Austin Matheson had seven points, Josh Boyd had four points, Noah Castenholz had three points and Lucas Cragg had two points.

For Nanwalek, Malachi Joseph had 12 points, James Cook had 11 points, Matthias Ukatish Evans had six points, Charlie Moonin had five points, Tikhon Kvasnikof had four points, Justus Evans had three points and Iverson Moonin had two points.

Today at the tournament, the Nikiski JV girls play Kalskag at 1:30 p.m., the Nanwalek boys play Kalskag at 3 p.m., the Ninilchik girls play CIA at 4:30 p.m. and the Ninilchik boys play CIA at 6 p.m.

Saturday, the CIA girls play Kalskag at noon, the CIA boys play Kalskag at 1:30 p.m., the Ninilchik girls play Nikiski JV at 3 p.m. and the Ninilchik boys play Nanwalek at 4:30 p.m.