Woodbine battled top-rated St. Edmonds in third consecutive state tournament appearance
By Matt Gengler, Sports Editor
sports@missourivalleytimes.com
The sting will eventually go away, but the pride the Woodbine boys basketball faithful felt as their Tigers left the floor left a mark for all future Tiger generations.
Woodbine came up short in a 60-44 loss to #1 Fort Dodge St. Edmonds at the 2026 Class 1A State Basketball Tournament at Casey’s Arena on March 10 in Des Moines. St. Edmond would climb the ladder to win the 2026 Class 1A State Title.
“This one will hurt for a while, as we just couldn’t get any offensive flow,” stated Head Coach Kyle Bartels. “But like they’ve done all year, they kept battling and played to the final whistle, that’s all we wanted.”
The Tigers were making their third consecutive state appearance in the Elite 8 in Des Moines, and it was a first round rematch from last season (2025). Woodbine went toe-to-toe with the top-seed, tied after the first quarter, 12-12.
St. Edmonds scored on their first six possessions of the second quarter, and didn’t look back.
“The second quarter has been a trouble spot for us down here, not sure what it is,” Bartels added. “We had close to 10 days off since the substate final, while we needed the rest, we could not find any offensive flow.”
Trailing by 13 at the half, the Tigers kept battling but could not chip into the double-digit lead.
Bartels concluded, “The adversity these kids face all season long, and even throughout today’s game, just shows the fighting spirit this group has. We kept battling and put some great basketball togther of the last couple of weeks. We knocked off state-rated St. Albert on their home court (after they beat the Tigers in a regular season match-up), then knocked off the defending Class 1A State Champion (Madrid) in the Substate Final. It’s heartbreaking for us as coaches that see the players who put in the time, and the shots not fall.”
Bartels concluded about his Tiger Seniors, Brody and Jax Pryor, who have finished with 79 career wins, two conference titles and three state tournament trips.
“Our program’s in a great spot, and these two have provided the necessary leadership the past four years to get us where we need to be,” Bartels concluded. “We have a ton of young kids who are part of all our activities, and these two have been around the program, helping us reach this level. They have led the way, showing what it takes to get here.”
CLASS 1A STATE BASKETBALL – 1st Round
Boys BB: 3-10-2026 @ Casey’s Arena, Des Moines
#8 Woodbine 44 #1 Fort Dodge St. Edmond 60
Tigers Scoring: Brody Pryor 7; Landon Blum 20; Micah Moores 2; Jax Pryor 15.
Woodbine Record: 17-9
