ELIZABETH — Sixth-seeded Gilmer County was hoping the third time would be the charm here Thursday night in a Class A, Region IV, semifinal, but host Wirt County turned back the Titans, 63-51, and advanced to play Huntington St. Joe at 7 p.m. Wednesday with a berth to the state tournament on the line.

The Titans, who finished 6-16 and opened the season with a 63-58 loss to the Tigers before falling at WCHS 75-66 in mid-January, only trailed 26-25 at halftime.

However, Tiger senior Braylan Dawson pumped in 15 of his game-high 28 points during a third quarter where the third-seeded hosts extended their advantage to 46-37.

Tyler Ratliff scored 18 points for the Titans, who got 17 from Kolten Holbert and seven from Jacob Mick.

Dawson, who pulled down eight boards, was joined in double figures by Easton Wyer, who had 11 points and seven rebounds. Braxton Dennis chipped in six points while Tyler Smith had a quartet of assists.

Ripley 87, PikeView 49

RIPLEY — Blake Justice led all scorers with 27 points to go along with four assists and four steals to lead top-seeded Ripley to a blowout 87-49 win over No. 8 PikeView in the Class AAA, Region III semifinals Thursday.

The Vikings (19-4) will play host to Herbert Hoover at 7 p.m. Tuesday, with the winner clinching a spot in the state tournament.

Parker Smith double-doubled for Ripley, finishing with 13 points, 13 rebounds and five assists while Brady McVay added 10 points, nine boards and three steals. Matthew Stellato added 17 points and a game-high six dimes. Caleb Parsons tacked on seven points while Creed Waskey chipped in four assists.

The Vikings led 25-9 after one, 51-21 at halftime and 68-30 entering the fourth.

The Panthers, who finished the year 3-18, were led by Nate Vestal’s 16 points. Ryan Robinette added 10 points and eight rebounds while Tyler Murray netted seven points.

Magnolia 69, Trinity 62 (OT)

MORGANTOWN — Fifth-seeded Magnolia pulled off a tournament upset Thursday, upending No. 4 Trinity 69-62 in overtime of the Class A, Region I semifinals.

The Blue Eagles advanced to Wednesday’s co-final, when they’ll visit top-seeded Parkersburg Catholic with a state tournament berth on the line.

Magnolia trailed 20-11 after one but held the Warriors to four points in the second to rally for a 30-24 halftime advantage. THS came roaring back in the third to go up 44-41 going into the fourth. Magnolia outscored Trinity 17-14 in the final period to force overtime, where the Blue Eagles out-pointed the hosts 11-4 to claim the victory.

Kingston Christen paced MHS with 28 points. He was 10 for 12 from the free-throw line. Noah Hood tacked on 19 points, Scott Bailey chipped in 13 and Brayden Byers tallied seven. Magnolia was 20 for 24 from the charity stripe as a team.

Trinity got a game-high 31 points from Austin Porta. Colin Lemley added 18 points and Maddox Mousadis netted 11.