By William / www.mcpherson-county-ks.com
HOPE – The Elyria boys closed out a strong early season on Tuesday with a solid 29-point win on the road over Rural Vista, winning 68-39.
Putting 25 points on the scoreboard in the first quarter, the Eagles held a 14-poiint lead at the end of the first eight minutes of play.
In the second quarter, the Eagles put 19 more points in the scorebook while the defense held Rural Vista to just a pair of points, giving Elyria a commanding 31-point, 44-13, lead heading to the halftime break.
Rural Vista came out of the break with a sense of urgency and while they did put 19 points in the books, the Eagles put in 16 of their own so Rural Vista was only able to shave three points off the lead before the Eagles cruised in for the final 29-point victory.
“I thought we came out with great energy and passion in the first quarter, and it set the tone for the game,” explained Eagle head coach Zach Goodrich. “Offensively we were finding opportunities in transition that led to some great looks while also finding shooters in rhythm.”
It was truly a team effort for the Eagles as they recorded an impressive 21 assists on 27 made baskets, with three Eagles, Caleb Laney, Ben Unruh, and Johnny Unruh each dishing out five each.
Ty Romero had what could be his breakout game as he led the Eagles in scoring with 18 which included four three-pointers while Johnny Unruh also hit four three-pointers on his way of scoring 14. Josh Allen made it three Eagles in double digits as he scored 10 with Ben Unruh just missed with nine points.
Ben Unruh led the team in rebounds with seven while Romero dished out four assists.
Coach Goodrich continued his post-game reflections by adding, “It was great to see Ty (Romero) get going and shoot the ball with confidence. We hope to see more of this type of performance in the second semester. Overall, I feel like we competed well and were hungry to play tonight, which was exciting to see. We still have a lot to improve on, and we hope to square those away when we get back to practices after the break.”
WHAT’S NEXT FOR the EAGLES?
The win means the Eagles will go into the holiday break with a 4-1 mark for the season. They now get a chance to rest and prep until Friday, January 7 when they will return to competitive action at home against Solomon.
ELYRIA CHRISTIAN EAGLES at Rural Vista
SCORING: 1 2 3 4 FINAL
EAGLES 25 19 16 8 68
Rural Vista 11 2 19 7 39
TEAM STATS: EAGLES Rural Vista
Shooting 27/49 (55%) 14/38 (37%)
3-Pointers 9/22 (41%) 8/26 (31%)
Free Throws 5/18 (28%) 3/11 (27%)
Rebounds (Off/Def) 30 28
Assists 21 6
Turnovers 5 15
Steals 10 3
Blocked Shots 0 0
Personal Fouls 12 16
ELYRIA CHRISTIAN EAGLES INDIVIDUAL SCORING & STAT LEADERS:
Scoring (68 Total Points): Ty Romero – 18; Johnny Unruh – 14; Josh Allen – 10; Ben Unruh – 9; Keyan Wiggers – 6; Andrew Huxman – 5; Caleb Laney – 4; Silas Redenbaugh – 2.
Three-Pointers Made (9): Ty Romero, Johnny Unruh – 4; Andrew Huxman – 1.
Rebound Leaders: Ben Unruh – 7; Keyan Wiggers – 4; Johnny Unruh, Josh Allen, Ty Romero, Silas Redenbaugh – 3.
Assist Leader: Johnny Unruh, Caleb Laney, Ben Unruh – 5; Keyan Wiggers, Josh Allen – 2.
Leader in Steals: Ty Romero – 4; Johnny Unruh – 3.
Leader in Blocked Shots: None.