By Staff

            ELYRIA – Down a pair of starters, the Elyria boys leaned on some reserves Friday as they fell behind but managed to bounce back and have a strong final quarter to defeat visiting Solomon, 34-29.

            With the win the Eagles are now 4-2 for the season with a game on Tuesday waiting for them on the road at Rural Vista before the Christmas break.

            “This was our second straight game being down two starters,” noted Eagle head coach Zach Goodrich. “Different guys have had to step into new roles and other guys have had to take more shots than they normally do. We have covered for one another and learned on the fly and for that I am proud.”

            After taking a four-point, 9-5 lead at the end of the first quarter, Elyria held off a feisty Solomon team to hold a slim two-point advantage at the halftime break.

            In the third quarter, the Eagles struggled a bit on offense and the Gorillas were able to take a two-point, 24-22 lead into the final quarter where the Eagles bounced back, out scoring Solomon 12-5 to earn the comeback five-point, 34-29 victory.

            Speaking of the game itself, coach Goodrich added, “Solomon is a well-coached athletic team in our league, and we knew we would have to guard well and rebound well. I was proud of the guys for doing both.”

            Johnny Unruh led Eagles on offense with 12 points while connecting on a pair of three-pointers and making three steals. Dominick Lundberg was one of those players who stepped up and he did so by nearly getting a double-double with nine points and a team leading nine rebounds to go along with three steals and a pair of assists. Landon Schneider chipped in with eight points as well.

            Coach Goodrich concluded his post-game thoughts by saying, “Johnny (Unruh) and Caleb (Laney)took great care of the ball and did a good job of putting the ball into people’s hands at the right time. Dominick (Lundberg) hasn’t seen much varsity action until this game, and he played some of the best basketball he has played in his high school career, finishing the game with nine points and nine rebounds. He owned the paint tonight and I was proud of his efforts. Landon (Schneider) also played very well inside.”

ELYRIA CHRISTIAN EAGLES hosting Solomon

SCORING: Solomon 5-11-8-5=29; ELYRIA CHRISTIAN EAGLES 9-9-4-12=34.

TEAM STATS: Solomon > 2-FGs – 10/25, 3-PTs – 2/10, FTs – 3/8, AST – 8, REBs – 23, TO – 12, STLs – 2, BLKs – 0, FLs – 14. ELYRIA EAGLES > 2-FGs – 11/24, 3-PTs – 2/8, FTs – 6/12, AST – 9, REBs – 22, TO – 11, STLs – 9, BLKs – 1, FLs – 14.

ELYRIA CHRISTIAN EAGLE INDIVIDUAL STAT LEADERS:

Scoring: Johnny Unruh – 12; Dominick Lundberg – 9; Landon Schneider – 8; Gavin Robertson – 2; James Schott – 2; Caleb Laney – 1.

3-Pointers Made: Unruh – 2.

Assists: Unruh, Lundberg, Schneider, Schott – 2.

Rebounds: Lundberg – 9; Unruh, Schneider – 4; Laney – 2.

Steals: Unruh, Lundberg – 3; Schneider – 2.

Blocked Shots: Schneider – 1.

(The Staff covering McPherson County Activities can be reached by email at crossdovewriter@gmail.com)