Plainsmen fall to Longhorns, roll Broncos
By Emmalee Parsley Stevens
Grant Tribune Correspondent
Plainsmen boys brought home one loss and one win two weeks ago bringing their record to 8-2. They traveled to North Platte to face St. Pat’s on January 10th. After that, they fought against Sutherland sailors on the home court on January 11th.
NPSP
Plainsmen faced a defeat to North Platte St. Patricks. They opened the game with eleven points in the first quarter, only behind by one point to the opposing team. They scored eleven points in the second quarter as well. After the first half, Plainsmen earned thirteen points in the third quarter, and sixteen in the fourth quarter. However, the Plainsmen’s triumph was not enough to defeat St. Patricks. The final score of the game was 51-56. Senior Jackson Wykert was the top point earner throughout the game.
“We chose the wrong night to have an off night on the offensive end of the floor. NP St. Pat’s did exactly what they needed to do defensively to throw us off our game. The boys did enough in that game defensively to win that game, but we just weren’t able to score and gain momentum. Looking back at that game, I wish I would have done more for the boys with an offensive playset to help them overcome their shooting struggles. Credit to our kids, they never gave up and battled until the very end,” said Head Coach Corey Potts.
SUTHERLAND
Despite the “off night” of the previous game, Plainsmen shook it off and came back with a win against Sutherland Sailors. Plainsmen boys began strong with seventeen points. The defense also paid off, preventing the Sailors from making any baskets. In the second quarter, Plainsmen achieved nineteen points. Junior Rylee Schrotberger scored six of the nineteen points. After halftime, Plainsmen managed to earn twenty points in the third quarter and ten points in the fourth. All in all, the final score was 66-22.
“We all wanted an offensive bounce back from the night before and that is exactly what we got! The boys shared the ball very well and created for each other, the offense clicked much better than the night before. Just as impressive, the defense they boys played held Sutherland scoreless in the first quarter and to only 8 points at half,” said Coach Potts.
Perkins County Plainsmen have a 9-3 record after one loss and one win this week. Boys started off with a four point loss to Chase County on January 16th. However, that didn’t stop them from a thirty-five point win the night after against Wauneta-Palisade.
CHASE COUNTY
Plainsmen boys played Chase County Longhorns on January 16th. They fell behind right away in a close first quarter. Longhorns scored twenty-five points whereas Plainsmen only scored twelve. The second quarter was also extremely close because both teams managed to score fourteen points making the score 39-26. After halftime, the Plainsmen scored eleven in the 3rd quarter. In the fourth quarter it was obvious the Plainsmen tried to take the win however, Longhorns managed to keep their lead. The final score was 58-54.
“Oh man, I know the boys would like to have this one back but there can be no credit taken from Chase County! They came out with energy and we did not. We dug ourselves a 25-12 deficit at the end of the first quarter and could not close it going to the locker room still down 13 at half. This is just one of the many reasons for why I love this group of boys so much, they came out after halftime and beat Chase County for the next two quarters (in points) after getting kicked around and making mistakes I haven’t seen out of these guys this season. All the credit to Chase, I knew they were playing well and finding their identity in their 1-3-1 defense and from behind the arc at the other end of the floor,” said Head Coach Corey Potts.
WAUNETA-PALISADE
On January 17th Plainsmen Boys came back ready to go head to head against the Wauneta-Palisade Broncos. The Plainsmen immediately came out strong scoring twenty-three points and sixteen in the second quarter. They then finished it off with twenty-two points in the third quarter and eight in the fourth quarter.
“After the tough loss the night before, I told the boys I was going to be very nitpicky of them on defense for position and effort. This group is a very mature group of young men and seem to flourish when faced with a challenge, almost one step ahead of me by holding themselves accountable. We came out fast and with a bunch of energy (helped that we hosted a throwback game with pack stands which we appreciate so many people coming to support). Once again, I played 15 kids who all came out and worked their tails off for 32 minutes,” said Coach Potts.