Tigers' season ends on three ball, Bulldogs easily advance

By JASON VIOX / Daily Journal Sports Writer

PARK HILLS - The No. 4 seed Arcadia Valley Tigers made only seven out of 39 three-point shots in Tuesday's class 3, district 3 match-up against the fifth-seeded Grandview Eagles. Grandview slowly pulled away in the third quarter and dominated the final frame to finish with a 57-33 win.

Grandview's Craig Legens and Arcadia Valley's Logan Smith traded a triple before Smith added another three to give the Tigers a 6-5 edge. Legens countered with a lay-up and a three pointer, and Ryan Prater knocked down a three to give the Eagles a 13-6 lead. Nick Benz narrowed the deficit with a putback before the end of the quarter.

A three-point shot by Justin Sutton and Jack Franklin narrowed Grandview's lead to three points, but back-to-back lay-ups from Eli Logsden and Mike Mayberry and a putback by Mayberry gave the Eagles a 23-14 advantage. Franklin and Abe Warren retaliated with a field goal, but Mayberry recorded a putback before the half came to a close. Grandview went ahead 25-18.

Warren buried a three pointer and a lay-up, but the Eagles went on a 10-0 scoring run for a 35-23 contest. Legens and Logsden both had three points during the drive. Warren knocked down another three and Benz added a jump shot, but Grandview maintained a 37-28 lead at the end of the third quarter.

The Eagles took control of the last frame as they outscored Arcadia Valley 20-5. Grandview's Josh Bequette had six points in the quarter, and Logsden chipped in four. The Tigers' only points came from a three-point shot from Franklin and a couple of free throws by Thomas Jackson.

Legens led all scorers with 17 points, and Logsden and Bequette added 11 and 10 points respectively. Warren finished with a team-high 10 points.

Arcadia Valley ends their season at 14-12.

Grandview - 13 12 12 20 - 57

Arcadia Valley - 8 10 10 5 - 33

SCORING:

Grandview - C Legens 17, E Logsden 11, J Bequette 10, M Mayberry 8, A Cooper 4, R Prater 3, J Hayes 2, S Allen 2.

Arcadia Valley - A Warren 10, J Franklin 8, L Smith 6, N Benz 4, J Sutton 3, T Jackson 2.

3-Pointers - C Legens 3, L Smith 2, A Warren 2, J Franklin 2, J Sutton, R Prater.

West County 69, Kingston 28

The top-seeded West County Bulldogs made many easy lay-ups against the No. 8 seed Kingston Cougars. West County easily triumphed 69-28. Kingston finished with their third straight winless season, and will have to wait until next year to break their 70-game losing streak.

The Bulldogs quickly piled up 14 straight points to take the lead. Eight of those points came from lay-ups. Larry Lemons countered with a lay-up and a free throw, and Brandon Merseal added a three, but West County racked up seven more points for a 21-6 game at the end of the first quarter.

The Bulldogs kicked off the second quarter with a massive 15-3 run for a 36-9 contest. Chris Mosier had a three pointer, and Sam Luebbers and Terry Moore both contributed four points during the drive. Kingston's Brad Merseal knocked down a jump shot, but Tyler Stacy countered with a three-point shot, and Moore chipped in a pair of free throws before half-time. West County held a 41-11 advantage, and Mosier finished the half with 11 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double.

The Cougars slightly narrowed the gap on a three pointer by Gary Decker and Lemons. Mosier and Decker exchanged a three before the Bulldogs came through with an 8-0 run. Jimmy Nash sank a pair of free throws for Kingston, but West County went ahead 58-24 at the end of the third quarter.

Brandon Merseal posted a three-point shot, and Lemons added a free throw for their final points of the contest. West County's Josh Courtway and Jeff Fortner recorded two field goals each before the conclusion of the game.

Mosier ended the night with 18 points and 14 rebounds. Moore added 12 points for the Bulldogs. Merseal led Kingston in scoring with nine points, and Decker and Lemons contributed eight and seven points respectively.

West County (21-7) and Grandview will play in the semi-finals on Thursday at 6 p.m.

Kingston - 6 5 13 4 - 28

West County - 21 20 17 11 - 69

SCORING:

Kingston - Bran Merseal 9, G Decker 8, L Lemons 7, Brad Merseal 2, J Nash 2.

West County - C Mosier 18, T Moore 12, T Stacy 9, S Luebbers 6, B Dane 6, J Courtway 4, J Fortner 4, J Miller 4, B Mahler 3, B Upchurch 2, J Whitehead 1.

3-Pointers - C Mosier 2, T Stacy 2, Bran Merseal 2, G Decker 2, L Lemons.