Centre Cougars get first win
By ROWENA PLETT
Staff writer
After falling to their opponents time after time this season, the Centre High School Cougars finally pulled off a win, defeating Elyria Christian High School on the road, 72-61.
Centre trailed 13-20 when Thieen Antoszyk nailed a three-pointer as the horn sounded to pull them within four, 16-20, at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Cougars made numerous trips to the free-throw line but only completed four attempts. They trailed, 28-35, at halftime.
The third quarter proved to be a turning point. Jim Weber and Alfonse Klenda strengthened their play in the center, scoring 19 points between them to give Centre a 22-16 scoring advantage.
The Cougars still trailed by one at the end of the quarter, but they had tied the game and gone ahead several times, shaking Elyria's confidence.
Centre's free-throw shooting improved markedly in the fourth quarter as Zach Slayden, Kevin Mueller, Klenda, and Seth Jirak combined for eight points. Antoszyk made two consecutive three-point shots, helping to propel the Cougars to an 11-point victory.
Both teams completed four three-pointers. Centre completed 22 field goals and Elyria 21. The difference showed up at the free-throw line. Centre completed 16-of-40 attempts and Elyria completed 7-of-13.
Three Cougars scored in double digits: Weber 19, Klenda 15, and Zach Slayden 11. Antoszyk was 3-of-3 from three-point range and Slayden 6-of-9 from the free-throw line.
Jirak joined the team for the first time since the start of the season. He scored four points and had four assists, three rebounds, and two steals.
Weber compiled 10 rebounds including four at the offensive end.
The junior varsity was defeated, 25-51.
They trailed 18-20 at the end of the first half but a disastrous third quarter led to their final demise. They failed to score while Elyria piled up 24 points. After both teams scored seven points in the fourth quarter, Elyria walked away with a 26-point win.
Centre's leading scorer was Konley Harding with 13 points. Other scorers were Kacey Hanschu six, Nathan Barney five, and Zach Antoszyk one.
In a junior varsity tournament Saturday at Hope, Centre was defeated by Wakefield, 48-26, and by Solomon, 55-39.
The Cougars played Tuesday at Hope and will play Friday at Herington.
