Cougars end regular season with two wins
Centre Cougars wrapped up a successful season this past week, after defeating Bennington Tuesday and White City Friday in two close home games. The boys ended their regular season with an overall record of 14-6.
Coach Russ Hake is proud of his team: "I feel we have really come together,' he said. "At the beginning of the season, we had set a goal of 14-6 and we accomplished that.
"With Marion being our sixth loss," he continued, "the pressure was on to win five in a row, which we did. We've been able to win some close ones down the stretch."
The third-seeded Cougars entered tournament play Tuesday at home against sixth-seeded St. Xavier of Junction City (6-13).
"We did things we needed to do to come into the tournament where we wanted to be," Hake said. "We've got a good chance to win Tuesday.
"We'll have a good match-up Friday. I think it's to our advantage to be able to play on our home court. If we can advance out of regionals, we can go farther, and we'll see where it takes us."
Centre vs. Bennington
The contest with Bennington went down to the wire. At two minutes to go in the first quarter, the score was 18-17 in Bennington's favor. The Bulldogs increased their lead to 26-21 by the end of the quarter.
Three-point goals by Curtis Gutsch and Travis Burns in the second quarter helped Centre keep pace, but the Cougars were down by four points at halftime, 42-38.
Burns and Todd Stahlecker each shot a three in the first two minutes of the third quarter. At 5:15, the game was tied at 48. Another Burns three at the end of the quarter put Centre up by one, 62-61.
Bennington gained the lead in the fourth quarter and was up by one, 65-64, with 3:45 remaining in the game.
Stahlecker followed a steal with a lay-up. A three-point trey in his next possession put the Cougars ahead for good. Burns completed a free throw following a technical on Bennington, and the game ended with the score Centre 78, Bennington 70.
Stahlecker had 28 points on the night, including four three-point goals and four of four at the free throw line. Three other players were in double digits: Burns, 15, Gutsch, 12, and Justin Garrard, 10. Derek Belton was strong off the boards, accumulating 16 rebounds. Gutsch had 11 assists.
Centre 78 Bennington 70
Bennington 26 16 19 9 - 70
Centre 21 17 24 16 - 78
Total points: Justin Garrard, 10; Curtis Gutsch, 12; Todd Stahlecker, 28; Travis Burns, 15; Derek Belton, 9; Aaron Barney, 4.
Two-point goals attempted/made: Garrard, 11/4; Gutsch, 1/1; Stahlecker, 11/6; Burns, 9/4; Belton, 9/4; Barney, 4/2.
Three-point goals attempted/made: Garrard, 2/0; Gutsch, 6/3; Stahlecker, 13/4; Burns, 5/2.
Assists: Garrard, 2; Gutsch, 11; Burns, 4; Belton, 1.
Rebounds: Garrard, 10; Gutsch, 4; Stahlecker, 2; Burns, 8; Belton, 16; Barney, 3.
Steals: Garrard, 1; Gutsch, 1; Stahlecker, 1; Burns, 2; Belton, 1; Barney, 1.
Turnovers: Garrard, 2; Gutsch, 1; Stahlecker, 1; Burns, 2; Belton, 3; Barney, 1.
Fouls: Garrard, 2; Gutsch, 3; Burns, 3; Belton, 2; Barney, 1.
B team
The junior varsity also had a close game. With seconds to go, the game was tied at 43. A Bennington player scored a last-second three-point goal to give them the win, 56-53.
Andrew Hajek led scoring with 21 points. Tad Remy followed, with 15. Others who contributed points were Bryant Gutsch and Trent Hajek, eight each, and Chris Callahan and Jeremy Kristek, two each.
Centre vs. White City
The gymnasium was full as Cougar fans came out to see the boys play the final game of the regular season. They were not disappointed. Centre won the game, 60-58, on a last-second shot by Curtis Gutsch.
It took a while for the Cougars to get warmed up. Gutsch scored the first five points for Centre. Following a trey and two free throws by Justin Garrard and another goal by Aaron Barney, the Cougars were down 17-11 at the end of the first quarter.
It wasn't until 40 seconds remained in the first half that Centre finally caught up with White City at 32 all.
From then on, the intensity increased. The two teams exchanged leads and were tied numerous times. With two minutes to go in the game, they were tied at 58.
With the ball in Centre's possession, the Cougars stalled. After a missed shot, Belton rebounded and fought for control of the ball under the basket. He was fouled with four seconds remaining.
Coach Hake called for a time-out. Afterward, Gutsch ran into the back court, where he accepted a pass, ran to the free throw line, and made a jump shot.
The crowd roared its approval as the Cougars won the game 60-58.
The 5'11" senior, Gutsch, contributed almost half of the team's total points. Shooting 56.5 percent from the field, he had 28 points and also led in rebounds with 13. Stahlecker had 17 points.
Centre 60, White City 58
White City 17 15 15 11 - 58
Centre 11 21 14 14 - 60
Total points: Travis Burns, 5; Justin Garrard, 4; Todd Stahlecker, 17; Curtis Gutsch, 28; Derek Belton, 2; Aaron Barney, 4.
Two-point goals attempted/made: Burns, 6/2; Garrard, 8/1; Stahlecker, 8/4; Gutsch, 19/11; Belton, 2/1; Barney, 4/2.
Three-point goals attempted/made: Burns, 2/0; Garrard, 1/0; Stahlecker, 11/3; Gutsch, 4/2.
Assists: Burns, 3; Stahlecker, 3; Gutsch, 7.
Rebounds: Burns, 1; Garrard, 11;, Stahlecker, 4; Gutsch, 13; Belton, 6; Barney, 4.
Steals: Burns, 2; Stahlecker, 3; Gutsch, 2; Belton, 3.
Turnovers: Burns, 1; Garrard, 2; Stahlecker, 2; Gutsch, 3; Belton, 1.
Fouls: Burns, 2; Stahlecker, 1; Gutsch, 2; Belton, 2; Barney, 2.
B team
The junior varsity was defeated by White City 71-30. They were down 26-6 at the end of the first quarter and continued to lag behind throughout the game.
The junior Cougars completed only six two-point goals compared to 27 by White City.
Scorers were Andrew Hajek, nine, Tad Remy, six, Bryant Gutsch and Trent Hajek, four each, Nathan Brunner, three, and Chris Callahan and Jeremy Kristek, two each.
