Rough week leaves Warriors at 6-13 years ago
Sports reporter
An 0-3 week has the Marion High School boys' basketball team riding a five-game losing streak with one to play before sub-state begins Monday.
The Warriors played their final game of the regular season Tuesday at Hesston, but it did not finish before press time.
"We had a number of disappointments where we came up short," Ostmeyer said of the past week and the season in general.
The bad week began Feb. 12 at home against Chase Dippel and the Smoky Valley Vikings. The leading scorer in the Mid-Central Activities Association scorched MHS for 37 points in December in a 70-50 victory.
Dippel scored 42 this time, but the Warriors didn't go down easy.
Trailing 50-40 heading into the fourth quarter, Marion used a 10-2 run to cut the gap to 52-50.
Sophomore Eric Vogel scored seven straight points before Dippel answered with a free throw.
Down four later in the game, the MCAA's third-leading scorer, senior Calvin Jeffrey, got Marion back to within two with a basket of his own.
After a Smoky Valley free throw, it was another senior who stepped up for MHS.
Trailing by three, Justin Heidebrecht let go with a three-pointer from the right wing with one minute, 44 seconds left, and the crowd watched as it swished through and tied the game at 57.
However, from that point on Dippel nailed 10 free throws to help seal the victory.
Vogel scored off an offensive rebound to make it 61-59, and Jeffrey nailed a three to cut the lead to 65-62, but only two seconds remained on the clock.
"We had some opportunities but we didn't cash in," Ostmeyer said. "I know these kids want to win, and I think sometimes they put too much pressure on themselves."
Jeffrey finished with a team-high 17 points and three assists, while Luke Gordon recorded this third double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Vogel finished with 16 points.
The weekend brought two more losses, 71-34 Friday against Wichita Collegiate, and 56-47 Saturday at Haven.
Stats for the Haven contest were unavailable at press time.
Jeffrey again led the team with 18 points against Collegiate, while Gordon had six and four rebounds. Mitchell Leppke and Heidebrecht had four points, and Isaac Hett chipped in with two.
Against Collegiate the Warriors trailed just 13-10 at the end of the first quarter, but a 21-8 second quarter and 27-10 third quarter sealed the Spartan victory.
"We ran out of gas a little bit," Ostmeyer said. "They have so much depth, and they bring so much at you."
Not enough gas may have been a problem Saturday as well for Marion, playing its second road game in as many nights.
The Wildcats came in on a three-game winning streak, and had won four-of-five.
MHS trailed by just five at the half, but a five-point third quarter didn't do anything to help.
"I really just felt like we had no energy, no enthusiasm to play that game," Ostmeyer said. "I know it was tough being on the road back-to-back nights, but it was a pretty important game for sub-state seeding."
Depending on the outcome of Tuesday night's games, the Warriors more than likely will be the seventh or eighth seed in the Hillsboro regional.
That could mean a first-round game at either Sedgwick or Hutchinson Trinity out of the Heart of America League before the semifinal and championship rounds move to Hillsboro.
Despite a record of 6-13 as of Monday, Ostmeyer knows his team can compete.
"We could easily have three, four, or five more wins," he said. "But maybe we wouldn't be any different as a team.
"There's not going to be a lot of difference (from top to bottom), almost anybody can win."
