The Press-Dispatch
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The Press-Dispatch Sports Wednesday, Februar y 6, 2019 B- 3 etts scored 13 points – hit- ting three three-point shots in four tries – as North Posey took a 15 -11 lead. He then scored the first basket of the second period to give the Vikings a 17-11 lead with 7:31 left in the first half. Pike Central, however, scored seven straight points, five by Benson and two by sophomore Ethan Gorby, to take an 18 -17 lead with 1:42 remaining in the second quarter. An exchange of three-pointers by senior Jacob Newman for North Posey and by Benson for Pike Central – left the Char- gers holding a 21-20 half- time lead. The lead would exchange hands three times early in the third period before a free throw by Gorby tied the score at 24-24 with 6:45 left in the quarter. Back-to-back baskets by freshman Howard Bend- er and freshman Jonathan Ricketts gave North Posey a 28 -24 lead. However, after Josiah Ricketts and Benson traded baskets – giving the Vikings a 30 -26 lead with 5:11 re- maining in the third period – Pike Central senior Judah Leathco hit a three-pointer, then scored on a drive to the basket, to give the Chargers a 31-30 lead with 3:57 left in the third quarter. North Posey rallied to tie the score at 31-31 on a free throw by Harold Bender and – after a basket by ju- nior Ethan Scott gave Pike Central a 33-31 lead – scored four straight points to take a 35 -33 lead with 1:08 remain- ing in the third period. The Chargers, howev- er, would answer with a 4- 0 scoring run of their own – on a free throw by Scott and a three-pointer by Benson – to take a 37-35 lead early in the fourth period. Following ties at 37-37 and 39 -39, a pair of three-point- ers by Scott – sandwiched around a basket by Josiah Ricketts – gave the Char- gers a 45 -41 lead with 5:05 remaining in the contest. The lead would prove short-lived, unfortunate- ly, as a basket and a pair of free throws by Josiah Rick- etts pulled the Vikings even – at 45 -45 – with 4:17 left. A fter a free throw by se- nior Hayden Kabrick boost- ed Pike Central ahead 46 -45 with 3:14 remaining, North Posey vaulted back into the lead – at 47-46 – on a pair of free throws by Josiah Rick- etts with 2:18 left. Chargers senior Aus- tin Holder then hit a three- point shot to give Pike Cen- tral a 49 -47 lead with 1:47 remaining, before a pair of free throws by Josiah Rick- etts pulled the Vikings even with 44.2 seconds left, set- ting the stage for Benson's game-winning shot. Leathco, who hit four of six tries from beyond the three-point line, added 14 points for the Chargers, while Scott added nine points while leading both teams with four assists and two steals. Benson and Scott also had a team-high three rebounds each. "Judah hit quite a few shots for us there early, and then Benson and Scott kind of carried us home ... there at the end," Elliott said. "They hit huge shots," Benson said of Leathco and Scott. "We needed those, and they came through." For the game, Pike Cen- tral made 19 of 40 field goal attempts – a 47.5 percent av- erage – and hit three of eight tries from the free throw line while turning the ball over just six times, including just once in the second half. The Chargers, who were out-rebounded 25 -13, made 10 of 19 tries from three- point range. "I thought we were really getting the shots we want- ed to get," Elliott said. "We were moving the basketball tonight. We were setting screens and moving it, and kind of letting the ball talk a little bit." "That works a lot better for us, and we look a lot bet- ter offensively when we do that," Elliott said. "I thought we really kind of got the shots we were wanting to get all night. It was just a matter of hitting them." For North Posey, Jona- than Ricketts scored eight points while grabbing a game-high 12 rebounds and blocking three shots. Harold Bender and Newman added five points each. For the game, the Vikings made 15 of 32 field goal at- tempts – a 46.9 percent av- erage – and hit 15 of 18 tries from the free throw line while turning the ball over 11 times. Josiah Ricketts hit 10 of 16 field goal attempts – includ- ing three three-pointers in six tries – and was 8 -for-9 from the free throw line. "He's just a heck of a play- er, and I said, 'We need to get him off the three-point line,'" Elliott said. "He on- ly hit us for two (points) in the second quarter, and he didn't hit any more threes the rest of the game, so we did that. It's just he killed us at the free throw line then." "But I thought, defensive- ly, we were pretty solid the whole night," Elliott add- ed. "He's a handful to stop, and I thought we did a re- ally nice job on everybody else. I mean, only three oth- er players scored, so I have to be pretty happy with that, and only giving up 49 points, that's a nice defensive ef- fort." With the win, the Char- gers improved to 3-3 in games where they have ei- ther led or been tied at half- time. In games where they have trailed at halftime, the Chargers – including a 73-31 loss to Washington on Satur- day, Feb. 2 – are 0 -10. BENSON Continued from page 1 SPORTS BRIEFS Pike Central Youth Wrestling Camp to be held March 11-15 Wrestlers who are in- terested in improving their skills and knowl- edge of the sport are in- vited to participate in the Pike Central Youth Wres- tling Camp. The wrestling camp is for students who will be in kindergarten or first through sixth grades in the 2019-20 school year. The camp will run from Monday, March 11, to Friday, March 15, from 6 - 7:10 p.m., at the Pike Cen- tral High School gym. The wrestling finale will be held on Wednesday, March 20, at 6 p.m. The sign-up fee is $45 ($25 for any additional siblings) and includes a T-shirt, if registered by March 1. Registrations will be accepted until the first night of the camp. Registration forms, which can be found on Facebook at the Pike Cen- tral Wrestling page, can be mailed to Ryan Mc- Cain, 110 West Crestview Drive, Petersburg, IN 47567. Registration forms can also be obtained by e-mailing McCain at ry- anfmccain@gmail.com. For more information, contact McCain by call- ing 812-789-6381 or by e-mail at ryanfmccain@ gmail.com, or visit the Pike Central Wrestling page on Facebook. Winslow Sports League holding conditioning, sign-ups Who is ready to play some ball? Join the Winslow Sports League Wednesdays this month for conditioning and sign- ups. Open conditioning and sign-ups for t-ball, soft- ball and baseball will take place on Monday and Wednesday nights at the Winslow Communi- ty Center from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Sign-ups can also be done on-line through the Winslow Sports League's page on Facebook. For more information, e-mail winslowsports@ hotmail.com or visit the Facebook page Winslow Sports League. In addition, the Winslow Sports League invites any- one who wants to get in- volved – either as a volun- teer or as an umpire – to contact them. Registration underway for VU Youth Baseball Spring Training Camp Registration is now un- derway for a one-day Vin- cennes University Youth Baseball Spring Training Camp that will take place on Saturday, March 23, at Jerry Blemker Field. The VU Baseball Team and coaching staff will host the camp for ages 6 - 12 and participants will cover pitching mechan- ics, hitting, stretching, base running, fielding – including rundowns and fly balls. Campers will al- so enjoy a pizza party and receive a VU t-shirt. Registration is $45 be- fore March 15 and $50 after. Complete details and online registration are available at vinu.edu/ camps. HIGH SCHOOL BOYS' BASKETBALL Pocket Athletic Conference Standings PAC Overall Team W-L W-L Heritage Hills.................................. 6 -0 ...........17-1 Southridge ........................................5 -1 .......... 12-5 Tell City .............................................3-1 .......... 13-4 Forest Park .......................................3-2 .......... 10 -8 North Posey .....................................2-3 .......... 5 -12 South Spencer ..................................2-5 ...........7-10 Pike Central .....................................1-3 .......... 3-13 Tecumseh .........................................1-5 .......... 9 -10 Gibson Southern............................. 0 -3 .......... 4-10 Games of January 31 Pike Central 51, North Posey 49 Evansville Day School 41, Tecumseh 35 Evansville Mater Dei 69, Forest Park 48 Heritage Hills 81, Boonville 55 Southridge 60, Gibson Southern 33 Tell City 77, Cannelton 25 Results of February 2 Washington 73, Pike Central 31 Evansville Mater Dei 73, Gibson Southern 37 Evansville North 81, North Posey 54 Heritage Hills 60, Jasper 48 Perry Central 58, South Spencer 50 Laneville 68, Tecumseh 65 Games of February 5 Tecumseh at Pike Central Boonville at Gibson Southern South Spencer at Evansville North Southridge at Perry Central Wood Memorial at Forest Park Games of February 8 Tell City at Pike Central: Junior Varsity, 6:30 p.m.; Varsity, 8 p.m. Evansville Memorial at North Posey Heritage Hills at Forest Park South Spencer at Princeton Tecumseh at Gibson Southern Games of February 9 Pike Central at Boonville: Junior Varsity, 6:30 p.m.; Varsity, 8 p.m. Gibson Southern at Tell City North Daviess at Southridge Perry Central at North Posey Games of February 12 Pike Central at Gibson Southern: Junior Varsity, 6:30 p.m.; Varsity, 8 p.m. Forest Park at Boonville South Spencer at Wood Memorial Games of February 15 Pike Central at Jasper: Junior Varsity, 6 p.m.; Var- sity, 7:30 p.m. Boonville at North Posey Gibson Southern at Wood Memorial Southridge at South Spencer Tell City at Heritage Hills Games of February 16 Forest Park at Pike Central: Junior Varsity, 6 p.m.; Varsity, 7:30 p.m. Boonville at South Spencer Gibson Southern at Vincennes Lincoln Loogootee at Southridge North Posey at Tell City Perry Central at Tecumseh Junior Grant Niehaus scored a game-high 21 points as Washington defeat- ed host Pike Central 73-31 in high school boys' basketball action on Saturday, Feb. 2. Niehaus, senior Bryce Browning and sophomore Trey Reed netted six points each and senior Hunter Kil- lion had five points as the Hatchets took a 23-7 lead at the end of the first quarter. Niehaus added seven points during the second period, when Washington outscored the Chargers 23- 9 to extend its lead to 46 -16 at halftime. Browning netted five points during the third quarter as the Hatchets stretched their lead to 61- 20, while sophomore Zach Gray scored all eight of his points in the fourth period, when Washington outscored Pike Central 12-11 to finish off the 42-point win. Killion finished the game with 17 points while Brown- ing tossed in 16 points. Reed also reached double figures in scoring for the Hatchets – who improved to 13-5 – with 10 points. Senior Christian Benson scored 11 points to lead Pike Central, which slipped to 3- 13, while sophomore Jaden Guth came off the bench to add seven points. Ju- nior Ethan Scott added five points, and seniors Austin Holder and Hayden Kabrick netted four points each. In the junior varsity con- test, junior Kiowa Jones scored 15 points and soph- omore Owen Gray added 11 points to lead Washing- ton to a 73-28 victory over Pike Central. Sophomore Sean Hanselman paced the Chargers with nine points while Guth and sophomore Stephen Krieg added seven points and five points, re- spectively. Sophomore Ad- en Brown had three points while junior Colin Craig and sophomore Ashton Evans tossed in two points each. Pike Central, which played at Tecumseh on Tues- day, Feb. 5, will return home to host Tell City on Friday, Feb. 8. Winter Homecom- ing festivities will be held at 6 p.m., prior to the start of the junior varsity contest, with Senior Night sched- uled to take place between the junior varsity and varsi- ty games. The Chargers will play at Boonville on Saturday, Feb. 9, and at Gibson Southern on Tuesday, Feb. 12. Niehaus leads Washington past Chargers, 73-31 Above: Pike Central High School sophomore Ethan Gorby (11) goes up for a shot during var- sity boys' basketball action against visiting North Posey on Thursday, Jan. 31. Gorby scored three points in a 51-49 victory over the visiting Vikings. Ed Cahill photo Below: Pike Central High School senior Abi- gail Sutt and her fellow cheerleaders carry flags around the floor prior to the start of the Pike Cen- tral-North Posey varsity boys' basketball game on Thursday, Jan. 31. Ed Cahill photo Pike Central High School sophomore Sean Hanselman (13) puts up a shot during junior varsity boys' basket- ball action against visiting North Posey on Thursday, Jan. 31. Hanselman scored eight points in a 53-41 loss to the Vikings. Ed Cahill photo Pike Central High School soph- omore Connor Young drives to- ward the basket during junior varsi- ty boys' basketball action against visit- ing North Posey on Thursday, Jan. 31. Young scored two points in a 53-41 loss to the Vikings. Ed Cahill photo Pike Central High School senior Judah Leathco (20) dribbles past North Posey junior Cole Koester (right) during varsity boys' bas- ketball action on Thursday, Jan. 31. Leathco scored 14 points in a 51-49 victory over the visiting Vikings. Ed Cahill phot