Hornets extend streak, Lady Hornets drop pair in IVC North play

Someday, Malvern will lose another game in the Inter-Valley Conference’s North Division. Someday. After all, with all the talent that’s graduated over the past several years, it’s bound to happen.

But the Hornets aren’t going to make it easy on those usurpers with designs on their crown.

Malvern opened its conference schedule with IVC North games against Newcomerstown and Buckeye Trail on the docket, and the Trojans and Warriors were looking to put an end to the six-time defending champion Hornets’ 57-game winning streak. 

Better luck next time, perhaps as Malvern hung identical 60-50 defeats on both rivals to nudge the Hornets’ winning streak to the precipice of 60.

First up was a Dec. 9 road game at Newcomerstown and Malvern was quick out of the gates to exert its will on the Trojans, building a 15-8 lead after one quarter. Newcomerstown tried to get back into the game in the second period, but the Hornets kept the pressure on.

Grady Barkley led Malvern with 21 points as five of his eight baskets were from downtown, while Luke Thomas contributed eight points and eight rebounds. Tripp Tucci and Delonte Simmons each scored seven points. The Trojans (1-3, 0-1) were led by Tanner Smith’s 14 points.

Three days later, the Hornets hosted Buckeye Trail and again, Malvern controlled the tempo, opening up a 32-20 first-half lead that ballooned to 17 points by the start of the fourth quarter. The Hornets threatened to blow the game wide open and only a Warrior 14-7 edge in the fourth quarter, when the game had been decided, kept the score appearing more manageable.

To Malvern coach Dennis Tucci, a win is a win. 

“We played two tough opponents this week, and we were able to win them both,” he said. “Grady, Delonte, and Luke have begun to score a little more consistently for us.”

Simmons was lead scorer for the Hornets (4-1, 2-0) with 22 points, while Barkley scored 14 and Thomas added 13 to go with his team-high five rebounds. Sammy Brown scored 15 points to lead Buckeye Trail (3-2, 1-1).

More than scoring, however, Tucci gave a nod to his squad’s style of play as well as something that’s been a hallmark of Malvern teams – a stifling defense.

“Tripp, Jaxon [Jones], Brennan [Mitchell], and Josh [Untch] are playing good, fundamental basketball,” Coach Tucci said. “Our pressure seems to bother our opponents. Hopefully, we can continue to play at a high level as we approach our Christmas break.”

Girls Basketball

Like the boys’ team, the Lady Hornets also played twice within the IVC North over the past week with road games Dec. 10 and 13. After a heartbreaking one-point loss to Newcomerstown the week before, Malvern was in search of its first conference win.

However, against Buckeye Trail and Strasburg-Franklin, two of the IVC North’s upper echelon teams, it was not to be.

First up would be the Warriors, and for quite a bit of the game, the Hornets were in the lead. Following a close first quarter that ended with Buckeye Trail on top 15-14, Malvern outscored the Warriors 15-8 to take a 29-22 lead into halftime. 

Buckeye Trail chipped away at the lead but the Hornets were still up by four as the fourth quarter commenced. Then the Warriors exploded for 23 points while holding Malvern to six, ending in a 56-43 victory.

Ella Debo finished with 18 points and Whitney Smith scored 11 for the Hornets. Jersey Eddy scored 25 points to pace Buckeye Trail (4-2, 3-0).

Malvern returned to action three days later with a visit to Strasburg-Franklin, and this one was not as close as the Tigers raced out to a 25-13 lead after the first quarter on their way to a 61-29 win over the Hornets.

One bright spot for Malvern (2-4, 0-3) was Debo, who scored 14 points while going 9-of-10 from the free throw line. Addy Mitchell added eight points for the Hornets which included two treys. Strasburg (5-1, 4-0) was led by Olivia Spidell’s 15 points.