Minerva teams see mixed results in busy early-December stretch

Perhaps it was a tryptophan hangover from all the turkey that was consumed over Thanksgiving weekend.

The Minerva Lions, following their blowout win over Sandy Valley to open the season, went on a nine-day hiatus thanks to the extended holiday weekend, so it wasn’t until Dec. 5 that they found themselves in action again as Minerva hosted West Branch in the Eastern Buckeye Conference opener for both teams.

In a topsy-turvy game that witnessed multiple momentum shifts, the Warriors hung on for a 56-50 win over the Lions.

With the teams neck-and-neck after the first period, West Branch went on a run in the second, doubling up Minerva 20-10 in the second quarter to take a 27-18 advantage into intermission. The Lions then made their stand and hung 19 points on the Warriors in the third quarter to draw to within a point entering the final period.

Minerva ran out of gas, however, as West Branch (1-2, 1-0) outscored the Lions 18-13 over the final eight minutes to earn the win. Skyler Lab led the Lions (1-1, 0-1) with 14 points, including two baskets from downtown, while Rowen Hoffee scored 11 and paced Minerva’s long-range attack with three treys. Owen Shick and Braydon Wood scored eight points apiece, respectively.

Girls Basketball

The Lions only had one game on the calendar over the past week, but it was a doozy – a Dec. 3 EBC opener on the road against defending champion West Branch.

Following Minerva’s 56-21 loss to the Warriors, the Lions are still on the hunt for their first win.

West Branch took the air out of the room with an 18-2 run in the first quarter. The pace slowed way down in the second quarter as Minerva didn’t lose much more ground, but the Lions didn’t gain any either. Leading 25-8 at the break, the Warriors outscored Minerva 20-4 in the third quarter and coasted to the win from there.

Ireland Kirkpatrick led the Lions (0-3, 0-1) with seven points, while Rachel Benedict added four.Sammi Beatty scored 16 points to lead West Branch (3-0, 1-0).

Wrestling

Minerva competed at the Cambridge Invitational, held Dec. 6 at Cambridge HS, and while the Lions may not have had the horses to run with the likes of eventual champ Louisville, they made plenty of noise in a field of twelve.

Louisville scored 318.5 points to easily top runner-up Beaver Local, which finished with 193.0. Minerva ended up in sixth place with a score of 133.0, sandwiched between fifth-place Logan Elm (157.0) and seventh-place Miami Trace (128.5).

The top scorer for the Lions was junior Jason Sivy, who advanced to the finals at 157 lbs. before losing by technical fall to West Holmes’ Louden Dixon. Other top placers include senior Lincoln Wallace (165) who won his third-place match by pin over Sheridan’s Slade Frame (2:31).

Three Lions placed fourth: freshman Shawn Weaver (120), sophomore Kolton Almasy (126), and junior Ethan Weaver (175). Senior Enoch Brodzenski was fifth at 190, while sophomore Alex Wright (106), senior Tyler Phillips (113), and freshman Cole Sivy (138) all finished sixth, respectively.

Bowling

Perhaps stinging from their losses to Carrollton at Atwood Lanes the previous day, the Lions showed no mercy when Jackson visited Minerva Bowl Dec. 3 as the boys registered a 2,706–2,612 come-from-behind victory, while the girls saved their best game for last in a 2,063–1,966 win.

After trailing Carrollton by 220 pins the day before, the Lions were determined not to fall behind the Polar Bears. Owen Frazier rolled a 267 to go with his earlier 207 for a 474 series, while Lane Hawk (209-215) added a 424 series. Despite piling up a score of 2,038, however, Jackson stillled by nine pins entering the Baker games.

Minerva caught fire during the second Baker game. The Lions closed out the second Baker game with five consecutive strikes to win 246-199, giving them a 25-pin cushion entering the final game.

Minerva removed all suspense with a dominant 233-164 win for the final margin. The Lions opened with two spares before a four-bagger put the match out of reach.

For the girls, a couple of below-average first games had the Lions in a 63-pin hole as Bailey Wood’s 205 was Minerva’s saving grace. Rylan Klitz then turned it up a notch as she posted a 235 second game for a 393 series. Meanwhile, Wood stayed hot with a 172 for a 377 series, which allowed Minerva to enter the Baker games with a 29-pin cushion.

The Lions narrowly won the first two Bakers, 140-138 and 142-125. The third game was a different beast entirely as Minerva bowled a 190 to win the final game by 49 pins.