Dukes earn first win at Alliance Christmas Classic

In search of their first win of the season, the Dukes finally tasted victory Dec. 23 during the Alliance Christmas Classic, hosted by the University of Mount Union. With a 52-32 win over Field, Marlington emphatically ended a five-game slide as three players scored in double digits.

Before unwrapping their gift, however, the Dukes had to suffer through a loss to Eastern Buckeye Conference rival Minerva earlier in the week. Hosting the Lions Dec. 19, Marlington was able to keep pace as the game was tied at halftime as well as at the end of the third quarter.

Minerva, through its hot hand beyond the arc, outscored the Dukes 14-9 over the remaining eight minutes of the contest for a 58-53 victory.

Cameron Evanich notched a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds for Marlington, which fell to 0-2 in the EBC. Brady Denham added 13 points and five assists for the Dukes, while Cole Jones scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds. The Lions’ duo of Owen Shick – who led all scorers with 17 points – and Lane Tarbet combined for seven treys as Minerva (4-2, 2-1) connected on 11 3-pointers as a team.

Four days later, the Dukes met Field at Mount Union’s Timken Gymnasium, and Marlington put together a complete game to pull away early from the Falcons. The Dukes raced to a 10-5 first-quarter advantage, then, during the pivotal second period, outscored Field 16-6 to take a 26-11 lead into the locker room at intermission.

Demonstrating they had some fight left in the tank, the Falcons pieced together a 17-10 run following halftime to shave Marlington’s lead to eight points. The Dukes’ defense took it in stride, however, and slammed the door on hopes of a Field comeback by limiting the Falcons to a miserly four points in the fourth quarter.

There were plenty of accolades to go around for Marlington (1-5) as Bryce Jones was named game MVP after scoring 11 points and nabbing five rebounds. Evanich put together another double-double as he scored 13 points and came down with 10 rebounds.

Carter Frank added eight points and seven rebounds, and Jones contributed 11 points, four rebounds and three steals. Jackson Berlin led Field (2-6) with 12 points and 10 boards.

Girls basketball

After stringing together three consecutive wins to get back to .500 on the season, the Lady Dukes visited New Philadelphia Dec. 22 for one last game before Christmas. Santa Claus turned to Krampus for the Lady Dukes as they fell to the Quakers 48-25 in a nonconference clash.

With the loss, Marlington slipped to 4-5 while the Quakers improved to 8-1. No other details on the game were available.