Moran wins against Woodson
By Kathy Thomson
Moran basketball players have been busy with regular games and tournament matches over the last week.
Both varsity teams won games in Woodson on Tuesday, Dec. 10, but did not fare as well in tournament play at Zephyr last weekend.
The middle school boys and girls teams both fell to visiting teams from Eula on Monday, Dec. 16.
Bulldogs
The Moran Bulldogs kept it close with the Cowboys for three quarters before putting up 16 points to Woodson’s 11 in the fourth to tie the score.
“Lyric Huskey made one of two free throws with four seconds left in regulation to send the game into overtime,” said coach Robert Londerholm. “Corey Miller, Zack Keith, Arren Hawley, and Harley Schafer all did an excellent job rebounding the ball against Woodson. We outscored them 7-4 in overtime to win in Woodson.”
The final score was 44 to 41.
“We tried to be patient on offense against their zone defense, in hopes of keeping the score close,” said the coach. “It worked against Woodson, and we used it again with Zephyr in the Zephyr Tournament.”
Moran beat Zephyr in the first game of the tourney 35-32.
The Bulldogs found the going tougher against their next two opponents, Cherokee and Priddy.
Both of those teams played aggressive man-to-man defense and forced the Bulldogs to use their off hands, which disrupted their normal play, according to the coach.
Cherokee defeated Moran 48-28 in the second round of the tourney on Friday, Dec. 13.
Priddy outscored the Bulldogs 66-20 in the final round on Saturday, Dec. 14.
“We have to develop our fundamental skills on offense if we expect to compete with tough man-to-man defensive teams,” said Londerholm. “We will work on our fundamentals in practice.”
Lyric Huskey was selected to the all-tournament team for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs will face Throckmorton on Friday, Dec. 20, and then will be off over Christmas. The varsity boys will return to the court for district games starting on Friday, Jan 17 in Baird.
Moran plays basketball in District 20-1A with Baird, Eula, Gordon, Ranger, and Strawn.
Lady Bulldogs
The varsity girls played a lot of basketball over the week, and they did well, according to coach John Hughes.
“We defeated Woodson on Tuesday, and I know that the girls enjoyed it,” he said. “It was a little retribution for Woodson knocking them out of the (volleyball) playoff race.”
Hughes said that the Lady Bulldogs looked like a good, complete team during the 42-16 victory over the Cowgirls in Woodson.
Scoring for Moran on Dec. 10 in Woodson were Rashaley Schafer 10, Emily Murk 1, Johnnie Hise 6, Dariann Hawley 15, and November Meredith 10.
Moran played in the Zephyr tournament and were matched against the host team in the first round on Dec. 12.
“In what turned out to be a great game, the girls came out with an eight point loss,” said Hughes. “We looked good, but we just had one bad quarter that cost us the game.”
Scoring for the Lady Bulldogs were Schafer 4, Hise 3, Hawley 7, and Meredith 7.
“On Friday, Dec. 13, we played Hamilton’s JV and again had a great game, but lost by nine points, 35-44” said Hughes. “It was the same story as the day before, as one bad quarter cost us the game.”
Moran point earners were Schafer 14, Chloe Hendricks 2, Murk 4, Hise 10, Hawley 3, and Meredith 2.
In the third round of tournament action on Saturday, Dec. 14, Moran faced Blanket for the second time this season, and lost 43-14.
“We just couldn’t get anything going, and we fell into a huge hole that we couldn’t dig ourselves out of,” said Hughes. “But overall, I’m extremely pleased with the progress that the team is making.”
The Lady Bulldogs played in Newcastle on Tuesday, Dec. 17. Results from the game were not available at press time and will be reported in a future edition of The Albany News.
The varsity girls are scheduled to host Jayton at 3:30 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 30, and then start district play at home against Gordon at 6:00 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 10.
Junior High
Both of Moran’s junior high teams lost to the Eula Pirates on Monday, Dec. 16.
“This was their last game going into the break,” said Hughes. “It wasn’t pretty, but it was another learning experience for them.” Hughes attended the MISD board meeting that also took place in Moran on Monday night, so coach Elizabeth Martin filled in for him in the gym.
The junior high Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs will not play again until January.
