REJECTION IN THE LANE … Archbold’s Chase Miller blocks the shot of Edgerton’s Joel Walkup in the first half. (PHOTO BY JACOB KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
By: Jesse Davis
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
ARCHBOLD (December 7, 2023) – The Bluestreaks held off a resurgent Bulldog crew who had closed the gap going into the final minute of play Thursday night to hold on to a home court victory, winning 57-54.
Archbold started out strong with an impressive defensive effort stopping six shots from Edgerton including a stuff by junior Sonny Phillips, while baskets from senior Jayden Seiler and junior Micah Nofziger along with a free throw by senior Chase Miller put them up 5-0.
Edgerton sophomore Maddox Baker stemmed the bleeding with a three, the only long shot made by either team in the quarter.
Cade Brenner, a Bluestreak senior who would go on to score a whopping 27 points in the game, caught fire mid-quarter, scoring four times up close including a breakaway while the Bulldogs were only able to put up four points with shots from juniors Scottie Krontz and Joel Walkup.
Walkup later put in both free throw attempts at the end of the quarter after catching Miller’s second foul to bring the score to 13-9.
The second quarter brought more of the same, including both the Bluestreak defense with Phillips managing another stuff, and Brenner’s dominant scoring.
Throughout the quarter, Brenner put up one in the paint, two from outside, and went one for two on a free throw chance, netting nine of the team’s 15 points.
However, Brenner also gave up one opportunity for easy points when he went for a dunk on a stolen pass breakaway and bounced it off the rim.
The Bulldogs still managed to remain in striking distance, putting up 12 of their own points, including two three-pointers from junior Cory Herman and three more points from Walkup, who sank a basket up close while drawing a foul from Nofziger and making his single free throw attempt to bring the score to 28-21.
By the beginning of the third quarter, Archbold’s smothering defense was taking its toll on both teams, with Edgerton continuing to eat up the clock trying to find space for shots while the Bluestreaks started to show signs of fatigue from their nonstop coverage.
With the flagging defense, the Bulldogs were able to outscore the Bluestreaks across the quarter for the first time during the game.
Krontz gained major ground with two baskets, a long-distance jumper, and making one of two free throws at both his appearances at the line.
Bluestreak fouls also began to rack up, with five in the quarter compared to five total in the first half.
For his part, Brenner went three for three during a single free throw appearance while also sinking two baskets, including one after rebounding a missed second free throw from Phillips.
Later in the quarter, Phillips would miss two consecutive shots in the paint but draw a foul that sent him to the line where he put in both attempts.
Again, the Bulldogs managed to stay in striking distance, ending the quarter just four behind the Bluestreaks at 41-37.
Free throws were a strong part of both teams’ scoring during a very physical fourth quarter, which saw four fouls called on Archbold and a whopping seven on Edgerton, which led to eight Bluestreak points, fully half their scoring in the final quarter.
At one point, Baker was called for two consecutive fouls, leading to two of Archbold’s points at the line.
The quarter would also end up being the highest scoring in the game for both teams, with Edgerton fighting from two down to seven down and all the way back to just one point down with 31 seconds left on the clock, while Archbold fought to maintain their lead.
With just over 27 seconds remaining, Krontz caught a foul, bringing Phillips back to the line to score two and put the Bluestreaks up 57-54.
The Bulldogs fought desperately for an opening, maintaining control of the ball until the very end and putting up two failed shots from outside before Brenner was able to snatch the ball as time ran out, cementing both Archbold’s victory and his place as MVP of the matchup.
EDGERTON (54) – Krontz 15; Baker 12; Herman 11; Walkup 11; Sanchez 1; Kennerk 4; Totals: 13-7-7 54
ARCHBOLD (57) – Phillips 8; Brenner 27; Wendt 0; Seiler 11; Diller 1; Miller 1; Nofziger 9; Totals: 16-3-16 – 57
EDGERTON 9 12 16 17 – 54
ARCHBOLD 13 15 13 16 – 57
JUNIOR VARSITY: Archbold, 63-31