(March 3rd, 2015) – PAULDING: The odds were stacked against the North Central boys as they stepped on the court to take on Green Meadows Conference champion Wayne Trace. The Raiders also just so happened to be the top seeded team in the Eagles’ bracket. So the boys from Pioneer, with a team lacking depth and size, were considered heavy underdogs going into the contest.
They weren’t able to pull off the upset, as North Central fell to Wayne Trace 69-34.
It was clear the game was destined to be a difficult one for the Eagles from the very first period. The Raider boys set the scoring pace, and North Central simply couldn’t keep up. By the conclusion of the stanza, the Eagle boys were trailing 20-6. They did a better job in the second quarter, limiting the damage Wayne Trace could Inflict with a 10-16 effort. As the two units jogged off the court for halftime, the scoreboard read 36-16 in favor of the Raiders.
The third frame saw Wayne Trace continue to put distance between themselves and North Central. The Eagles of Pioneer were outscored 21-12 in that span. Despite facing a 29 point deficit at the start of the fourth and final quarter, they never gave up, fighting until the final ticks came off the clock. At one point, North Central was down by 40 points, yet they continued to plug away.
As the final buzzer sounded, the Eagles took the 35 point loss in stride, still taking the time to pray with their fans, as well as the Wayne Trace boys, after the game, a tradition the team had started just this year.
Steven Williams, a sophomore for the Eagle boys, led the team in scoring with 10 points. Senior Josh Sawyer made a pair of three-point field goals to earn 6 points. Another senior, Jordan Reeves, also connected on a three, as he totaled 5 points in the defeat.