Loyal boys’ postseason run comes to a close
By Harry Toufar, Valorie Brecht The Loyal Greyhounds boys basketball team reached the end of their season last week after a loss in the third round of the playoffs, but had a lot to be proud of after improving their record by seven wins from last year and moving up two places in the conference standings.
Versus Cochrane-Fountain City It has been a few years since the Loyal boys basketball program played in a regional championship game. After dispatching Greenwood and Blair-Taylor at home, the Hounds embarked on a two-hour bus ride on Saturday night to Cochrane-Fountain City (CFC) to do battle with the number-one seeded Pirates.
The Hounds were not intimidated by the music and spotlight introductions, as they shot out of the gates for an 8-2 burst in the first six minutes.
“Our fast start again showed that we were ready to play against another great team; they had 23 wins on the year at that point,” said Loyal coach Brandon DeSmet.
Cain Toufar owned the paint early on as he overpowered his opponent for two quick baskets. After a Pirate basket, Bryce Deegan took over the scoring duties with two baskets of his own. The Pirates finally found the rim with two baskets, cutting the Loyal lead to two. A 7-0 run in the next two minutes righted the ship for the Hounds as Rhett Lamovec scored twice inside while Parker Smith connected from long range, pushing the lead back up to seven points. The Pirates came down for a 3-pointer before Toufar, Smith, and Reed Stieglitz teamed up for six points, forcing the Pirates coach to take a timeout.
With just over eight minutes remaining in the half, the Hounds had a seemingly comfortable 13 point lead. The Pirates fought back, scoring six unanswered points of their own. Stieglitz hit a 3-pointer before the Pirates finished with two baskets, bringing the halftime score to 24-20 in favor of the Hounds.
Whatever the Pirates coach said in the locker room must have resonated with his players, as they scored the first six points of the second half, giving them their first lead of the game. Toufar connected for two, tying the game at 26.
The Pirates switched to a zone defense for the second half and it paid dividends, as they out-scored the Hounds 20-6 in the first nine minutes of the second half. The next four points for the Hounds were provided by Stieglitz, as he hit a 3-pointer and one free throw. A Deegan 3-pointer and a Lamovec basket cut into the Pirates’ lead, but the Pirates were not to be denied as they continued their pressure. Points in the paint were hard to come by, as two or three Pirates were smothering any Hound player who tried to go near the basket. Deegan was the only Hound to find the rim in the late going, as he made the last 10 points with two 3-pointers and two 2-pointers.
Deegan led the Hounds in scoring with 16 points while also hauling down 10 rebounds and dishing out four assists. Others scoring for the Hounds were Stieglitz 9, Toufar 8,
Please see Loyal, page 12
To left, Ridge Ashbeck tosses up a layup for Loyal in the first-round playoff game against Greenwood at home March 4. He was one of 12 Loyal players to earn points in that contest. Above middle, Greenwood’s Keagan Gipe makes a free throw. Above right, Carson Bremmer attempts an outside shot for Loyal. Bottom left, Anton Livingston, a junior, scores two for Greenwood.
VALORIE BRECHT/STAFF PHOTOS
Smith 5, and Lamovec 5. Cochrane-Fountain City moves on to sectional play with a 57-43 victory.
“The CFC game was a physical battle. I was proud of how hard our guys played after that intense game the night before. They left nothing on the court and gave it everything they had… However, with about nine minutes to go CFC went three possessions in a row, that we were unable to respond offensively and we went on a cold stretch that put us down six. We were just unable to get a few more key stops and make a couple of really good looks that had. It was a great game that unfortunately only one team could win. (I) give CFC a ton of a credit for how they matched up physically with us and how they were able to create some separation offensively at the end of the game,” said DeSmet.
Loyal opens postseason play with familiar foe Last week Tuesday, the weather was playing havoc with the opening round of the playoffs as a number of schools were moving the start time to 6 o’clock or rescheduling. This was not the case with Loyal, as they were hosting neighboring Greenwood. Outside, it was raining while inside the Loyal Greyhounds were raining down basket after basket. Toufar took control of the inside game early as he hit for 11 points in the early going. He would finish the game leading the Hounds in scoring with 15. Deegan was close behind with 14 points. Coming off the bench, Lamovec and Carson Prein each garnered 10 points. Twelve players scored for the Hounds in their 84-33 win, with the rest of the point totals as follows: Stieglitz 8, Hunter Walter 6, Joe Treffinger 5, Colten Sandelier 5, Ridge Ashbeck 4, Aaron Radue 3, Smith 2, and Brody Miller 2.
“I really liked how well we moved and passed the ball on offense that night. We were able to get a lot of good open looks and we had multiple guys score throughout the game, which was great to see,” noted DeSmet.
Keegan Gipe led the Indians in scoring with 12 points. Carter Johnson added nine points. Anton Livingson (6), James Durrstein (3), and Jaren Cullen (1) rounded out the scoring for Greenwood. Two other points were unaccounted for. This was the last game for Greenwood seniors Chad Oldham, Nicholas Vetterkind, James Durrstein, Landin Bock, and Jaren Cullen.
Loyal wins second-round playoff game After defeating Greenwood, Loyal (18-6 at that point) faced Blair-Taylor (BT) at home on Friday night. The home advantage was thanks to the Hounds’ determination to achieve a successful season. As the old saying goes, every game counts. After an 11-0 start, the Greyhounds stumbled for a short stretch. They were able to right the ship and finish a strong second half of the season. This early showing and late resurgence put them into the fourth-seed spot in the sectional bracket. This meant that BT (19-6) would need to make the long trip to Greyhound country.
The Greyhounds shocked the visiting Wildcats by jumping out to an 18-2 lead just over six minutes into the game.
“I loved our effort and energy early in the Blair-Taylor game. Defensively, we played with good intensity on the ball, and were great in the gaps. Offensively we came out just as fast and that early lead we took really set the tone,” said DeSmet.
Walter started things off with an inside basket. Stieglitz followed that with a 2-pointer. Smith hit a 3-pointer and Walter put down his second basket. Toufar got into the scoring column with a basket plus one and followed that up with another 2-pointer. Deegan contributed four points to that long run.
Loyal’s swarming defense kept Blair-Taylor off balance as they seemed to be out of sync. In the meantime, Toufar and Lamovec were scoring four and six points, respectively. The Greyhounds went into the locker room with what looked like a comfortable 26-10 lead.
However, BT showed why they had a 19-6 record as they came out of the locker room looking like they were on a mission. They went on a 13-1 run, putting themselves right back in the game.
“Blair-Taylor is a great program and a great team … We knew that they were not going to go down easy,” said DeSmet.
Numerous BT fouls were starting to mount as Loyal was in a bonus situation with 8:39 remaining and in double bonus with 4:54 remaining. With 7:34 on the clock, BT had closed to within four points. Loyal added a point to the lead before BT scored again to trail 41-37 with two minutes remaining. At this point, it was anybody’s game to win.
With the clock down to 1:29, Stieglitz was fouled in the back court. The BT player disagreed, as well as the BT coach. From the other side of the gym, one could tell he was upset as he got in the referee’s face, jawing at him. The ref showed a lot of poise as he let the coach go on and then headed for the scoring bench to sort things out. Apparently, the coach said one of those magical words that a referee doesn’t like to hear. That prompted a technical call by another ref who was right there. This was a huge turning point in the game, as Stieglitz went to the line. First, he made both free throws resulting from the technical. He followed that with two foul shots because of the player foul.
Following a technical foul, the other team gets the ball. What was a 4-point lead was pushed to eight points. A free throw later gave the Hounds a 9-point lead with 49 seconds remaining. Two more Stieglitz free throws sent the Hounds on their way to the regional championship game at CFC on Saturday night. The final score was 50-39.
“We showed great mental toughness to overcome BT’s late push. Our free throw shooting that night proved key down the stretch, as multiple guys made important free throws in the end. It was great a way to finish our last home game of the year,” said DeSmet.
Leading Loyal in scoring was Stieglitz with 15 points. He made 13 of 16 free throws, many toward the end of game. Toufar had nine points, going 5-for-5 at the line. Deegan chipped in eight points. Lamovec scored six points, going 4-for-6 at the line. Smith had six points going 3-for-4 from the line. Walter also tallied six points. Overall, the Hounds made 25 of 33 free throws (76%).
Season reflections Last year, the Greyhounds finished 12 and 13 and fifth in the conference. This year, they went 19-8 and finished third in conference, one game out of first place.
“It was great to see all the hard work and dedication pay off for our players. Making it to the regional championship game is a tough task and something that only happened two other times since 2000. Our players should be really proud of everything they accomplished this year,” said DeSmet.
He also saluted the team’s seniors, Smith and Radue, whom he said were great teammates and leaders.
“They represented what it meant to lead by example and the other players loved being around them. They are leaving the Loyal boys basketball program a better program than when they started in it four years ago,” he said.
Although it’s always disappointing to see a season come to an end, DeSmet had a lot of pride and satisfaction in what his team had accomplished, and appreciation for support along the way.
“Overall, it was a great season, and one we won’t forget for a while. There were many special moments and plays made that our boys basketball team will remember for a long time.
“I would like to thank our players and coaches for their commitment and trust in the program. I would also like to extend a huge thank you to our fans and community. From the start of the year they filled the gym and cheered us on. Opposing coaches always brought up with me how impressed they were with how many fans came to our games. We could feel all their support throughout the year, especially in the playoffs.”
4 Loyal boys earn all-conference honors
Four Loyal Greyhound boys basketball players were recognized as being among the top athletes in the Eastern Cloverbelt Conference. In the above photo, (from left to right), Bryce Deegan was named to the all-conference second team, Cain Toufar was also named to the second team, Reed Stieglitz made the first team, and Rhett Lamovec received honorable mention.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
