Comets Crash Into Hall-of-Fame Celebration

It was a night that began with much celebration, as Winamac Community High School inducted five new members into their Athletic Hall of Fame. With a crowd energized by getting to honor the likes of Erika (Redweik) Bryant, Mary and Martin Finley, Christina (Pugh) Turpin, and the late Tyler Roth, as the newest members of the Hall of Fame, it was not hard for the players of both Winamac and Caston to carry the energy into the conference matchup.

The competition would be an incredibly exciting back-and-forth, from start to finish. The two Hoosier North Athletic Conference teams recognized the importance of the game, as far as positioning in the conference goes, as well as gaining momentum with Sectional play just around the corner. With both teams being patient on offense, while also playing solid defense, the scoreboard would not see much action in the first quarter, as the visitors from Caston would be able to take a one-point lead at the end of the opening quarter, 11-10.

The Warriors would begin to open things up in the second quarter with great ball movement around the perimeter, and each player touching the ball multiple times before the basket would be attacked. A very patient strategy that would pay off for the Warriors, as they would outscore the Comets 11-6 in the second quarter to take a 21-17 lead at the half. Statistically, things appeared to be just as close as the game appeared to be on the floor, as well as what showed on the scoreboard. The Warriors would have five different individuals find at least two points in the first half, led by Will Larkin, who was able to put up seven. As for the Comets, the first half would not be quite as generous in the scoring column, with just three individuals finding points, led by Kade Zeider, who was able to knock down an impressive three 3-point shots to lead his team with nine points at the half.

The second half would see a much bigger contribution in the scoring column from the Comets, while the Warriors would become a one-man scoring force. Larkin would carry the scoring burden for his team throughout the final two quarters, as he relentlessly attacked on offense, finding shots at the rim, free throw line, and from behind the arc, on his way to scoring 21 of his team’s 25 second half points. The veteran senior’s effort would not be enough, however, as the balanced attack of the Comets would prove to be too much for the Warriors, with Caston outscoring Winamac 34-25 in the final two quarters to take the 51-46 win.

“They did a good job of scoring inside and out” said Winamac Coach Alan Huggler following the game. “(Kade) Zeider hit some big shots from the perimeter, and (Hunter) Schanlaub scored some points on the inside. We were able to defend them well early” Huggler continued, “we tried some different things defensively, but they were able to hit big shots”.

Always the optimist, Coach Huggler was able to find plenty of positives despite the loss.

“In the second half, Willy (Larkin) was able to get the ball a few times inside and score on some nice cuts where the team helped to get him open. Overall, credit Caston” Huggler said humbly. “We just couldn’t guard everybody”.

The Ashley Derrickson/Five Star Player of the Game went to Hunter Schanlaub of Caston High School, who scored 19 points, while pulling down 6 rebounds, and hitting 3-3 at the free throw line in the win.

The Warriors will be back in action tonight when they travel to Delphi, while the Comets will get back to work on the 31st when they play host to Pioneer.

Scoring

Caston(51): Luke Lowe-3, Kade Zeider-15, Cam Kline-3, Hunter Schanlaub-19, Joey Spin-6, Mike Rans-5

Winamac(46): Will Larkin-28, Daniel Kasten-6, Trent Fox-2, Carson Bennett-5, Russell Compton-2, Hayden May-3

Free Throws

Caston: 7-9 77%

Winamac 7-9 77%

3-Pointers

Caston(8): Luke Lowe-1, Kade Zeider-5, Cam Kline-1, Mike Rans-1

Winamac(5): Will Larkin-3, Carson Bennett-1, Shayden May-1

Rebounding

Caston(19): Luke Lowe-2, Hunter Schanlaub-6, Joey Spin-5, Mike Rans-6

Winamac(15): Daniel Kasten-1, Trent Fox-4, Carson Bennett-5, Russell Compton-4, Shayden May-1