Marion boys edge Haven 50-48

Written by AO Tuesday, 13 January 2009 16:27

The Marion High School boys basketball team shot down the Haven Wildcats 50-48 Tuesday in Marion. The Warriors slammed Haven 29-12 in the first half and held on for the win.

Brian Fruechting's foul shots with 10 seconds left turned a desperate situation into a comfortable lead. Before Fruechting's free throws, Haven had put together an 11-2 run that saw Marion's lead shrink from 43-34 at 5:27 of the fourth to 47-45 with under a minute to go.

Marion led 8-0 out of the gate, and held a 13-5 advantage through one quarter. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Luke Gordon and Elliot Hett made it 27-10 with 1:43 left in the first half, and the Warriors took a 29-12 lead into halftime.

Haven turned the tables in the third quarter, outscoring Marion 20-10 behind Cory Hatchet, who totaled 20 points in the game. The Wildcats closed the gap to 39-32 at the end of the third, but Marion reestablished its center of gravity on the first possession of the fourth. Patiently and repeatedly reversing the ball, the Warriors eventually created a seam in the Haven defense for Eric Vogel, who spun into the lane and nailed a short jumper to restore some composure to the Marion side.

But Luke Gordon went to the bench with his fourth foul just 1:29 into the period, and returned only when Hatchet lifted Haven within seven. Called for a charge, Gordon fouled out with 2:01 left.

A moment after Gordon departed, Ridge Foster threw in a 3-pointer from the left wing corner to make it  47-45, and the Warriors immediately committed a turnover on the inbounds pass. The Warrior defense shook off the mistake, forcing a miss, allowing an offensive rebound, and taking possession back when Drew Maddox forced a turnover along the baseline.

Marion had struggled with its bonus foul shots down the stretch, but a 1-for-2 double bonus set by Elliot Hett made it a 3-point game. The Warriors did allow one last open look at a triple—but only after Fruechting's shots made it moot.

Hett totaled 16 points, and Vogel totaled 15.

The girls stared down a tougher matchup and pushed Haven to the edge when Julia Zeiner scored a short shot off a set inbounds play with a minute left in the third quarter. But Haven's Sheridan Stefanski hit a deflating left wing 3-pointer as time expired in the third, and the Wildcats cruised to a 63-48 win. After Stefanski's trey, Haven scored eight unanswered to own the fourth quarter 14-6.

Zeiner's shot capped a 20-11 run after halftime. Marion trailed 16-10 after the first quarter and was down 13, 35-22, with two quarters in the books and two remaining. Zeiner finished with 17 points, and Kayley Heerey scored 16.