Horace Greeley hands Kingston its second loss

POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. >> A streaking Horace Greeley team handed Kingston High’s boys basketball squad only its second loss of the season Saturday, rolling to an eye-opening 103-59 non-league victory.

Greeley won its 12th game in a row to improve to 15-3 on the year. The setback snapped the Tigers’ four-game win streak and dropped them to 14-2.

The pace was terrific with Greeley up 10-8 just two minutes in. Kingston hung right with the Quakers and trailed only 27-25 after one quarter.

The Tigers, however, could not stop Greeley from scoring.

“After that, it was downhill from there on out,” said Kingston coach Ron Kelder, who saw Greeley score at least 25 points in every quarter. The Quakers outscored the Tigers 50-15 in the middle quarters.

“They kept scoring and we

stopped scoring. When you can’t stop somebody, it’s going to affect your offense, it’s going to affect everything. It was a mental struggle. Their bigs dominated us in the paint and their 3-point shooting was unconscious.”

Nick Townsend, a 6-foot-6 sophomore, had 36 points and 22 rebounds and Chris Melis pounded inside for 13 points. Guard Christoph Sauerborn had seven assists and 26 points, including seven 3-point field goals. Greeley hit 13 treys on the day.

“They played super together and we just struggled to stop them. It was a little overwhelming,” Kelder admitted. “We just weren’t able to sustain it. Ultimately, we took a beating.”

Shy’quan Royal had 13 points, Brady Short 11 (including three 3’s), ShaCorey Jones 10, Chris Whitaker nine, Clayton Pattillo eight and Dylan Perry six to lead Kingston.

“It was not a pleasant day for Kingston basketball,” Kelder remarked. “Hopefully, we’ll respond and move forward.”

Kingston has a pair of home games this week, taking on Pine Bush on Tuesday and Valley Central Friday.