Area teams engage in rivalry contests
While one big rivalry game may not be taking place this week, others closer to home for area basketball fans will be renewed, along with several other contests.
WAPAKONETA ( 0- 0 WBL, 4- 0 overall)
The Wapakoneta boys continued the good start to the 202021 season last Friday night with a 45- 38 road win over Marion Local.
Noah Ambos had 18 points, Kaden Siefring had 12 and Zach Rogers put in 10 to led the offense.
Wapakoneta led from beginning to end, and used a combination of patient offense, solid defense, and good free throw shooting in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
This Friday, the Redskins will open Western Buckeye League play by hosting rival St. Marys. The Roughriders are 2- 1 on the year.
They opened with a 53- 45 win over Fort Recovery on Nov. 27, then topped Marion Local 52- 49 on a shot at the buzzer. Last Friday, they took on another set of Redskins, those from St. Henry, and lost 46- 45 in overtime.
The teams were tied at 39 at the end of regulation. St. Marys took the initial lead in OT, but St. Henry rallied, getting the game- winner with a few seconds remaining.
Letrey Williams had 20 points for St. Marys, Austin Parks had 10 and Jadin Davis scored nine.
On Saturday, Wapakoneta will face a road challenge when they travel to Minster. The Wildcats are 2- 1, with the loss coming on Tuesday night to Botkins.
In that game, Justin Nixon had 16 points and Johnny Nixon scored 15, with Brady Hoelscher adding 11.
Prior to that, Minster defeated Spencerville ( 63- 27) and Versailles ( 51- 39).
Wapakoneta will play its first league road game on Dec. 18 as they travel to Van Wert.
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WAYNESFIELD GOSHEN ( 0- 1 NWCC, 0- 3 overall)
Waynesfield- Goshen
is looking for its first win of the season, after coming close in its most recent contest.
On Tuesday, the Tigers host New Knoxville, falling in overtime by a county of 67- 58.
Layton Campbell and Zamere Daniel each scored 17 points for W- G, while Hyatt Kaufman and Jayden Elliott had 11 apiece.
W- G led by six points at the half, with New Knoxville rallying to take the lead at the end of three. The teams wound up tied at 50, and the Rangers scored 17 points in the extra five minutes.
This weekend, W- G has a pair of home games. First up on Friday will be a league contest with Temple Christian. The Pioneers are 0- 2 so far, with losses to Continental ( 41- 23) on Nov. 28 and Arlington ( 6544) last Saturday.
On Saturday evening, Waynesfield-Goshen will host Jackson Center in a clash of two sets of Tigers. Jackson Center is 2- 2 on the year and 1- 2 in Shelby County League action. They lost to Botkins ( 68- 55) and Fort Loramie ( 36- 31), then defeated Coldwater ( 57- 32) last Saturday and Houston ( 6715) on Tuesday. They will face Fairlawn on Friday before visiting the “Jungle” at W- G.
Waynesfield- Goshen will visit Jefferson on Dec. 18.
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BOTKINS ( 2- 0 SCAL, 4- 0 overall)
The Trojans are marching along so far, adding a pair of wins to their total in the past week.
Last Saturday, Botkins followed Wapakoneta’s visit to Marion Local with one of their own, and grounded the Flyers with a 42- 30 win.
As noted above, they then battled their way past Minster on Tuesday. Jacob Pleiman racked up 31 points in the 56- 52 win, while Jayden Priddy had 14.
Botkins has one game this week, a visit to Fort Loramie. The Redskins are 3- 1 so far this season. They started off with a win over Russia ( 63- 44), followed by victories over Jackson Center ( 36- 31) and New Knoxville ( 49- 36). On Tuesday, they had their first loss, 70- 52, on the road at Anna.
Botkins will then have a chance to rest until Dec. 18 when they will host Houston.
GIRLS WAPAKONETA ( 0- 1 WBL, 1- 1 overall)
The Wapakoneta girls have gotten things rolling after some revisions to the schedule due to the
ongoing COIVD- 19 pandemic.
Last Thursday, they had to face defending Western Buckeye League champion OttawaGlandorf. The Lady Tittans jumped out to a 14- 0 lead and took matters from there in a 73- 37 win.
This evening, the Lady Redskins will travel west to take on St. Marys.
The Lady ‘ Riders are 3- 1 on the year to date. They opened with a 71- 21 win over Fort Jennings on Nov. 20, then defeated Kalida 30- 19 on Nov. 24. Last Saturday, they lost to New Knoxville 53- 35.
Their most recent action was on Tuesday with a 55- 35 home win over St. John’s. St. Marys had 37 rebounds in the game, with 26 on the defensive end. Noey Ruane had 14 points and Haley Felver scored 11 to lead the offense.
On Saturday, Wapakoneta will make its way to Maria Steinl for a nonleague matinee contest with Marion Local, with JV play starting at noon.
The Lady Flyers are 2- 2 with a loss to Bath ( 55- 49), wins over Shawnee ( 54- 35) and Van Wert ( 55- 28), then a loss to New Knoxville ( 51- 44) last Thursday.
They will face St. Henry this evening before hosting Wapakoneta.
Marion Local has four seniors — Heidi Rethman, Molly Rethman, Alana Pohlman and Abby Moorman — along with four juniors and three sophomores on its varsity roster.
Wapakoneta then returns home on Tuesday to face Lima Central Catholic.
That game will start with JV at 6 p. m., with the junior varsity squads playing only two quarters due to low numbers for the Lady Thunderbirds. They have wins over Fort Jennings ( 43- 21) and Allen Easte ( 5640) so far this year.
Wapakoneta then will be home against Van Wert next Thursday night.
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WAYNESFIELD GOSHEN ( 0- 1 NWCC, 0- 3 overall)
As is the case with their male counterparts, it’s been a case of close but not quite so far for the Waynesfield-Goshen girls.
On Monday night, the Lady Tigers were edged 49- 46 by visiting Indian Lake.
Jordan Elliott had 27 points for Waynesfield-Goshen, with 13 free throws. The decisive quarter was the third, with Indian Lake having a three point advantage.
W- G will travel to Botkins on Saturday afternoon for a crosscounty battle with the Lady Trojans. ( See more on them below). JV play starts at noon.
Next Tuesday, Waynesfield- Goshen will host Parkway. The Lady Panthers are 2- 1 to date, with a loss to Crestview ( 47- 43), and wins over St. Henry ( 31- 29) and Mississinawa Valley ( 72- 51).
Next Thursday, Waynesfield- Goshen hosts Jackson Center.
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BOTKINS ( 1- 1 SCAL, 2- 1 overall)
The Botkins girls are coming off their first loss of the year, a 41- 32 defeat at the hands of Anna on Dec. 1.
They have had plenty of prep time for the next challenge, which will be a visit to Fort Loramie this evening. The Lady Redskins have won the six of the last league titles, and are 5- 0 so far this year.
Those wins have come against Miami East ( 62- 21), Russia ( 5135), Jackson Center ( 87- 20), Fairlawn ( 9223) and Anna ( 43- 19).
Botkins then hosts Waynesfield- Goshen on Saturday, and Houston next Tuesday.
Houston is 2- 2 so far, with a win over Fairlawn ( 51- 46), losses to Bradford ( 58- 36) and Russia ( 63- 47), then a win over Jackson Center ( 37- 27) last Saturday.
Following those contests, Botkins will host Fairlawn next Saturday.