Bluejay Basketball
Bluejays Say “Goodnight, Knights”
by Annie Johnson
The varsity Bluejays used their home court advantage to achieve a 44-29 win after going head-to-head with the Norfolk Catholic Knights on Saturday, January 6.
Dalton Freeman started the offensive stride for the Bluejays in the first quarter by sinking a three-pointer. Following suit, Jadon Magdanz and Braydan Waldner both found their way to the hoop, each putting up two points. Taylor Oestreich sank a shot from behind the arc to finish the first quarter, giving the varsity team a one-point edge over the Knights.
The Bluejays’ defense limited Norfolk Catholic to only five points in the second quarter, allowing the home team to rack up 14 points before the half. Waldner started the momentum for the boys by adding two points to the score with Madanz right behind him with another two-point shot. Waldner contributed the next four consecutive points for Pierce the from the inside. Piggybacking the work from inside the lane, T. Oestreich and Freeman both sank three-pointers to bring the half to a close with a score of 24-14.
The Bluejays scored a total of eight points over the Knights at the beginning of the second half. Waldner continued the team’s momentum by scoring four points at the beginning of the third. Soon after, T. Oestreich managed to find the net and add another two points to the scoreboard for the Jays, as did Freeman, scoring two points to end the third quarter. Pierce maintained their lead with consistent defense, holding Norfolk Catholic’s offense to only four points.
In the fourth quarter, Waldner led the offense, scoring eight out of the twelve points from Pierce with two points coming from the free throw line. Carson Oestreich contributed three points at the line, as did Freeman with one. The Jays’ defense allowed the team to end the game with a 44-29 victory over the Knights.
Coach Mike Emory said, “The boys have competed hard all year, but it was great to get over the top and get a win in front of the home crowd.”
Individually, Waldner scored a total of 20 points over the Knights. Waldner also led the total number of rebounds with six, followed by Freeman with four, and C. Oestreich with three. T. Oestreich led the team with a total of three steals as well as five assists. Also leading the team with assists was C. Oestreich with four and Freeman with three. Waldner had one block over the Knight’s offense.
The Bluejays’ next competition will be away against Hartington Cedar Catholic on Friday, January 12.
Varsity Jays Fall to Aquinas
Pierce’s varsity boys’ basketball team faced the David City Aquinas Monarchs in a road game on Tuesday, January 2. The Jays lost by a score of 35-44.
The Monarchs jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter, putting up 12 points and holding the Jays to seven. Aiding the Jays’ offensive efforts this quarter were Taylor Oestreich with a three-pointer and two free throws, and Braydan Waldner with a pair of free throws as well. The Jays mounted a comeback in the second quarter, narrowing the gap to 20-21 after keeping the Monarchs to nine points and putting up 13 of their own courtesy of T. Oestreich with two shots from behind the arc as well as a two-pointer, Waldner with a bucket and a free throw, and Carson Oestreich with a two-point shot.
After the halftime break, the Jays were able to score seven points in the third with a three from C. Oestreich and two buckets from Waldner, but the Monarchs outscored the Jays with 13 to extend their lead. Despite the Jays’ efforts in the final quarter when they put up eight points contributed by Jadon Magdanz, Dalton Freeman, and Waldner, the Monarchs ultimately took the win as they tacked on an additional ten points to their total to win 35-44.
The Jays’ next game will be Friday, January 12, at home against Hartington CC.
JV Bluejays Fall to Norfolk Catholic Knights
by Rose Graham
The JV Jays faced off against Norfolk Catholic Knights Saturday, January 6, at home. The Jays fell by a score of 45-51.
In the first quarter, the Jays were outscored 11-18. Scoring for Pierce was David Dale with a two-pointer, Dawson Watts with a three-pointer, and a basket for two, and Gavin Larson with two buckets.
The Jays caught up in the second quarter, putting up 12 points and holding the Knights to eight. Watts and Dale contributed the Jays’ points this quarter, and going into the halftime break, the Jays trailed by just three points, 23-26.
Coming out of the half, both teams matched each other’s offensive efforts and put up 11 points. Larson scored a basket for the Bluejays, and Carter Rohrich added a free throw. Dalton Haase also contributed to the Jays’ scoring, hitting a three-pointer. Before the end of the quarter, Larson put in four more points for the Bluejays. The Jays were still trailing in going into the fourth quarter 34 to 37.
In the final quarter, the Jays managed nine points. Dale and Watts both contributed from the free throw line, as Dale put away one, and Watts hit two. Larson added a three-pointer, and Weston Neitzke put two more points on the board. Watts made the Jays’ final shot with a three-pointer. With the Knights putting up 14 in the final quarter, the Bluejays suffered a loss of 45 to 51.
“Defensively, we played much better and kept competing throughout the game,” said coach Tim Waldner. “Offensively, we stayed with it and continued to find ways to score.”
The JV Jays’ next game is Friday, January 12, at home against Hartington Cedar Catholic.
JV Bluejays Take on David City Aquinas
by Rhayna Waldner
The JV Bluejays headed down to David City on Tuesday, January 2, to take on the Aquinas Monarchs. After four quarters of play, the Bluejays were defeated by the Monarchs 23-53.
In the first quarter, the Jays were able to put up six points. Gavin Larson made two two-point shots, and David Dale put in a basket of his own. With Aquinas making 11 points this quarter, the Jays trailed by only five heading into the second.
The Jays struggled on both ends of the court in the second quarter, scoring only five points. Kage Heisinger made a shot for two, and Tyler Race put in a free throw and a shot. Not being able to keep their momentum on the defensive end, the Jays allowed the Monarchs to score 24 points this quarter. Going into halftime, the score was 11-35.
Coming out of halftime, the Jays scored four points and held the Monarchs to nine. Weston Neitzke and Dale each put in a basket, upping their team’s score to 15. Heading into the final quarter of the game, the score was 15-44.
Picking up their offense, the Jays scored eight points in the last quarter. Larson put in a three-point shot, and Neitzke added two two-point shots of his own. Unfortunately for the Jays, the Monarchs were able to score nine points in this quarter. The final score was 23-53.
“We were not prepared to play coming out of Christmas break,” coach Tim Waldner said. “We struggled on both ends of the court. We need to come out more focused and prepared for our next game.”
The JV Bluejays’ next game will be held at home against the Hartington Cedar Catholic Trojans on Friday, January 12.
Freshman Boys Basketball Outplays Vikings
By Alex McKeown
The freshman boys’ basketball team traveled to Columbus on Saturday, January 6, to take on the Lakeview Vikings. The Jays brought home a 41-35 win in a tightly-contested match.
The Jays started out the game with a close first quarter as they scored 12 points and allowed 10. The points came from three-pointers from Chaden Roth and Tyler Race, a two-point shot from each Mason Sindelar and Logan Moeller, and two free throws from Dawson Watts. In the second quarter, the Jays started to pull away from the Vikings with 13 points to the Vikings’ 6, to go into the half with a 25-16 lead. In the second, the scoring came from a two from both Shawn Rinkel and Hunter Raabe, a free throw from Sindelar, and eight points from Luke Collison. After the half, the scoring slowed as the Jays scored five to the Vikings’ seven. The Jays’ scoring came from two points apiece from Rinkel and Moeller and a free throw from Watts. The final quarter was closely contested as the Jays scored 11 on seven points from David Dale, and two apiece from Lucas Gnat and Derek Kolterman, while the Vikings scored 12 points to end the game 41-35, Jays.
The freshman team will play again in a tournament on Saturday, January 13, in Plainview.
Freshman Boys Go 1-1 in Triangular
By Rose Graham
Pierce’s freshman Bluejay basketball team went 1-1 in a triangular with the Laurel-Concord/Coleridge Bears and the Madison Dragons Tuesday, January 2, in Laurel. They defeated the Dragons but fell to the Bears.
The Bluejays soared over the Dragons in the first game, defeating them 48 to 24. Next the Bluejays went head-to-head with Laurel-Concord/Coleridge, but the Bluejays were defeated 52-43.
“I was very happy with the way we rose to the challenge,” said freshman coach Zach Weber. “A lot of guys stepped up into roles they were not used to playing and did very well.“
The freshman Bluejays’ next game is a tournament that will be held Saturday, January 13, at Plainview.
