The Marshfield Blue Jays took control of the game early and added another notch to their win column in their conference matchup with Hollister Friday night. The 65-42 victory was the fifth straight win for the Blue Jays who are hitting their stride as they head into the final stretch of the season.
“I thought this was one of the few games we’ve come out and actually played for 32 minutes,” Marshfield coach Damon Sieger said. “This was our fifth win in a row and I feel like we are playing our best basketball right now.”
Marshfield nailed back-to-back treys to open the game with a 6-point lead before Hollister scored the next five. But it was Marshfield’s game from there with the Blue Jays going up by 10 points just inside the second quarter and extending their lead to 36-22 at the half.
The Blue Jays defense turned into an offensive machine in the third quarter, forcing four turnovers in as many Tiger possessions producing 8 uncontested Marshfield points. Hollister maintained their intensity through the remainder of the game, but couldn’t break through the Marshfield defense and the Blue Jays picked up a fan-pleasing win in front of the homecoming crowd.
“It’s great to win in front of our friends and the whole community,” said Wyatt Findley. “I was feeling pretty good coming in and I think the biggest reason for that is because our defense stepped up and got all of those turnovers. That really speeds us up and makes us play good together.”
Findley led the Blue Jays with 20 points and 6 rebounds in the contest. Jarrett Paoni put up 15 points and had 3 takeaways. Altogether, Marshfield won the turnover battle, forcing 20 while only turning it over 6 times on their end.
“We felt coming into this game, we had to make it a full-court game,” Seiger said. “Sometimes our pressure is not intended to get immediate turnovers but to wear you down and I think you saw the result of that in the second half. We started to wear on them a little bit, they got a little sloppy with some passes and our kids did a good job of anticipating and taking advantage of those passes.”
Hollister coach Ryan Worley said his team showed heart, but didn’t have the size and maturity to match up with Marshfield tonight.
“What we continue to preach to our guys is that each possession matters because we’re in a process of growing,” Worley said. “If we continue to take each possession and try to get better then we will.”
The Tigers are now 5-15 on the season headed into the final week before District play. They will face Conway at home Monday night in a makeup game before finishing their regular schedule against Reeds Spring and Buffalo.
Marshfield, 13-9 overall and 3-1 in the conference, will play three more games before entering the District Tournament beginning with Central at home on Tuesday. Seiger said it’s a thrilling part of the schedule with something on the line in every game.
“Early in the year you are playing for wins and losses but it doesn’t seem like there is as much on the line,” Seiger said. “Now you step on the floor every night and there is something on the line and I think that’s exciting to watch and see how kids gravitate toward the meaning of that.”
Hollister 42, Marshfield 65
Hollister 12-10-6-14—42
Marshfield 20-16-17-12—65
Hollister—Nick Bargas 10, Landon Farquhar 10, Logan Armitage 6, Kyle Kapella 6, Derek Morris 5, Bryan Calovich 5
Marshfield—Wyatt Findley 20, Jarrett Paoni 15, Dallas Crider 9, Britt Hill 6, Jackson Jones 6, Austin Porter 3, Devin Letterman 2, Tristen Rouse 2, Triston Letterman 2
