By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The Hartville Eagles can enjoy that championship feeling again.
Coming off a season filled with runner-up and consolation finishes, the Eagles took home the first-place trophy in Saturday night’s Clever Invitational finals.
Hartville outlasted Fair Grove 36-34 in overtime, overcoming a frantic Fair Grove rally in the final minute.
The victory gives the Blue and White Eagles an early season confidence boost plus a resume-enhancer heading into next week’s Blue and Gold Tournament seeding.
“It’s huge because we were kind of rebuilding last season. We were in so many close games, even with championships on the line,” said Hartville forward Grant Culver, who led the Eagles with nine points. “We just could never come through and get that final win. It feels good to do it.”
Hartville finished 19-8 overall last season, retooling after winning back-to-back state championships and graduating the bulk of its varsity rotation from one of the state’s all-time great teams.
It wasn’t your typical rebuilding season, but neither are Hartville’s standards.
“We had a really good season, but we never won a championship of any kind,” said Hartville coach Brett Reed. “It was time to get over that hump and bring some championships back to Hartville. This is really good for this group to do that.”
Saturday’s championship game was a throwback to Hartville’s traditional style: rugged defense and methodical offense.
“We thought athletically and with Fair Grove’s quickness, we didn’t matchup that well in a fast-paced game,” Reed said. “We thought a slower-paced game would be better for us. We knew it would be hard to defend without getting in foul trouble. With small-school basketball, you can only get in so much foul trouble before you’re out of guys.”
In Friday’s semifinals, Hartville players and coaches watched as Fair Grove prevailed 75-67 over Hillcrest in an up-tempo game.
“I don’t know if we could’ve scored at the same pace that Fair Grove and Hillcrest did. If it’s an 80-point game tonight, I don’t know if we win that one,” Reed said.
On Saturday night, Hartville took an early 8-0 lead and forced Fair Grove to play catch-up. Fair Grove eventually caught up, tying the game on Bryden Baxter’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer to close the third. Fair Grove even took the lead in the fourth quarter but couldn’t finish its comeback, due to empty possessions down the stretch.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
In overtime, Hartville seized control again. Hartville went up 36-29, thanks in part to an unlikely source: Payton Cogdill.
The sophomore reserve came in after Jalon Cryer (8 points) fouled out midway through the extra frame with Hartville clinging to a 29-27 lead. Cogdill made two free throws and snuck behind the Fair Grove defense to help Hartville extend its lead.
“It’s kind of a running joke on our team. We make fun of (Cogdill) a little bit for not being able to shoot,” Culver said. “But he came up big for us. He always talks about how he’s the best shooter on the team. He’s a big confidence guy.”
Cogdill finished with six points, and a rating of about 100 in the swagger category.
“That’s all I heard in the locker room afterwards, ‘Shooter! Coach, I’m a shooter!” Reed said. “You made two free throws, which is good. I don’t want to classify you as a shooter just yet.
“Payton’s one of those kids where he does all of the little things that don’t always show up on the stat sheet. He’s our energy guy. Tonight, he found himself open a couple times and made it count.”
Missed free throws – Hartville shot just 11-for-24 at the line in the game – opened the door for another Fair Grove rally in the final minute of overtime.
After Hartville missed a pair of free throws with three seconds left, Fair Grove raced the ball up court and missed a deep 3-pointer at the buzzer. Sophomore Bryden Baxter scored a game-high 10 for Fair Grove.
Hartville, which returns to action on Tuesday night at Mountain Grove, improved to 4-0 overall. The current Eagles roster is reaping the benefits of taking their lumps in practice as freshmen and sophomores.
“That’s something I don’t think a lot of people understand,” Reed said. “This group played against one of the best teams in Missouri for at least a year, maybe two years. They practiced against them every day. They were already kind of varsity prepared because they were playing against such a good team every day. I think that’s a big reason why we were able to win 19 games last year, even after graduating so much from that 2021 team.”
Hartville 36, Fair Grove 34 (OT)
Hartville 12 6 4 5 9 — 36
Fair Grove 4 10 8 5 7 — 34
Hartville (4-0 overall) – Culver 9, Cryer 8, Cogdill 6, Bel 5, Ward 4, Simpson 4
Fair Grove (2-1 overall) – Baxter 10, Seiger 7, B. Winterberg 5, Barnett 4, K. Winterberg 3, Rowden 3, Geitz 2
