By Brennan Stebbins (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The Hartville boys basketball team has been no stranger to the Final Four, but after double-digit losses in the semifinals and third-place game last season, the Eagles hoped for a chance at redemption this year. They’re getting it.
“It’s something we’ve talked about from the beginning of the year,” said head coach Brett Reed.
“We didn’t feel like we played well up there last year and so we’ve got our chance,” he said. “We worked hard for it and we’ll see what we’re made of next week.”
On Saturday afternoon in Joplin, Hartville once again took care of business in the quarterfinal round with a 49-31 win against College Heights Christian. The Eagles, now 27-2, will meet South Pemiscot (17-9) in a Class 2 semifinal at 2 p.m. Wednesday in Columbia. It’s their fourth Final Four appearance in five seasons.
They used a businesslike approach at Ozark Christian College on Saturday. The visitors scored the first seven points of the game and led 18-7 after a quarter; their lead dipped to nine points briefly in the second quarter, but after that Hartville led by double digits the whole afternoon.
Five different Eagles scored in the first eight minutes and Hartville made four of its six 3-pointers in the frame.
“We’ve been off to quick starts all year long,” Reed said. “That’s something that’s important in every game. Wish we could come out in the third quarter like we started the game each time. That was crucial tonight for sure.”
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And when Hartville’s offense slowed–the Eagles scored just nine points in the second quarter and 10 in the third–they relied on their defense. In fact, after the Cougars cut it to 20-11 with 6:46 left in the second quarter, the Eagles held College Heights scoreless for the rest of the half and forced three turnovers. Hartville led 27-11 at the break.
“We continue to defend and rebound every single night and that keeps us in games,” Reed said. “We struggled offensively and that’s a credit to College Heights. They guarded us well and mixed up their defense a lot. The way we defend and rebound has kept us in every game and got us through tonight for sure.”
The Cougars (19-11) scored five straight to open the third quarter and cut their deficit to 27-16, but then the Eagles clamped down again and held College Heights scoreless for nearly four minutes, with three more turnovers in that span.
Three-point baskets from sophomores Boone Garrison and Mason Cogdill, and two free throws from Garrison, pushed the lead to 37-20 in the final minute of the third.
It got down to 11 again in the fourth quarter following a 3-pointer by College Heights senior Colsen Dickens. Hartville junior Jackson Ward answered with two straight put-backs to make it 43-28, and then the Eagles limited the Cougars to just three points in the final five-and-a-half minutes to seal it.
“We knew they were a team that could come back at any moment, like they made a run there the beginning of the second half,” said Hartville senior Grant Culver. “We knew that getting that lead early would make sure it was a lot harder for them to come back.”
And Hartville’s businesslike mentality continued after the final whistle; there were some smiles, and a few claps of the hands. And then the Eagles were off to the locker room with next week on their minds. There wasn’t much excitement behind closed doors, either.
“It wasn’t really exciting because we should have taken care of business better in the second half,” Culver said. “We’re still excited we get to go back there and get another shot.”
“Last year we left a lot out there,” he said. “At the beginning of the year we talked about it and we knew this is where we wanted to get back to. We’ve got bigger goals and it’s to win the whole thing.”
“We’ve been there before,” Reed said. “We’ve been here a lot over the last few years. It’s simply that the job’s not done. We’ve got two games left and bigger goals on our mind. It’s not time to celebrate, yet.”
Senior Jalon Cryer led Hartville with 14 points, Ward scored 10, Garrison scored 8, Culver and junior Payton Cogdill each scored 6, Mason Cogdill scored 3 and sophomore Jordan O’Quinn added 1. The Eagles made 3 of 4 free throw attempts in the game.
College Heights was led by 15 points from senior Caleb Quade. Sophomore Adam Stanton scored 6, and Dickens and junior Jayce Walker each scored 5.
