ECC race tightens up heading into second half of schedule
By Harry Toufar Coming off a shocking overtime loss to Owen-Withee, the Loyal Greyhounds were looking to bounce back into the win column as they hosted the Colby Hornets last Friday night, but instead came up short, tightening the race for first place in the Eastern Cloverbelt Conference (ECC).
One could sense the electrifying atmosphere as both communities filled their respective sides of the gym. In their first meeting early in the season, Loyal came away with a 9-point victory. Colby was looking to even the score.
Bryce Deegan got the ball rolling with a basket, only to see the Hornets counter. Deegan drilled a three but Colby’s Landon Steinman countered with two free throws. Steinman would prove to be a thorn in Loyal’s side as the game progressed. Colby scored two more baskets before Cain Toufar scored down low, bringing them to within one point. Steinman scored again, banging in a 3-pointer. Deegan made a 2-pointer, but the Greyhounds still trailed by two points. While the Hounds were trying to gain some traction, the Hornets scored eight unanswered points, causing Loyal coach Brandon DeSmet to call a timeout with just over 10 minutes left in the first half. Being down 19-9, his team needed to regroup.
With Toufar on the bench with two early fouls, the other tall timbers on the squad took charge. Rhett Lamovec scored twice, cutting the lead to six. Colby scored again, bumping their lead back up to nine.
Carson Bremmer, coming off the bench, made two 2-pointers, but the Hornets stayed the course, still leading by nine. Colby increased their lead to 12 points with 6:17 left on the clock. At the 5:26 mark, the Hounds made their move. Hunter Walter and Lamovec both made two baskets. Tucker Hayes scored before Reed Stieglitz drilled a 3-pointer to send the Hounds into the locker room down 31-28.
Hayes opened the second half for Colby with a 2-pointer. Toufar and Deegan both made one of two free throws, with Colby countering, stretching the lead to seven. Toufar, Lamovec, and Bremmer all scored, but Colby kept pace. With 12:52 on the clock, the Greyhounds found themselves down by 10. Toufar backed one in for two before Hayes scored twice and Luke Hannula hit a free throw, lengthening Colby’s lead to 15 points. Toufar scored again, but was countered again by Colby. Greyhound points would be hard to come by the rest of the way. Stieglitz made two 3-pointers and Deegan scored a 2-pointer, but that was it. Down the stretch, the Hounds felt the sting of the Hornets as Hayes and Steinman recorded the last nine points for Colby. Loyal suffered its second loss of the season with a stunning 69-48 outcome.
Deegan and Lamovec led Loyal in scoring with 10 points each. Stieglitz and Toufar added nine points, with Toufar hauling in nine rebounds. Bremmer tallied six points with Walter adding four.
The loss dropped Loyal into a four-way tie for first place in the ECC. Owen-Withee, Columbus Catholic, and Neillsville join Loyal atop the standings with 5-2 records. Spencer is one game behind them, with Colby being only two games back These teams will face off against each other for the second time this season in the coming weeks, making for some interesting contests the last few weeks of the season.
