Spoilers take doubleheader from D-V-E
The Grafton Spoilers took two games from the Drayton-Valley-Edinburg (D-V-E) Titans in a District 4 doubleheader Tuesday in Grafton.
The Grafton girls’ defeated the Lady Titans 64-34 and the Grafton boys’ team defeated the Titans 51-46.
Boys
Grafton 51, D-V-E 46
A three and a half minute stretch in the third quarter made the difference in Grafton’s 51-46 win over the D-V-E Titans in the late game Tuesday.
The Spoilers managed a slim 28-26 halftime lead after a very close and competitive first half of basketball.
A basket inside by D-V-E freshman Jacob Larson tied the score at 30-30 with 4:28 left in the third quarter. The Spoilers answered with a pair of free throws by Austin Contreras that put Grafton back on top, 32-30.
Syris Jenson’s inside basket with just over three minutes to go in the quarter made the score 32-32, but it was the last bucket the Titans would score until the fourth quarter as the Spoilers finished the third on a 9-0 run included six points by junior Garek Droog and a three-pointer by Julian Martinez.
Leading 41-32 heading into the final stanza, the Spoilers held off a furious D-V-E charge headed by 6-foot-5 senior Jenson who scored six consecutive points in a 7-0 run that got the Titans right back in the game.
The Titans got as close as two points at 43-41, but the Spoilers closed strong for the six point win.
Jenson led the Titans and all scorers with 20 points, followed by Austin Markel with nine and Cameron Littlejohn with six. Bradley Keena added five for the Titans, followed by Larson with four and Paul Tharalson with two.
Grafton coach Riley Lillemoen said matching the Titans’ size and hitting the boards along with good perimeter defense was a key to the Spoilers’ win.
“We knew they liked to shoot the ball from the outside and we did a good job of covering their shooters,” he said. “I thought we did a pretty good job on the boards and limited their second chance opportunities.”
Droog led the Spoilers with 19 points, followed by Contreras with 17. Christian Lunde added eight for the Spoilers, followed by Martinez with three and Matt Mendoza and Trevor McMartin with two points each.
Girls
Grafton 64, D-V-E 34
Defense was the key word in the Grafton girls’ 64-34 win over the Lady Titans.
The Spoilers forced D-V-E into 32 turnovers in the contest and managed to pull away, scoring several points in transition.
“We made too many poor decisions with the ball,” D-V-E coach Brad Ulland said. “But I thought we played good defense. When we forced them into a half court game we were able to stop them most of the time.”
“I was very happy with our team defense,” Grafton coach Laurie Sieben said. “We didn’t give them an opportunity to get into a flow offensively and we were very aggressive.”
In addition to Thompson’s 32 points, Ali Burns also hit double figures with 10. Brooke Feltman added six points for Grafton, followed by Nicole Christinson with five, Lexie Lee and Megan Jiskra with four points each, Rachel Dryburgh with two and Jessica Burns with one.
Kadee Gullickson led the Titans with eight points, followed by Shayna Phelps with seven, Courtney Estad with five, Haley Braathen and Jalyn Larson with four points each and Kari Olson and Ashley Reilly with three apiece.