Viking boys win barn burner over Cochrane-Fountain City
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send you a password reset link.
COLFAX senior Blake Johnson looked for an opening to make a pass during the game against Cochrane-Fountain Dec. 19 in the Colfax gym. Johnson assisted Eli Ralph and then Logan Swartz in the last 90 seconds then put the game on ice with two free throws in the 75-71 Viking win. —photo by Marlys Kruger
by Marlys Kruger
Sports Correspondent
COLFAX — In a game where the score was close throughout, the Colfax boys used a solid defense and clutch shooting to earn a 75-71 win at home over Cochrane-Fountain City December 19.
Elijah Entzminger and Mason Yarrington both had a hot hand in the first half as they scored 27 of the team’s 37 points. Entzminger scored on five drives or jump shots in the lane and was 3-for-4 from the foul line while Yarrington drained four triples with a pair of free throws. Aiden Fischer knocked down a trey and a close range shot and Blake Johnson had three points from a shot behind the arc. C-FC was keeping pace however, with help from three long range shots and 8-of-10 free throws, but the Vikings held a four point lead at 37-33 at the half.
C-FC pulled ahead by seven points in the second half but an 8-0 run by the Vikings gave them the lead and they never trailed after that. The score was knotted at 56-56 with six minutes left and it was up and down action by both teams the rest of the way. C-FC pulled ahead 58-56 but Entzminger stole the ball and scored on a layup, then added another shot with a free toss for a 61-60 Viking lead. C-FC pulled ahead again with a triple, but Johnson sent a slick pass under the basket to Logan Swartz who picked a great time to score his only points of the game, knotting the score at 63-63.
Entzminger was all over the floor, stealing the ball under the C-FC basket and he ended up scoring on another jump shot. Eli Ralph, who was held scoreless the first half, found an opening under the hoop for a 67-63 Colfax advantage but the Vikings turned the ball over off the C-FC press which allowed them to score. Fischer was fouled with under two minutes to go and calmly knocked down two free tosses to put the Vikings back up 69-65, but in a matter of ten seconds, C-FC tied it again by stealing the ball twice and scoring on layups.
Johnson found Ralph open under the hoop again for two points, and after C-FC missed on a close range shot, Ralph pulled down the rebound. He scored his third bucket in the paint for a 73-69 Viking lead but a pair of C-FC free throws once again made it a two point game with around nine seconds left. C-FC fouled Johnson who followed Fischer’s lead and iced the game with two free throws.
Entzminger and Yarrington had career high games with Entzminger scoring 31 points on 11 shots around the paint, one trey and 6-of-8 free throws. Yarrington scored most of his 17 points from long range, drilling five triples to go with 2-for-2 free shots. Fischer finished with 12 points in the contest. The Vikings collected nine shots from behind the arc and were 12-for-14 from the charity stripe. Cameron Lipinski and Landen Halvorson both scored 15 points each for C-FC. The team also made nine treys and were 12-of-17 from the foul line.
“I was happy for our boys to get this high scoring win at home,” Colfax coach Mark Noll said. “Cochrane- Fountain City is a very good team and it was a fast paced game,” he added.