Kemler, ‘D’ lead Lancers to a NWC win

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

A big first half scoring run by Lincolnview led the Lancers to a 57-36 Northwest Conference win over visiting Delphos Jefferson on Friday night.

With the game tied 5-5 at the 4:45 mark in the opening quarter, Lincolnview went on a 20-0 run that spanned well into the second quarter. Zane Miller started the run with a basket, followed by buckets by Ethan Kemler and Tristin Miller. After a Wildcats timeout, Chayten Overholt hit a basket, then Kemler scored off an offensive rebound before Zane Miller hit a triple that gave the Lancers a 19-5 lead at the end of the period.

Tristin Miller kept the run going with a bucket to open second quarter scoring, then Kemler hit two more baskets to extend Lincolnview’s lead to 25-5.

Delphos Jefferson’s Doug Long Jr. ended the run with a basket at the 4:45 mark in the period. However, the Wildcats would score just five more points in the quarter – a foul shot by Tyler Bratton and two baskets by Alex Rode. Meanwhile, Tristin Miller hit a triple and a bucket, Alek Bowersock scored and a basket by Kemler gave the Lancers a commanding 34-12 halftime lead.

“I think we were just recognizing stuff on the offensive end,” Lincolnview head coach Brett Hammons said of the first half run. “Obviously everything starts on the defensive end and I thought we did a great job of taking stuff away and making things difficult for them.”

“It’s nice to be able to get on a run like that,” Hammons added. “The guys stepped up with Tristin, Ethan and Zane, the way they shot the ball in the first half was huge for us.”

Delphos Jefferson head coach Jordan Jettinghhoff said there were no surprises by Lincolnview.

“Quite frankly they did everything we expected,” Jettinghoff explained. “We knew the sets they’d run, we scouted them pretty well, we scouted them for a while, but we didn’t come out and execute defensively.”

The Wildcats tried to battle back in the second half, but were unable to close the gap. Overholt and Tristin Miller scored eight of Lincolnview’s 15 third quarter points, while Rode and Long accounted for seven of Delphos Jefferson’s 12 points in the period.

The Wildcats outscored the Lancers 12-8 in the quarter, with Rode hitting two more baskets, including a two-handed dunk. Alek Bowersock scored six of his eight points in the period.

Kemler led all scorers with 14 points, while Tristin Miller had 12 and Zane Miller finished with 11.

“To see them step up the way they did tonight was huge for us,” Hammons said. “It makes other teams worry about them which is good for us, because it makes us more balanced and it frees up Caden (Ringwald) and Chayten. It’s great to see that as a coach.”

Rode led Delphos Jefferson with 12 points.

Lincolnview (9-5, 4-0 NWC) will host Parkway today, with junior varsity action beginning at 3 p.m. The varsity girls will tip off at 6, followed by the varsity boys. The Lancers will host Crestview in a NWC first place showdown next Friday night.

Delphos Jefferson (4-10, 2-2 NWC) will entertain Ayersville tonight.

Scoring summary:

Lincolnview        19 15 15 8 – 57
Delphos Jefferson 5 7 12 12 – 36

Lincolnview: Caden Ringwald 0-2-2; Ethan Kemler 7-0-14; Chayten Overholt 3-0-8; Alek Bowersock 3-1-8; Zane Miller 4-1-11; Tristin Miller 5-0-12; Isiac Bowersock 1-0-2

Delphos Jefferson: Brenen Auer 1-0-3; Tyler Bratton 2-1-5; Alex Rode 6-0-12; Hunter Haehn 0-2-2; Trey Gossman 1-0-2; Ashton Moore 1-0-2; Hunter Mericle 1-0-3; Doug Long Jr. 3-1-7

JV: Lincolnview 54-31