Bulldogs bite the Cougars in 49-44 win

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

ELIDA — For the second straight game, the foul line was the difference in a contest involving Van Wert.

During Friday night’s WBL matchup against Elida, the Bulldogs went 14-of-24 (58 percent) from the free throw line, while the Cougars shot just five free throws and hit three. Another big disparity was rebounding, as Elida out-rebounded the visiting Cougars 37-24. 21 of Elida’s rebounds were on the offensive end, as the Bulldogs posted a hard fought 49-44 victory. Parker Crim had 13 rebounds, including 12 offensive boards.

The win was the fifth straight for Elida (6-4, 2-1 WBL) while Van Wert fell to 3-7 (1-2 WBL). 

The Bulldogs didn’t do themselves any favors in the first quarter, connecting on just 3-of-17 (18 percent) action shots, while Van Wert was 6-of-8 shooting on the way to a 13-9 lead at the end of the period. Xavier Kelly scored five of Van Wert’s first quarter points and four other Cougars registered a bucket in the period.

In the second quarter, the two teams were nip and tuck for much of the period, but the Cougars produced the final five points before halftime, including a basket and ensuing free throw by Cohen Bragg and a buzzer beating bucket by Keaten Welch that gave Van Wert a 25-20 lead.

Things changed in the third quarter, as Elida opened the period with a 15-5 run, including seven points by Zori Island and five by Amari Wash, which gave the Bulldogs a 34-30 lead. Once again Van Wert scored the final five points of the quarter, thanks to a triple by Welch and an offensive rebound and putback by Zach Crummey, and the Cougars carried a 35-34 lead into the fourth quarter. Welch had two triples in the quarter and finished with a team high 14 points.

The game was tied 36-36 two minutes into the final period but Elida scored seven unanswered points, which proved to be too much for Van Wert to overcome. Griff McCracken hit a trey to make it 43-39 with 90 seconds left, but that was as close at the Cougars would get.

Island led all scorers with 19 points while Wash added 14. After a slow start, the Bulldogs finished 16-of-52 shooting (31 percent).

Welch was Van Wert’s only double digit scorer but Crummey added nine points and 10 rebounds and Kelly added eight points. The Cougars were 18-of-40 shooting (45 percent) but were plagued by 16 turnovers, compared to 11 by Elida.

Both teams are back in action today. The Bulldogs will host Coldwater while Van Wert will face Lincolnview in a girls/boys varsity doubleheader at Lincolnview. The girls game will tip off at 5 p.m. and the boys game will begin approximately 20 minutes after the completion of the first game.

Box score

Bulldogs   9  10  15  15 – 49

Cougars 13  12  10    9 – 44

Elida: Zori Island 6-5-19; Parker Crim 1-3-5; Marcus Hill 2-0-6; Amari Wash 5-3-14; Eben Jackson 2-1-5

Van Wert: Xavier Kelly 3-0-7; Griff McCracken 3-0-8; Keaten Welch 6-0-14; Zach Crummey 4-1-9; 1-3-5; Caden Collins 1-0-2

JV: Van Wert 27-25