Cougar boys fall to Fort Wayne Carroll

DAVE MOSIER/independent sports

The Van Wert Cougars found out why Fort Wayne Carroll is well-regarded among Indiana basketball teams in a 48-30 loss Saturday in the Cougars’ Den.

The Chargers got out to a 19-3 first-quarter lead and were up by 15 points, 25-10, at the half. The Cougars got on track a bit in the third quarter, outscoring Carroll 15-10 to cut the deficit to 10 points, 35-25, but the Chargers went on a 13-5 run to close out the game.

Dylan Lautzenheiser was the only Van Wert player in double figures, with 10 points. Jacob Redding led Carroll with 15 points, while Don McKeeman had 9 points for the Chargers. The Cougars’ top two scorers didn’t fare well, with Jacoby Kelly scoring just 5 points, while Nate Place was shut out.

The Cougars, who seemed a bit tired from their game on Friday (Carroll was off Friday), were ice-cold from the field, making just 12 of 36 field goal attempts (33.3 percent). Van Wert was 2 of 4 from the free-throw line. Carroll was 19 of 46 from field goal range (41.3 percent), while hitting 5 of 6 free throws (83.3 percent).

The Charges outrebounded Van Wert 23-18, while the Cougars also had more turnovers (10-7).

The junior varsity game also went to Carroll, 51-37. Joey Schaufelberger led Van Wert with 10 points, while the Charger JVs had two players in double figures, led by Blake Pocock’s 15 points. Hunter Perlick had 10 points.

The Cougars will next host Celina on Friday in a Western Buckeye League matchup in the Den, while traveling to St. Henry on Saturday for a non-conference contest.

Box score

Carroll     19  6 10 13—48

Van Wert    3  7  15  5—30

Carroll (48) — Jacob Redding 15, Don McKeeman 9, Arius Jones 2, Tony Martin 4, Riley Perlick 6, Dane Ejah 7, Dillon Redding 2, Reece Swoneland 3. Totals: 19 5-6 48.

Van Wert (30) Jacoby Kelly 5, Nick Gutierrez 4, Dylan Lautzenheiser 10, Drew Bagley 4, Blake Henry 7. Totals: 12 2-4 30.

JV: Carroll won 51-37.