VW Cougars upset state ranked Elida

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

In case there was any doubt, the Van Wert Cougars are on a roll.

After honoring former coach and Hall of Fame inductee Dave Froelich, the Cougars upset state-ranked Elida (No. 6 in Division II) 59-51 on Friday night. It was the sixth consecutive win for Van Wert (9-7, 3-3 Western Buckeye

League) and just the second loss for the Bulldogs (15-2, 4-2 WBL).

Owen Treece and Blake Henry each hit a trey and a bucket in the opening quarter and after leading 10-4, the hosts enjoyed a 15-10 advantage at the end of the first quarter.

The Bulldogs came on strong in the second period, with Skyler Smith hitting two triples and Donte Johnson and Skyler Smith each connecting on a pair of buckets. Henry added two baskets for Van Wert and the Cougars trailed 27-26 at halftime.

The third quarter was big for Van Wert. The Cougars put up 19 points in the period while holding Elida to just nine. Treece led the way with two triples, a bucket and three foul shots, while Jacoby Kelly scored four of his 15 points in the quarter.

Armed with a 45-36 lead entering the fourth quarter, the Cougars recieved five points from Drew Bagley and went five of eight from the foul line to secure the victory.

Treece led Van Wert with 16 points, followed by Kelly (15) and Henry and Bagley (10 each).

Elida’s Daniel Unruh led all scorers with 18, including nine in the fourth quarter. Johnson chipped in with 16, with eight of those points scored in the opening period.

Van Wert will travel to Bath on Friday and Elida will host Shawnee the same night.

Scoring summary:

Van Wert 15 11 19 14 – 59
Elida          10 17 9 15 – 51

Van Wert: Nate Place 2-2-6; Jacoby Kelly 6-2-15; Owen Treece 5-3-16; Jonathan Lee 1-0-2; Blake Henry 4-1-10; Drew Bagley 4-0-10