VANDALIA HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
Pana tops Vandals, wins VHT
MVP Hester leads balanced attack in 56-44 win; Altamont tops Flora for third
St. Elmo needs overtime to edge Maroa-Forsyth for fifth; St. Anthony, Shelbyville post wins

12-29-12
BY JACK BULLOCK
VANDALIA
Head coach Gary Bowker and his Pana Panthers basketball program has had some heartbreaking decision at the Vandalia Holiday Tournament over the years.

Last second losses to South Central in 2000 and 2003, and last season they lost to a good Flora team in the title game.

But for the first time since 2002, his club got to celebrate a tournament title at this long standing event.

There would be no fantastic finish to doom Pana this time around.

Using a solid performance defensively to hold Vandalia to just 18-of-56 (32 percent) from the floor and getting 13-points from tournament MVP Robbie Hester, the Panthers finished the tournament 5-0 with a 56-44 win.

Hester, a 6-foot-5 senior forward, also led the way with 10-rebounds as the Panthers improved their mark to 10-3 on the season.

Seeded just fourth in the ten-team event, Pana topped top-seed Flora on Friday night and then took care of the hosts to win the school's sixth VHT championship.

Alex Metzger and Kyle Gibson each netted 10-points and the Panthers hit just enough free throws and shots down the stretch to keep Vandalia from staging a major rally.

Coach Brian Buscher's team was its own worst enemy on the night as they not only couldn't get shots to fall from the field but the lid was also on the basket from the foul line.

The Vandals hit just 3-of-14 foul shots, a stat that allowed Pana to forge an early lead in which they held the entire contest.

“We had some good open looks in the first half and I thought we had about eight missed lay ups and post moves. We had to play from behind all night and Pana is too good of a team to do that against,” said Coach Buscher. “Pana hit their shots and we didn't. Both teams played hard but they were the better team tonight.”

Six-foot senior guard Leyton Godoyo was a bright spot for the Vandals as he led all scorers with 17-points on the night, including 11-points in the final stanza.

He scored twice in a row on steals and transition baskets, the second of which got Vandalia close at 46-37 with 1:57 remaining.

But the Vandals couldn't steal the win because they missed 5-of-6 free throws in the final 2:28 of the game.

Vandalia got to within eight points one final time, with Godoyo again scoring on a drive to the basket while being fouled by Gibson.

But for the second time in the quarter, Godoyo didn't convert the three-point play.

“They (Vandalia) kept battling and we knew that they would. We just did enough to keep them from getting too close,” added Coach Bowker. “I thought we had a great tournament overall. Robbie (Hester) came out and played great tonight and our guys off the bench come in and do so many good things off the bench and work hard.”

Hester finished off the victory and earned the Most Valuable Player award with a score on a fast break while being fouled by Chase Woolsey.

Hester hit his free throw and added two more on the next possession to seal the win with :21.2 remaining

Vandalia opened the game by missing four straight charities and Pana took the gift and ran with it, opening up a quick 8-2 lead.

Hester hit for six of his points in the early going and teammate Metzger delivered the first of four 3-pointers made by the Panthers as Pana led 13-4 at the end of the first quarter.

Pana led just 19-12 until Dylan Hudlin scored five of his seven points in the final 2:33 in the half.

His 3-pointer from the top of the arc sent the teams to intermission at 24-12 Pana.

The Panthers gradually put some distance between themselves and Vandalia on the scoreboard with a 16-10 third quarter.

Metzger scored on a pass from Hudlin for a lay in and a spinning drive by sophomore Andrew Rybolt made it 40-22 heading into the final quarter.

The Panthers didn't set the world on fire from the field, hitting just 23-of-57 but it was much better than Vandalia.

“Earlier in the season we were too passive and were only scoring about forty points a game so we are attacking the basket more now,” said Coach Bowker. “We are putting up a lot of shots and we aren't hesitating. Hopefully we can find that balance as the season goes on. I would rather have that (shots going up) than for them to have indecision. As long as we are aggressive and attacking the basket we are in good shape.”

But the real story was Hester, who hit 5-of-8 shots from the field and hit 3-of-5 from the foul line.

His 10-rebounds were key to Pana holding a 32-30 edge on the boards.

No Vandal besides Godoyo hit for double-digits in scoring.

Guard Tim Ritchey was second on the list with seven points with Chase Woolsey and Michael Wells each adding six.

“After that first loss of the season (Central A&M by 22-points) if you would have told me that we would win here tonight and be 10-3 I would have just laughed at you,” finalized Coach Bowker.

Championship
1
2
3
4
-
F
Pana
13
11
16
16
-
56
Vandalia
04
08
10
22
-
44

Pana (56) – Rybolt 1 0 0-0 2, Kirk 1 0 0-0 2, Metzger 3 1 1-2 10, Gibson 2 2 0-0 10, Trexler 0 0 0-0 0, Kircher 2 0 0-0 4, Zahradka 1 0 2-2 4, Hester 5 0 3-5 13, Clark 2 0 0-0 4, Hudlin 2 1 0-0 7.
2FG-19, 3FG-4, FT-6-9, PF-13.

Vandalia (44) – Cowger 0 0 0-0 0, Ritchey 2 1 0-2 7, Harter 1 1 0-0 5, Godoyo 4 3 0-2 17, Co. Woolsey 1 0 1-4 3, Wells 3 0 0-2 6, Ch. Woolsey 2 0 2-4 6.
2FG-13, 3FG-5, FT-3-14, PF-14.

Fouled Out – None.
Technical Fouls – None.

ALTAMONT 54, FLORA 45
The Altamont Indians closed the VHT on a winning note, capturing the third place game victory over Flora.

The Tribe got a big night from 6-foot-2 junior Derek Jahraus.

This forward hit all three of his 3-point attempts and finished with 15-points for the 11-2 Indians.

One of his daggers came in the third quarter, part of a game changing 13-3 run that gave Altamont the lead for good.

His trey from the top of the circle early in the fourth quarter gave the Indians a 39-28 lead.

Flora fought back, behind with Clayton Walden and Bryce Pearce all hitting shots during a 12-2 run that got the Wolves to within 41-40.

However Altamont closed out the contest with Cole Borders scoring five of his eight points in the final minutes.

His 3-pointer from the right corner with 2:13 remaining triggered the final push for the victory.

Coach John Niebrugge's team hit 17-of-37 shots from the floor, but were 5-of-10 from behind the arc.

Altamont took advantage of Flora's foul issues by hitting 18-of-23 from the line.

Flora saw its mark slip to 10-3 on the season after consecutive losses in the event.

Flora head coach Phil Leib was led by Pearce, a 5-foot-9 sophomore guard, with 14-points while Ethan Leib scored 10-points and hauled in 11-rebounds for the Wolves.

Flora hit just 14-of-43 from the field and committed 18-turnovers in the loss.

Altamont won the game in the middle two quarters, outgunning the Wolves 30-17.

Flora jumped out to an 8-4 lead in the early going but a 10-2 run by the Indians switched the momentum as they forced 11 first half turnovers to get a 16-14 halftime lead.

Following Pearce and Leib was Walden with nine points with Blake Shehorn and Brenden Thomas netting four points each.

Junior guard Garrett Ziegler scored 12-points for Altamont as he also grabbed four rebounds.

Six-foot-two senior forward Ryan Mayhaus added 10-points and he hit all four of his free throws.

Flora held the rebounding edge 28-18.

Third Place
1
2
3
4
-
F
Flora
08
06
11
20
-
45
Altamont
04
12
18
20
-
54

Flora (45) – Pence 1 4 0-0 14, Thomas 2 0 0-0 4, Walden 2 0 5-7 9, Leib 2 0 6-9 10, Moore 1 0 0-0 2, Taylor 0 0 0-0 0, Hozay 1 0 0-0 2, Shehorn 1 0 2-2 4. 2FG-10, 3FG-4, FT-13-18, PF-23.
Altamont (54) – Ziegler 2 1 5-6 12, McGinnis 0 0 1-2 1, Seidel 0 0 0-0 0, Hill 1 0 1-2 3, Borders 2 1 1-2 8, Kuhns 2 0 1-3 5, Mayhaus 3 0 4-4 10, Jarhaus 2 3 2-4 15. 2FG-12, 3FG-5, FT-15-23, PF-18.
Fouled Out – Kuhs - Altamont.
Technical Fouls – None.

ST. ELMO 58, MAROA-FORSYTH 55 (OT)
St. Elmo took advantage of foul-plaqued Maroa-Forsyth in the fifth place game as the Eagles cashed in 32-of-45 free throw attempts to take home the honors.

Conner Beasley topped St. Elmo (8-5) with 21-points while teammate Levi Maxey added 20.

Beasley hit 12-of-16 free throws for the Eagles as Maroa-Forsyth was whistled for 32-personal fouls.

The Trojans managed to force overtime behind 15-points from Curtis Clawson.

Two free throws by Drew Aschermann gave Maroa-Forsyth and early lead in overtime but Beasley continued the parade to the foul line and hit 5-of-6 in OT.

A steal by sophomore Cole Smithson turned into an assist to Maxey for a fast break score and three-point play while being fouled by Curt Beckman.

That gave St. Elmo a 58-53 lead with just :15.9 left.

Jack Hockaday added 12-points for M-F as the Trojans saw their record slip to 8-4.

Fifth Place
1
2
3
4
OT
-
F
Maroa-Forsyth
10
14
09
16
06
-
55
St. Elmo
16
12
06
15
09
-
58

Maroa-Forsyth (55) – Hockaday 6 0 0-2 12, Smith 1 2 0-3 8, Leighton 0 2 3-4 9, Aschermann 2 0 2-2 6, Clawson 7 0 1-3 15, Murphy 0 0 0-0 0, Hise 0 0 0-0 0, Ritter 1 0 0-0 2, Bechman 1 0 1-2 3, Ejankowski 0 0 0-0 0. 2FG-18, 3FG-4, FT-7-16, PF-32.
St. Elmo (58) – Batels 1 0 6-8 8, Brad 0 0 2-2 2, Beasley 3 1 12-16 21, M. Maxey 0 0 0-0 0, L. Maxey 3 1 11-17 20, Smithson 0 1 1-2 4, Davis 0 1 0-0 3. 2FG-7, 3FG-4, FT-32-45, PF-12.
Fouled Out – Smith, Leighton, Beckman - Maroa-Forsyth.
Technical Fouls – Maroa-Forsyth.

SHELBYVILLE 30, SOUTH CENTRAL 27
Shelbyville edged the Cougars in a contest in which neither team could muster up much offense.

South Central's Fischer Tharp paced South Central with 16-points and five rebounds.

Shelbyville didn't fair much better as no Ram player hit double-digits in the mistake marred game.

The two teams combined to hit just 22-of-74 shots.
Shelbyville improved to 9-5 on the season while South Central slipped to 4-8.

The Rams got nine points from 6-foot-7 center Brodie Bence in the victory.

Bence crashed the boards for seven rebounds, one of which resulted in a stick back on a missed free throw to make it 30-27 with :25 remaining.

South Central had a chance for a tie but turned the ball over in the final seconds.

Spencer Shadwell could have iced the game with a pair of free throws with :00.8 left. But he missed both shots and Tharp let go of a desperation three-quarter court shot that bounced of the backboard as the buzzer sounded.

The Rams, behind Bence, held a 25-20 rebounding edge. 

Seventh Place
1
2
3
4
-
F
South Central
06
09
04
08
-
27
Shelbyville
04
07
10
09
-
30

South Central (27) – Harmeier 3 0 0-0 6, Hablewitz 1 0 1-4 3, Tharp 6 0 4-5 16, Rose 0 0 0-0 0, Schwarm 0 0 0-0 0, Powless 1 0 0-0 2.
2FG-11, 3FG-0, FT-5-9, PF-14.

Shellbyville (30) – Keown 0 0 0-0 0, Shadwell 1 1 0-6 5, Schwengel 2 0 0-0 4, Standerfer 1 1 0-1 5, Breeden 2 0 3-6 7, Hendryx 0 0 0-0 0, Bence 3 0 3-4 9, Peifer 0 0 0-0 0, McConnell 0 0 0-0 0.
2FG-9, 3FG-2, FT-6-17, PF-8.

Fouled Out – None.
Technical Fouls
– None.

ST. ANTHONY 66, GREENVILLE 40
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 15-5 lead and crushed Greenville in the ninth place game.

Six-foot-three senior Jacob Schuette continued his scoring onslaught in the event with 26-points to top all scorers.

Teammate Neil Williams added 16-points for Coach Mark Tovey's club who improved to 3-10 on the season.

The Bulldogs outrebounded the Comets 28-16 and forced Greenville into 14-turnovers in the game.

Greenville (3-9) was led by Tyler Hutchison with 10-points.

St. Anthony took control in the second quarter, outgunning Greenville 19-6 to lead 34-11.

Ninth Place
1
2
3
4
-
F
St. Anthony
15
19
18
14
-
66
Greenville
05
06
08
21
-
40

St. Anthony (66) – Williams 6 1 1-2 16, Z. Gardewine 0 0 1-2 1, Schuette 13 0 0-0 26, A. Gardewine 3 0 0-0 4, Hoelscher 0 0 0-0 0, Goeckner 3 0 4-7 10, Vogel 3 0 1-1 7, Gibson 0 0 0-0 0, Rios 0 0 0-0 0, Grunloh 0 0 0-0 0. 2FG-28, 3FG-1, FT-7-12, PF-12.
Greenville (40) -
Schaufelberger 1 1 0-0 5, Faulker 0 0 1-2 1, Young 0 0 0-0 0, Hall 3 0 2-2 8, Hutchison 3 1 1-2 10, Lawrence 1 0 0-0 2, Leitschuh 0 0 0-0 0, Manning 0 0 0-0 0, Laesch 1 0 1-2 3, Alderman 4 0 0-0 8, Chilovich 0 1 0-0 3. 2FG-3, 3FG-3, FT-5-8, PF-12.
Fouled Out – None.
Technical Fouls – None.

The All-Tournament team consisted of MVP Robbie Hester and Kyle Gibson of Pana; Michael Wells and Tim Ritchey of Vandalia; Garrett Ziegler of Altamont; Ethan Leib of Flora; Jacob Schuette of St. Anthony; Fischer Tharp of South Central; Levi Maxey of St. Elmo; Drew Aschermann of Maroa-Forsyth and Brodie Bence of Shelbyville.