From staff reports
BELLEVILLE - The boys from Saint Joseph's Academy might have rather stayed home Monday when they traveled to face the Belleville Mennonite boys basketball team.
In the contest the Trojans struck early and they struck hard, posting a 40-17 lead at the half, then continuing to build with a 24-point third quarter for the eventual final of 76-39.
"The guys enjoyed playing tonight, and you could tell. They really moved the ball and it was a team effort," Belleville Mennonite coach Doug Snook said.
Perhaps the one guy having the most fun was Belleville Mennonite's Sammy Kauffman, whose game-high 24-point effort also marked a new career high.
Kauffman also grabbed 12 rebounds on the night to finish out with a double-double.
In fact, Snook identified rebounding as one of the keys to the Trojans' win, explaining that where they usually average 22 rebounds a night, Monday they came away with 50.
"The one thing that helped us is that they (Saint Joseph's) were only getting one shot," Snook further explained.
This one-shot offense Belleville Mennonite limited Saint Joseph's to made it difficult for the visitors to score.
Belleville Mennonite's Noah Anders was second in scoring with 22 points. Like most of his teammates, Anders did fairly well from the line, going 6-for-10.
"I challenged the boys before the game about getting to the foul line more often, and they got there 23 times," Snook said.
Belleville Mennonite (4-15) will play its last game of the season today when it travels to Juniata Mennonite.
Girls basketball
Johnstown Christian 53, Belleville Mennonite 38
HOLLSOPPLE - Grace Peachey and Molly Morgan each scored 12 points for Belleville Mennonite Monday as the team traveled to Johnstown Christian, but a sluggish third quarter proved costly for the Trojans as they fell, 53-38.
With a depleted lineup due to injuries and illness, the Trojans put up a strong first half, nearly matching Johnstown Christian in each of the first two quarters.
"We started strong in the first half," Belleville Mennonite coach Ally Zook said.
The Trojans went to the locker room down just six points with hopes of pulling out a victory, but a sluggish third quarter yielded just three points and the visitors found themselves in a 13-point hole heading to the fourth.
Belleville Mennonite shook off the third-quarter rust in the final period and mustered 13 points but the final push was not enough.
Zook said her top two scorers led the team and added that Peachey was effective on the glass as well.
The Trojans (2-16) are back in action for their season finale at Juniata Mennonite today.
