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Indians top Tigers in County Clash

Sentinel photo by Mike Goss
East Juniata's Brody Powell drives to the hoop over Juniata's Jeff Zimmerman.

MIFFLINTOWN–There are very few things in sports that bring out elite levels of energy like a rivalry. Whenever the Juniata Indians and the East Juniata Tigers clash, regardless of the sport, it captures the attention of the entire county.

Thursday night was no different as the rival school’s boys basketball team battled for an early-season win in The County Clash. The Indians played host and came away with the 46-31 win over the Tigers in the Tri-Valley League matchup.

Not lost in the rivalry is the respect the two coaches have for one another. Chris Wolfkill and Al Ream had conversations before and after the game that were more than just well wishes and congratulations. The two have a personal relationship that spans over the past few decades.

“He took me to basketball camp when I was a kid,” Wolfkill said. “To coach against him, it was a great night. It really was.”

Juniata coach Al Ream sang nothing but praises of the East Juniata team under their new coach.

“EJ is a much improved team,” Ream said. “I know coach Wolfkill and what he’s trying to get done. He working the boys real hard. They’re getting there.”

Fans of defenses were in for a treat in the first quarter of the game. Both sides were able to lock down any scoring chances and caused plenty of turnovers and contested shots. Jace White scored the first basket for the Indians, who did not score for the remainder of the quarter. Billy Dressler and Brody Powell each scored a pair in the first quarter for East Juniata as they held a 4-2 lead.

The tides turned in the second quarter for Juniata as its offense began to find its rhythm. After being held scoreless in the first, the Indians’ Jamie Bailer exploded for eight points in the second, tallying half of Juniata’s points in the quarter.

With the help from Bailer, Juniata took an 18-12 lead going into the half.

“Jamie is my senior leader,” Ream said. “We’re playing our first home game of the year, and he showed up and played well.”

Whatever coach Ream said to his team in the locker room seemed to only invigorate the Indians more as the third quarter was by far their most impressive of the night. This time, it was Jacob Condo whose sharp shooting propelled the Juniata offense to drop 20 points in the quarter. Condo scored all nine of his points of the night to extend the Indians lead to 38-18.

To the Tigers credit, they continued to fight until the clock reached zeroes. At one point, East Juniata cut the lead down to 13, but that’s as close as they came.

By far, the highlight of the night came in the final minutes as Emannuel O’Donell found himself alone on a fast break after stealing a pass. The crowd was silenced in anticipation as O’Donell showed off his vertical, throwing down a one-hand jam, sending the Juniata fans, the student’s section in particular, into a frenzy. The noise was deafening as even some East Juniata fans were appreciative of what they had witnessed.

Bailer hit five of nine free throws late to seal the win in Juniata’s home opener.

“This was an exciting night for basketball in Juniata County,” Ream said. “We came out tonight and we played. It was a great game to start, fortunately we got it rolling offensively.”

Wolfkill saw some problems on both sides of the ball that need to be addressed. His defense was solid in the first quarter, but stuggled in the next two quarters. His offense also struggled, as it failed to get any sort of momentum.

“On offense, we went down and shot shots, didn’t make them and we were lazy back on defense,” Wolfkill said.

East Juniata plays Saturday at St. John Neumann.

Juniata hosts Newport on Tuesday.

Juniata Indians 46, East Juniata 31

JUNIATA

Jamie Bailer 4 9-15 18, Jacob Condo 3 1-1 9, Jace White 2 1-1 5, Jeff Zimmerman 2 0-0 5, Yadiel Ortiz 1 1-2 4, Max Lauver 1 0-0 3, Emmanuel O’Donell 1 0-0 2. Totals: 14 12-19 46.

3-point goals: Condo 2, Bailer, Zimmerman, Ortiz.

Did not score: Logan Kehler, Beauregard Baker, Evan Leach.

EAST JUNIATA

Billy Dressler 4 0-2 9, Andrew Hunter 2 0-0 6, Brody Powell 0 4-6 4, Logan Wagner 1 1-1 3, Gannon Ryan 0 3-4 3, Tanner Barth 1 0-0 2, Xavier Clement 1 0-0 2, Evan Reichenbach 1 0-2 2. Totals: 10 8-15, 31.

3-point goals: Hunter 6.

Did not score: Ethan Roe, Glenn Erdley, Jake Brackbill.

Score by quarters:

Juniata 2-16-20-8–46

East Juniata 4-8-6-13–31

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