NORTH ROBINSON — Seneca East did something few teams have done recently. They came into Mac Morrison Gymnasium and left with a convincing 46-40 win in a Northern 10 Athletic Conference slugfest Friday night.
The victory also broke a 19-game losing streak for the Tigers.
The Tigers (6-1, 4-1) moved into a second-place tie with Wynford by virtue of the win and Colonel Crawford slips to third.
Seneca East head coach Anthony Langhurst credited his seniors for the victory. But it was sophomore Luke Mason who looked good beyond his years leading the Tigers with 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals and an assist.
“I couldn’t be happier for our entire team, but especially this senior class. I had them here my first year. They took some lumps for a few years. To come in here in their last game at Colonel Crawford — it’s a unique environment. The fans are on top of ya. It’s hot and muggy. Competitors love playing in this,” Langhurst said.
The two teams entered the game tied for second in the N10 behind Carey.
Mason got plenty of help from his teammates.
Aidan Hines chipped in 10, Lucas Bordner 9 and Lucas Hicks 8 for the Tigers, who committed just 7 turnovers to the Eagles’ 11.
“We had some guys step up and make plays in a tough place to play. Those seniors set the tone every day in practice,” Langhurst said.
The Tigers shot well from the free throw line, hitting on 15-of-18 attempts, including 8-of-10 in the fourth quarter.
“Our free throws are very serious in late-game situations. We had to exert more energy offensively just because of the way Crawford was D-ing us up. Guys like Aidan, Luke and Lucas had to step up and make shots in the fourth quarter. That’s just a testament to their guts,” Langhurst said.
Colonel Crawford (6-3, 3-2) got a huge performance from 6-foot 5 sophomore Payne DeGray. He scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
Trevor Vogt added 13 points, but both he and DeGray battled foul trouble all game. The Eagles also shot well from the charity stripe, hitting on 12-of-14 shots.
Colonel Crawford head coach David Sheldon credited the veteran Tigers squad.
“They return everybody from last year besides Isaac Mason. They got 7 seniors and guys with a lot of varsity experience,” Sheldon said.
“I thought our defensive effort was tremendous. Offensively, we’ve got to make shots and take care of the ball better. That’s what it comes down to.”
Crawford led 9-8 after a quarter and 16-15 at halftime. But Seneca East got rolling in the third quarter and outscored the hosts 12-6.
“DeGray had a hell of a game. That dude is going to be tough for anybody. The fact that he’s still getting better is scary. After he started to sort of dominate the game, we just told our guys it’s going to be a collective effort. The guys responded to that and everybody kind of corralled him,” Langhurst said.
Mason hit a shot to put the Tigers ahead 27-22 at the end of the third quarter. Vogt’s basket was the lone field goal for the Eagles in that period.
Poor shooting from the floor doomed Colonel Crawford.
“Our supposed shooters got looks. They just didn’t go. It’s a simple game sometimes. You’ve got to make shots. Our defensive effort kept us in the game,” Sheldon said.
The Eagles hit on just 13-of-41 (31%) shots and were just 2-of-12 from beyond the arc.
“That’s two games in a row where we didn’t shoot the basketball well. You’ve got to put the ball in the hoop. Their zone and they trap, and we struggled with some of that,” Sheldon said.
“When we make shots, we’re going to be in ball games. Up at Carey we shoot 19% from the field. Tonight, same way.”
Sheldon acknowledged the league is highly competitive.
“One through six it’s a dogfight every night,” he said.
Both teams return to action Saturday as Colonel Crawford hosts Clyde, while Seneca East takes on Margaretta in the Cedar Point JB Jam.
Seneca East has little time to celebrate.
“We’ve got a game tomorrow and then two tough N10 teams on the road at Mohawk and at Wynford next week,” Langhurst said. “This win will be something we can enjoy later after the season is over. We just need to go out and battle every night.”
Meanwhile, Crawford faces a strong challenge from a larger school opponent.
“We lost to Clyde last year and they had a bunch of sophomores and now they’re juniors. It’s a Division II school that plays a heck of a schedule.”
The two losses creates an opportunity, Sheldon said.
“I always say sports is a great learning environment for kids. We’ve faced a little adversity now. So how are we going to respond coming back from that? That’s what you learn as an extension of the education process.”
Colonel Crawford won the junior varsity game, 63-23.
Box score
Seneca East 8 7 12 19 — 46
Colonel Crawford 9 7 6 18 — 40
Seneca East (6-1, 4-1 N10): Shots 15-35; 3-pt. shots 1-7 (Luke Mason); Free throws 15-18; Rebounds 19 (Aidan Hines 4, Lucas Hicks 4); Turnovers 7. Scoring: Aidan Hines 2 6 10, Luke Mason 4 4 13, Caden Fritz 2 0 4, Lucas Bordner 3 3 9, Lucas Hicks 3 2 8, Keeno Ruffing 1 0 2.
Colonel Crawford (6-3, 3-2 N10): Shots 13-41; 3-pt. shots 2-12 (Trevor Vogt 2); Free throws 12-14; Rebounds 27 (Payne DeGray 11); Turnovers 1. Scoring: Trevor Vogt 4 3 13, Connor McMichael 1 0 2, Kaden Bruner 0 1 1, Payne DeGray 8 8 24.
JV: Colonel Crawford 63-23.