Ravens win on Alumni Night

Hillcrest Academy hosted Alumni Night festivities Friday evening, and the Ravens did not disappoint a packed house, defeating Winfield-Mt. Union 59-45. Hillcrest jumped to a 15-5 lead after one period and then got to the locker room  with a 30-24 lead, as the Wolves took advantage of Raven foul trouble in the second quarter.

Hillcrest pulled ahead in the third quarter, outscoring Winfield 16-7 in the frame to lead 46-31. The Ravens scored first in the fourth quarter to lead 48-31 with just over six minutes left. The Wolves would not go away, chipping away at the margin to get it to 57-44 with one minute remaining, as reserves finished for both squads.

The balanced Hillcrest scoring attack was led by Eli Ours with 14 points and nine assists. John Hughes added 13 points and Kobe Borntrager had 12 points and six boards. London Schrock had a huge night on the glass with 15 rebounds to go with nine points and three steals, and Noah Miller scored eight points with three assists and a pair of steals. Drew Blauvelt scored two points and had two steals, and Aaron Hershberger completed the scoring with a free throw.

Coach Dwight Gingerich said “this was a solid win over a team that has been playing very well, including a big win over Wapello, and a near upset of Highland just Tuesday. Our pressure bothered them over the course of the game, and we found that if we do not play hard and together, things can get away from us. Our defense had some really good moments, which was key, and it was great to get scoring balance.”

Hillcrest is now 3-3 on the season, and next plays January 3 at Columbus.