Blackhawks lose in close game to Waynesfield-Goshen, 57-55

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By Drew Terhall

DailyAdvocate.com

UNION CITY — It was a close one at Mississinawa Valley High School. The Blackhawks had there chances, but couldn’t come away with a win against Waynesfield-Goshen. They lost 55-57 to the Tigers.

Head coach Nick Hamilton said the team didn’t play as well in the second half as they did in the first half, but was proud of how they competed.

“We got a little sluggish in the second half. The boys are playing hard. They played their butts off tonight. Every single one of them gave me every single thing they had. Things just didn’t fall our way,” Hamilton said.

Things started out great for the Blackhawks. They were leading 35-24 at halftime and looked in control.

So far this season, they would lose games as they couldn’t hit the open shots and would get into foul trouble. Both of those things would frustrate the team and get them off their game.

This time around, Mississinawa Valley was making shots and stayed out of foul trouble in the first half. Even when Waynesfield-Goshen was holding off Mississinawa Valley for awhile in the second quarter, the Blackhawks kept their cool and started to find their groove again.

The defense gave the Blackhawks the edge in the first half. They would get turnovers and get easy transition points off them.

The game started to sway a bit towards the Tigers in the third quarter. Mississinawa Valley started to miss some shots and started to get into foul trouble. Their defense held up to preserve their lead.

But as the buzzer was going off at the end of the third quarter, the Blackhawks fouled the shooter on the last second heave attempt and the Tigers made all three free throws.

Mississinawa Valley held a 43-38 lead after the third quarter. Hamilton said they knew Waynesfield-Goshen would continue to fight and scrap during the game. They have come back in games throughout their season.

With just over five minutes left in the fourth quarter, Waynesfield-Goshen took a 45-44 lead. The teams would trade leads as the clock slowly ticked down.

Both teams made big plays to keep their team in it. Senior Connor Shimp made a big three pointer to give his team a lead late. Senior Matt Pisano also made a few plays to keep his team in the game.

It was tied 55-55 with 38.1 seconds left. The Blackhawks had a chance to take a lead, but the Tigers were able to get a turnover and scored to get the two point lead.

Mississinawa Valley still had some chances to send the game into overtime or win the game, but couldn’t get a last second shot off.

The Blackhawks are still working towards playing their best basketball this season. They have showed glimpses of how they can play when they are at their best. Hamilton said this is a good learning experience for the team.

“We just have to continue to learn how to battle through games like this and learn how to win these games,” Hamilton said.

In addition to that, Hamilton said he wants to see his team try and continue to stay out of foul trouble, hit more shots and hit the boards harder. Mississinawa Valley did do a good job of rebounding in the first half, but struggled on the boards in the second half.

Pisano led the team with 22 points. He had 13 points in the second half. The rest of the team scored seven points in the second half. Senior Drew Anguiano was second on the team with nine points. He fouled out with 3:30 left in the game.

The Blackhawks are now 4-9 on the season with a 2-5 conference record. They will have to put this emotional loss to the side as they get ready to travel to Lehman Catholic on Jan. 17. They will then travel to Tri-County North on Jan. 20 before facing off against rivals Ansonia on Jan. 21 at Ansonia.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected]

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