ANAMOSA — Sometimes confidence can make things fall together just perfectly.

For the Anamosa boys basketball team hosting Starmont Thursday, February 9, a slow start didn’t faze the Raiders the least little bit in rolling to a big 57-40 rout of the Stars.

“We were sluggish in the first half and solid in the second,” said Anamosa boys basketball coach Kevin Barnes after the 17-point triumph. “We played like the make-up game this was in the first half. The problem with that is what we talked about before the game started. It doesn’t matter the day of the week of the opponent. When you take the floor, you play hard. We did that in the second half.”

Anamosa (8-9, 8-7) and the visiting Stars struggled mightily forming any kind of offense over the game’s first 16 minutes.

The Raiders held a slim 8-6 lead after one sloppy quarter of play but began to get their timing down in the second quarter all while playing stifling defense leaving Starmont in their wake.

“We had an unsuspecting source of good play tonight,” said Barnes. “Early in the second half, Tony (Lueken) became ill and couldn’t play. Drew Corpstein seized the moment. His first 3-point bucket of the season was our first hoop of the second half and it seemed to propel us.”

Corpstein drilled a pair of treys in the third quarter as the Raiders went on to score 17 points in the frame, matching their entire first half total.

The rout was on as Andrew Peters fired home three long 3-pointers in the second half to seal the 17-point victory.

“I’m really happy for Drew,” said Barnes. “In practice he sometimes can’t miss. But it hasn’t worked that way in games yet. It did tonight and it came at the right time for us.”

Corpstein’s treys came when the Raiders were struggling early in the third quarter finding offense. Once the senior sharp-shooter broke the lid on the basket, the contest was over.

Colten Kelly led three Raiders in double-figure scoring tallying 15 points including a dunk that brought the reserved crowd to their feet in the first half.

Peters tallied 11 points with Derek Hart chipping in with 10 more.

The Raiders kept the Tri-Rivers winning ways going the very next night, Friday, February 10, posting a narrow 43-39 victory hosting Alburnett.

“Alburnett came in winners of six of their last seven and were 10-3 since they got their all-state player back,” said Barnes. “We played really well for 30 minutes and then hung on for the final two.”

After a tight first frame ended in a 7-7 tie, the Raiders went on a big 16-5 spurt to take command with a 23-12 halftime advantage over the Pirates.

Anamosa still led 34-25 after three quarters and held a 10-point lead with just four minutes remaining before the visitors finished with a flurry closing to within two points in the final seconds.

“Derek has been our defensive leader all year and tonight, up by two with time ticking down, he altered a shot that would have tied the game from just inside the free throw line,” said Barnes.
“He grabbed the rebound then too, got Colten the ball who got fouled and made both free throws and the game was out of reach.”

Kelly scored 15 points to pace the Raider offense with Hart adding 11 more and 11 rebounds.
Hitting the road at one of the tough places to play in the Tri-Rivers Conference Tuesday, February 7, Anamosa was handed a tough 56-30 setback at Cascade.

“When you play Cascade and a coach Marshall-coached team, you know you are going to play a lot of defense,” said Barnes. “That was the case again tonight.”

The Cougars jumped to a 12-2 first quarter lead and were holding a commanding 28-11 edge at the half. The Raiders cut the deficit to 10 points, 38-28 entering the final frame but were out-scored 18-2 to the end.

MAQUOKETA — Competing at the sectional level of high school wrestling is something you have to experience to fully appreciate.

The pressure is immense to win. If not, the season is over. For seven Raider wrestlers who made the trip to Maquoketa Saturday, February 11, the season came to an end in the power-packed class 2A sectional tournament. But for two other Anamosa wrestlers, the two most experienced wrestlers coach Ron Timp has on his 2005-2006 roster, the road to the state tournament continues after advancing through and on to the district round in Monticello Saturday, February 18.

“We had hoped to get more than just two wrestlers through sectionals and on to the district round,” said Anamosa wrestling coach Ron Timp after senior Lee Hardersen and junior Mike Levasseur each finished second at Maquoketa and earned a berth at districts, just a step away from the state meet in Des Moines.

Blood sport
Anamosa senior Lee Hardersen works to score points against a bloodied John Kennedy from Northeast during semi-final action from the class 2A sectional wrestling tournament in Maquoketa Saturday, February 11. Hardersen posted a 6-0 win over Kennedy but had to wrestle back to earn a trip to districts after coming through with a clutch 12-4 victory over Maquoketa’s Josh Breeden. Hardersen, along with junior Mike Levasseur will wrestle in Monticello Saturday, February 18, for a chance at a state tournament berth. (Journal-Eureka photo by Daryl Schepanski)

WYOMING — For three and a half quarters, Lisbon was somehow able to keep Midland’s Scott Willimack from scoring.

But once the sensational Eagle junior sharp-shooter got going, the visiting Lions couldn’t slow him down and it was that shooting that propelled Midland to a thrilling 43-40 victory in front of a packed Parent’s Night crowd in Wyoming.

“What a big win for us,” said Eagle boys basketball coach Ben Eastburn. “We keep talking to the guys about playing hard and good things will happen. But in order to keep them motivated, they need to get a win and we got a big one!”

Midland (3-17, 2-10) appeared to be on their way to another tough defeat trailing Lisbon 39-33 with a little over four minutes remaining, but then the amazing comeback began.

Ryan Trentz hit two free throws to slice the Lions lead to 39-35 and after Willimack scored his first basket of the contest at the 2:24 mark, Midland had closed to within 40-37.

Lisbon’s Matt Alger missed two free throws with 1:21 remaining and Willimack answered with a lay-up for the Eagles after swiping the ball from Lion point guard Marquis Stevens.

Trailing 40-39 with under a minute remaining, the Eagles stole the basketball yet again and worked the offense until Willimack got a great look at the basket from just outside the lane and swished home the eventual game-winner with just 18 ticks left on the clock.

WYOMING — It was all Midland all the time hosting an overmatched team from Lisbon Friday, February 10, as the Eagles girls rolled to a big 54-38 rout in front of a packed Parent’s Night crowd in Wyoming.

“Tonight was a nice night for the seniors,” said Midland girls basketball coach Josh Bentley after guiding his club to the 16-point Big East Conference triumph in the Eagles final regular-season contest of the 2005-2006 campaign. “They had earned their time and have been through a lot.
They deserved this night.”

Midland (11-9, 6-6) jumped out to a 13-7 first quarter lead and never looked back.

The Eagles added 12 more points in the second quarter as Bentley substituted heavily all game long using every girl on the roster.

ANAMOSA — There was nothing the Raider girls basketball team wanted more than to give their loyal fans a win in their final home game of the 2005-2006 season. Especially seniors Sara Schultejans, Kelsi Dearborn and Megan Carpenter.

But in what was a tight game all night long, a furious Raider rally at the end came up precious points shy in a narrow and bitter 43-40 setback hosting Starmont in the regular season finale for both clubs.

“There were a few tears in the locker room after this one,” said Raider girls basketball coach Jack Leighty after the tough to take three-point defeat at the hands of the Stars, who recorded their first victory of the season with the road win.

“The girls took this loss pretty hard, but you just have to give the credit to Starmont. They won the game, we didn’t lose it.”

Anamosa (3-18, 3-13) struggled from the opening tip, but so did the Stars as the first quarter ended in a 6-6 tie.

“The game started out very, very slow on both ends offensively,” said Leighty. “We got good looks at the basket and the shots just wouldn’t fall for us. I’m sure they felt the same way.”

The second quarter saw the Stars and the Raiders struggle even more offensively as the two teams combined for just six points with the visitors scoring two and taking a 10-8 halftime advantage.