Vian splits Senior Night games with Westville
The Vian High School basketball teams ended their regular season with their Senior Night games on Tuesday at B.J. Traw Gymnasium with home games against the Westville squads.
The Wolverines avenged their 79-68 road loss to the Yellowjackets on Feb. 10 in Westville as Vian won 7771.
The Lady ’Jackets completed the season sweep of the Lady Wolverines with a 58-23 victory over the Lady Wolverines.
BOYS
VIAN 77, WESTVILLE 71
Trailing 55-52 after three quarters, the Wolverines (12-8) used a strong final period to earn the comefrom- behind victory.
After a basket by Westville’s Laderrius Stidum put the Yellowjackets (18-7) ahead 57-54 with 6:38 left to play, the Wolverines went on a 20-9 run, capped by Ledger Folsom’s basket with 58 seconds remaining in the game, to put Vian ahead 74-66.
The ’Jackets cut their deficit to four points at 75-71 on Lawson Meridith’s basket with 27 seconds left, but they got no closer.
Joe O’Neal’s free throws with nine seconds left sealed the deal for the Wolverines.
The Yellowjackets scored the game’s first six points for a 6-0 lead with 7:26 left in the first quarter on Aliyah Miller’s basket.
The Wolverines responded with a 9-5 run, capped by Jeremiah Marshall’s hoop with 3:24 remaining in the period, to cut Westville’s lead to 11-9.
The ’Jackets ended the first quarter with a 13-0 run, capped by a basket by Stidum with 39 seconds remaining, to give the visitors a 24-9 lead going into the second period.
Westville got its advantage to as great as 11 points at 29-18 on Eli Clinton’s basket with 5:03 left before halftime.
The Wolverines ended the first half with a 15-8 run, capped by Dee Antwine’s basket with 30 seconds remaining in the first half, to cut the Vian deficit to 37-33 at the half.
Back-to-back baskets by former Roland Runnin’ Ranger Buck Triplett and Meridith put Westville ahead 41-33 with 7:04 left in the third quarter.
A pair of free throws by Masyn Wright cut Vian’s deficit to 43-39 with 5:30 remaining in the period.
Triplett converted an old-fashioned three-point play 38 seconds later to put the Yellowjackets ahead 46-39 with 4:42 left in the period.
A basket by Trace Sanders with 2:12 remaining in the quarter, followed by a 3-point basket by O’Neal at the 1:22 mark of the period put Vian ahead 52-49 — its first lead of the game.
Miller’s basket with two seconds left in the period capped a 6-0 run for Westville, which took a 55-52 lead into the fourth quarter.
For the game, O’Neal led Vian with 22 points, followed by Masyn Wright with 16 points, Marshall and Sanders with 12 points each, Dee Antwine with six points, Folsom and Rylan Lane each with three points, Trey Antwine with two points and Amos Wright with a free throw.
GIRLS
WESTVILLE 58, VIAN 23
In defeat, Triplett scored 18 points for Westville.
The Lady Yellowjackets (17-8), ranked 19th in Class 3A, scored the game’s first 11 points before a pair of free throws by Kiah Richardson with 3:08 left in the first quarter got Vian on the board, trailing 11-2. That proved to be as close as they got on this night.
A 3-point basket by Kori Eagleton with 32 seconds remaining in the period gave the Lady ’Jackets a 17-2 lead after a quarter, which became a 28-4 halftime advantage and a 49-13 lead going into the final period.
Westville built as much as a 37-point lead twice in the fourth quarter, the last time at 54-17 on a basket by Riley Davis with 4:12 remaining in the game.
In defeat, Halli Russell scored eight points to lead the Lady Wolverines (1-18), followed by Richardson with six points, Payton Crutchfield with five points and Olivia Lovell and Rayleigh Terrill with two points apiece.
The Vian teams were slated to begin the Class 2A playoffs on Thursday night at home against Central in the Class 2A District Tournament.
This will mark the fifth time the Wolverines and the Tigers will have met, with Vian holding a 3-1 edge.
It will be the fourth time the Lady Wolverines and the Lady Tigers will have squared off, with Central winning each of the first three games.
