Lancers top Bearcats for 3rd straight win

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

It wasn’t the prettiest game, but the end result was a good one for Lincolnview. The Lancers defeated a scrappy Spencerville team 46-40 in the Northwest Conference opener at Lincolnview High School on Friday night.

The Lancers improved to 3-1 (1-0 NWC), while the defending conference champion Bearcats fell to 0-4 (0-1 NWC).

“We knew it was going to be a physical game,” Crestview head coach Brett Hammons said. “We knew Spencerville’s record coming in, but look who they played – St Henry, who hasn’t lost, Elida, who hasn’t lost, and a good Fort Jennings team. We knew it was going to be a battle.”

A three point basket by Caden Ringwald, and buckets by Isiac Bowersock and Chayten Overholt gave Lincolnview a 7-0 lead midway through the opening quarter. Spencerville’s first score came on a basket by Drew Armstead with 3:15 left in the period. Ethan Kemler’s basket pushed Lincolnview’s lead to 9-2, but the Bearcats trimmed it to 9-5 with a score by Jackson Goecke and a foul shot by Dalton Prichard.

The second quarter belonged to Lincolnview’s Chayten Overholt. The 5-8 senior guard scored 12 of his team’s 16 points, including four consecutive baskets to open the period. By the time the quarter was over, Overholt hit five baskets and two free throws. He went on to finish with a game high 16 points. Ringwald hit two free throws with 0.1 second left to give the Lancers a 25-17 lead.

The 5-7 senior hit a trey to open the third quarter, then later hit a bucket to increase Lincolnview’s lead to 32-23.

“They’re the key that gets us going,” Hammons said of Ringwald and Overholt. “When they get us going, other guys need to follow them. So far through four games they’ve been in double figures, and when they shoot well it’s tough to stop them.”

The Lancers led 34-28 to start the fourth quarter, but Geocke hit a quick basket to start the period. Zane Miller answered with a triple to push Lincolnview’s lead to 37-30, but the Lancers wouldn’t score again for three minutes and 40 seconds. Meanwhile, 6-4 senior Ben Dues scored for Spencerville, then Armstead came away with a steal and layup to cut the lead to 37-34. Dues went on to finish with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Overholt hit a foul shot with three minutes left, then Miller came away with a steal and basket to give Lincolnview a 40-36 advantage.

“This is the second game in a row he’s stepped up for us like that,” Hammons said of Miller. “It doesn’t always show in points, but it’s key moments in the game when he makes those plays.”

The Bearcats had chances to take the lead in the fourth quarter, but started the period 0-6 from the free throw line before finishing 4-12 in the quarter and 6-17 overall.

“If we make free throws we probably are on the other side of the scoreboard,” Spencerville head coach Kevin Sensabaugh said. “I’m really pleased with our effort, the guys played hard for the most part, and we didn’t make a whole lot of mistakes defensively.”

While the Bearcats struggled from charity stripe, Ringwald went 5-6 in the fourth quarter, and 7-8 for the game. As a team, the Lancers hit 11 of 14 free throws.

Friday’s game marked the return of  Ethan Kemler. The 6-3 junior forward missed the first three games with a shoulder injury suffered during the ACME baseball season. He finished the game with four points.

“He was finally cleared Wednesday,” Hammons said. He practiced with us Wednesday and Thursday and obviously he was a little rusty, but the minutes he gave us – I thought he did a very good job.”

Spencerville will play at Ottoville tonight, while the Lancers will host 4-0 Wayne Trace.

“They’re long and athletic,” Hammons said of the Raiders. “They’re going to try to speed the game up and try to press us like they do every game. It’s something we have to prepare for and be ready for. It’s going to be a battle.”

The Lincolnview-Wayne Trace game will air live on WKSD 99.7FM and will stream live at www.thevwindependent.com.

Scoring summary:

Lincolnview 9 16 9 12 – 46
Spencerville 5 12 11 12 – 40

Lincolnview: Caden Ringwald 3-7-15; Ethan Kemler 2-0-4; Chayten Overholt 6-4-16; Tristin Miller 0-2-2; Isiac Bowersock 2-0-4; Zane Miller 2-0-5

Spencerville: Drew Armstead 6-0-14; Jackson Goecke 2-0-4; Keegan Goecke 1-0-2; Dalton Prichard 0-1-1; Conner Holmes 2-4-8; 5-1-11

JV – Lincolnview won 57-26