F-M falls to Exira/EHK in districts

Basketball is a game of runs.

Fremont-Mills is all too well aware of that fact.

After using a 13-1 run to take its first lead late in the first half and a 10-3 run to open the second half, the Knights opened up a lead that swelled to as many as nine points.

But a fourth quarter cold streak that led to a 12-2 run by Exira/EHK proved the difference as Fremont-Mills’ season came to an end in a 64-57 loss in the Class 1A, District 14 first round at Council Bluffs St. Albert Thursday.

The Knights hit just one of their first 17 shots in the fourth quarter as they saw their lead evaporate.

“An old mentor of mine used to say, ‘Shooting cures a multitude of sins,’” said Fremont-Mills Coach Steve Raymond after the game. “It doesn’t matter what you do X’s and O’s wise if the shots aren’t falling. And unfortunately that’s what happened to us. But I have to give a lot of credit to Exira/EHK. They’re a tough, well-coached team.”

The two teams opened the game at a frenetic pace before settling into a halfcourt game of aggressive man-to-man defenses.

The Crusaders led 11-8 after a quarter but quickly ballooned that lead to 21-10 with a 10-2 run to open the second quarter.

But the Knights countered with a 13-1 run of their own – punctuated by 10 points from Mason Vanatta – to briefly take the lead before going to halftime all tied up at 28-28.

“We started a little bit slow but that’s what we’re about, what F-M athletes are about,” Raymond said. “We rise to the occasion. We faced adversity all year and rose to the occasion. We did a good job of hitting it head on and we execute. I think that showed a lot tonight with our boys. I’m really proud of everything they did.”

The Knights got a pair of three’s from Cooper Langfelt and a layup and another three from Vanatta to take a 41-33 lead with 4:30 to go in the third quarter.

The two teams would trade baskets the next three minutes before the Crusaders began to chip into the lead. Back-to-back turnovers by the Knights led to two straight three-point plays and a 49-49 tie to end the third.

Neither team could get much going offensively to open the fourth quarter until Trey Nelson’s three pointer gave Exira/EHK a 52-49 with just under four minutes to go.

Austin Gartner’s layup broke a five minute scoring drought for the Knights and made the margin just 52-51 with 3:32 to go.

But the bucket would be the Knights lone field goal until the final seconds of the game.

A three pointer by Joshua Pettepier and a layup Dakota Rold extended the Crusaders lead to 57-51. Exira/EHK would hit 7-of-10 free throws down the stretch to ice the win.

The Knights could never find their offense in the quarter, finishing 3-of-19 from the field with its final two buckets coming in the final 13 seconds.

Vanatta, who had 17 at halftime and 22 midway through the third quarter was shutout in the fourth quarter and finished with game-high 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting. The Crusaders ran multiple defenders at the Knight junior and did a better job clogging the driving lanes as the game went along.

“He was the focal point of our offense this year,” Raymond said of Vanatta. “We kind of leaned on him. They chased him for most of the game and we kept going to him and see what we could get out of him. He’s a special kid and a special competitor.”

Langfelt finished with 11 for the Knights and Gartner added eight.
Pettepier and Rold led the Crusaders with 15 points each. Cole Burmeister added 14 points.

The Knights close their season with a record of 14-9.

The loss was a tough one for Raymond who said the early post-season exit did nothing to diminish a great season.

“I am so proud of this team and how they came together,” Raymond said. “We didn’t want this season to end. We wanted to be at practice tomorrow and the next day and back here competing. We’re going to miss our three seniors a lot. They did a lot of special things. This is a tough one to swallow.”

C-A-M 62
East Mills 41

Thomas Hensley and Nicholas Holste combined for 36 points for C-A-M in a 62-41 victory over East Mills in the Class 1A, District 14 opening round Thursday in Stanton.

The Wolverines (10-12) trailed 19-7 after a quarter and 38-16 at halftime on a night they struggled to find their touch offensively, shooting 31.8 percent (14-of-44) from the field.

Dylan Schroeder led East Mills with 13 points. Michael Schafer added 10 points. Hensley scored a game-high 21 points and Holste added 15 points.