By Carl Holcomb
Moorefield Examiner
East Hardy recognized the Class A state baseball championship team with a special ring ceremony and the celebration and good vibes continued from the diamond to the hardwood as the Cougars pounced over Petersburg 63-42 in the season opener.
Each member of the Cougars Baseball team including the coaches received their championship rings and opened the box at mid-court to show them off and were also gifted commemorative baseballs honoring the title success.
East Hardy Boys Basketball was led by Evan Hamilton with 20 points which included four perimeter baskets, followed by Trevor Roof with 17 points and Gideon Good with 16 points.
The Vikings were paced by Caden Ours with 13 points and Kaleb Kuhn with 12 points.
The Cougars pounced ahead 24-12 in the opening frame and coasted to a 34-21 halftime advantage en route to the 63-42 victory.
“Petersburg is a really good team, so it was real nice to come out here and execute. I thought we played our game really well and it was a good start to the season. We like to play fast and everybody knows that, but Petersburg matched our speed pretty well. We settled in and played our game and got good looks at the basket. It was a great crowd and atmosphere this early in the season, especially for a Tuesday night. You never know what you are going to get on a Tuesday night and with how cold it has been, but it looks like everybody came out and made it a good atmosphere,” East Hardy coach Chris Hahn stated.
A steal by East Hardy’s Gideon Good led to a 3-pointer by Trevor Roof off an assist by Evan Hamilton at 7:15 for the initial lead during a 7-0 run starting the game.
Good grabbed a defensive carom and dished to Hamilton, who scored on a baseline driving layup.
Aubrey McCullough made a steal for the Cougars and Good netted a putback for the 7-nil edge at 6:08.
The Vikings would tie the game up in a span of 32 seconds beginning with a putback by Lucas Riggleman at 5:35 which was followed by back-to-back steals from Kaleb Kuhn leading to his own layup and 3-pointer looking up the score.
The Cougars answered with a 15-0 run over the ensuing three minutes which included perimeter baskets thrice by Hamilton with each coming off turnovers, plus two jumpers by Good and a shot by Joseph Price, 22-7.
Payton Metheny closed out the first frame with a 3-pointer for the Vikings after a block by Good to close the gap to 24-12.
Petersburg hit the rim five times and committed four turnovers in the first three minutes of the second period as the Cougars clawed for a 30-14 lead on scores by Good (FT), Roof and Hamilton field goals in the paint.
It got a little wild with crashes in the paint by Kuhn and Levi Price late in the second period on back-to-back plays.
Kuhn blocked a shot moments after Caden Ours knocked down a jumper for the Vikings, 32-20.
Hamilton made a steal and drew a foul adding two free throws in the final minute of the half as the Cougars would carry a 34-21 lead into the locker rooms.
Roof recorded six points in each of the second half periods to help keep the momentum going for the Cougars, while Levi Price added four points in the third period and Good added six points in the final frame.
It was even keeled in the third period with both teams netting a dozen points, then East Hardy outscored the Vikings 17-9 in the final stanza to commandeer the 63-42 win.
