Goessel Bluebirds win two
For the second time this season, the Peabody-Burns boys' basketball team came to the Goessel gym Jan. 3 for a game against the Bluebirds and once again the Bluebirds prevailed.
This time the game was close for three quarters. It had the appearance of a high scoring contest with Goessel leading 21-18 at the end of the first period.
A slow second period left the Bluebirds with a 28-27 lead at the end of the half.
Goessel finished the third period scoring seven straight points and taking an eight-point lead into the break.
The Bluebirds were efficient in the fourth quarter, scoring on a high percentage of their possessions. Garrett Hiebert led scoring for the Bluebirds with 18 points, Jordan Voth canned five three-pointers for 15 points, Travis Buller scored 12 with the aid of three three-pointers, Nathan Amstutz scored seven, Tyler Schroeder six, Nathan Ensz four, Justin Fensky two, Sheldon Goerzen two, and Wade Wilson one.
"The second half was different because of good ball movement and we cut down our turnovers," coach Justin Coup said.
A blistering 53 percent shooting from beyond the three-point arc also gave the Bluebirds a boost.
Goessel was streaky on Friday night as the boys' team burst open the game early, with tenacious defense leading to some easy baskets.
In the first quarter the Bluebirds scored 14 straight points to take a 19-6 lead. In the second quarter, the Bulldogs got stuck on 10 points as the Bluebirds scored another 12 straight points and Goessel went into half time with a 26-point lead. 40-14.
During the second half, the Bluebirds maintained a 20-point lead for the duration, with the game ending with a final score of 62-40.
Goessel emptied the bench with two minutes, 30 seconds to play allowing the underclassmen varsity some experience.
Scoring for the Bluebirds were Hiebert with 14, Amstutz 12, Fensky eight, Ensz, Buller and Voth all with seven, Brett Goerzen five, Schroeder two. Ensz and Hiebert each had seven rebounds and Brett Goerzen sparkled on defense with four steals.
The Bluebird boys are now 2-1 in league play and move to 7-1 overall.
Junior varsity
The Bluebird JV boys' basketball team nailed down a five-point victory Jan. 3 against Peabody-Burns.
Kendall Voth led in scoring with 11 points in the 50-45 victory. Austin Unruh had four steals, Wilson accumulated three assists, and Amstutz had four rebounds.
Against Bennington, the Bluebirds were not as successful. Goessel jumped out to a 16-9 first quarter lead, but trailed by two at halftime. Bennington put the game out of reach with 19 points in the third period and won by a 59-51 final score.
Cameron Voth led Goessel scoring with 12 points, shooting 4-5 from three-point range. Amstutz led in rebounds with eight.
