A last-second shot rimmed out and the Arlington boys basketball team closed Lincoln Lutheran Tournament play 0-2 Saturday afternoon.
The Eagles' Schuyler Logemann narrowly missed a game-winner in the final seconds of the third-place matchup against Holdrege as his team fell, 59-58. The loss dropped AHS to 5-5, while the Dusters improved to 4-6.
While Logemann finished with six points on two made 3s, Kieryn Grothe — the teammate who passed him the ball on the final attempt — scored 11 with three made long-range shots for coach Jake Polk's team. Jaxson Burns made four 3-pointers, too, while Trent Koger led the Eagles with a team-high 18 points.
Garret Johnson and Wyatt Pfeifer, meanwhile, combined for 41 of Holdrege's 59 points. Johnson scored 22 and Pfeifer had 19.
Arlington started the holiday tournament against their hosts, the unbeaten Lincoln Lutheran Warriors. Class C2's No. 4 team handled coach Polk's team, earning a 70-42 win Dec. 29 to get into the championship final.
“Athletically, they're tough matchups (Nos.) 1-5,” AHS' coach said. “They have four guys that are really tough to guard off of the dribble — four guys that can all get to the hoop and can all elevate.”
He noted how at least five Lincoln Lutheran players were dunking during pregame warmups. As a result of their athleticism, three Warriors scored in double figures while the home team also won the battle for missed shots.
“Rebounding the ball, we didn't do very good as a team,” Polk said, noting how “we kind of got pushed around a little bit defensively.”
Offensively, though, Arlington found some success with “high ball-screen stuff,” the coach explained. Koger was able to get some baskets inside, finishing with 15 points, while Grothe, Dallin Franzluebbers, Burns, Owen Ladehoff and Jackson Stosich were able to knock down 3-pointers. The Eagles point tally, however, came up well short as they dropped into the third-place game opposite the Dusters.
AHS BOYS HOOPS LINE SCORES
Saturday
Holdrege 59, Arlington 58
AHS (5-5) 18 14 18 8 — 58
HHS (4-6) 22 9 15 13 — 59
Scoring: AHS — Trent Koger 18, Jaxson Burns 12, Kieryn Grothe 11, Oliver Ladehoff 11, Schuyler Logemann 6.
HHS — Garret Johnson 22, Wyatt Pfeifer 19, Coy Swanson 12, Landon Hartzog 4, Baron Medine 2.
Dec. 29
No. 4 Lincoln Lutheran 70, Arlington 42
AHS (5-4) 10 13 9 10 — 42
LL (9-0) 20 13 19 18 — 70
Scoring: AHS — Koger 15, Grothe 7, Dallin Franzluebbers 7, Burns 7, Owen Ladehoff 3, Jackson Stosich 3.
LL — Logan Lebo 15, Ryan Hager 15, Jacob Dultsman 14, Nathan Holle 8, Braxton Glines 5, Kruz Fiddler 5, Grant Stowell 5, Trenton Ernst 2, Brayden Egge 2, Jeremy Simmons 2.
