Raiders stun their way to tournament title
PHOTO COURTESY OF SR BOYS BASKETBALL
Beating Class A’s top-ranked ball club and then beating the No. 4 ranked team in Class 3A in one day to win a holiday tournament championship? Challenge accepted and completed for South Ripley boys basketball who turned several heads and hoisted the Southridge Holiday Tournament title last Saturday.
The Raiders entered the tournament ranked No. 11 in Class 2A. South Ripley had played in the same tournament a year ago, losing both games and finishing last in the field.
This year’s field featured three undefeated ranked teams and South Ripley put everyone on notice in game one, upending Class A No. 1 Orleans in decisive fashion, a 62-49 final score. The Raiders got off to a slow start but after trailing 15-9 went off on an 18-6 run in the second quarter to pull ahead 27-21 by halftime. Orleans (5-2) was the victim of a continued Ripley assault in the third quarter and never recovered from a double-digit deficit despite playing the green and white even in the final eight minutes.
Free throws were once again crucial for the Raiders and the team shot 15-of-17 from the stripe including an 8-of-9 clip in the fourth quarter. Senior Blaine Ward was 7-of-7 from the line and scored 16 points in the first half on his way to leading all scorers with 31 points. He had point totals of 11 points and eight points in the second and third quarter respectively.
Cole Henry added 17 points and was 5-of-6 from the free throw line. He and Ward combined for 16 points in the 18-6 run by the Raiders in the second frame. Bryce Jones and Rylan Crocker led Orleans with 16 points and 10 points respectively. The Bulldogs went on to lose 59-46 to Bedford North Lawrence in the consolation game.
Class 3A No. 4 Southridge (7-1) beat Bedford 50-42 in the opening round, setting up a Raiders versus Raiders showdown in the championship that was won 50-48 by the Versailles version. The host school was able to edge out for a 15-13 but much like the first game for South Ripley, their offense would roar to life in the second quarter and use an 11-3 spurt to pull ahead by six points at intermission.
South Ripley pulled ahead 39-32 after three quarters but that’s when Southridge would show its true self, sparking a tremendous comeback that would make for a one possession game down the stretch. The green and white Raiders however would hold down the fort and score seven points from the free throw line to keep Southridge’s crew at-bay and seal a championship victory.
10 points in each half paved the way for Ward to not only score 20 points in the title tilt but also allow him to capture Most Valuable Player honors for the tournament. He was 6-of-8 in the second half from the free throw line while Henry was 4-of-4 in the fourth quarter and finished with 12 points. Bryson Sipples and Drew Volz came up big to aid the senior duo, scoring nine points and seven points respectively which included a combined three 3-pointers.
Southridge’s Tate Whitehead led his team with 15 points and Camden Haywood scored 10 points.
South Ripley (10-0) is off until they host the Ripley County Tournament next week. The Raiders face Milan in Wednesday’s opening round.
SATURDAY’S OPENING ROUND GAME
at Southridge
CLASS 2A NO. 11 SOUTH RIPLEY 62, CLASS A NO. 1 ORLEANS 49
- SR – 9. 18. 17. 18. – 62
- Orleans – 15. 6. 10. 18. – 49
SR (9-0) – Blaine Ward 31, Cole Henry 17, Chancie Volz 5, Drew Volz 4, Eli Gilpin 4, Blake Gunter 1, Bryson Sipples 0, Landon Werner 0, Dylan Jessee 0, Mason Bascom 0.
Orleans (5-1) – Bryce Jones 16, Rylan Crocker 10, Alex DeWitt 7, Mason Freed 5, Troy Dille 4, Nate Brown 4, Nolan Robbins 2, Jimmy Sanders 1, Kagen Russell 0, Dana Freed 0, Kaden Berning 0.
3-Point Goals – SR 3 (Ward 2, C.Volz 1), Orleans 3 (Crocker 2, Jones 1). Total Fouls – SR 11, Orleans 16. Free Throws – SR 15-17, Orleans 8-10. Fouled Out – None.
SATURDAY’S CHAMPIONSHIP GAME at Southridge
CLASS 2A NO. 11 SOUTH RIPLEY 50, CLASS 3A NO. 4 SOUTHRIDGE 48
- SR – 13. 11. 15. 11 – 50
- SOUTHRIDGE – 15. 3. 14. 16. – 48
SR (10-0) – Blaine Ward 20, Cole Henry 12, Bryson Sipples 9, Drew Volz 7, Chancie Volz 2, Eli Gilpin 0.
SOUTHRIDGE (7-1) – Tate Whitehead 15, Camden Haywood 10, Hudson Montgomery 8, Brock Thacker 6, Noah Wright 4, Davis Schwarz 3, Justin Leathers 2, Rolan Whitehead 0.
3-Point Goals – SR 3 (D. Volz 2, Sipples 1), Southridge 7 (Whitehead 3, Haywood 2, Montgomery 2). Total Fouls – SR 15, Southridge 20. Free Throws – SR 17-23, Southridge 13-15. Fouled Out – None.
