Game Summaries

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January 28, 2006

Lake City 26 16 42 Plainview 27 34 61

LATE RUN CARRIES GOPHERS PAST TIGERS by: Quinn Sweeney After falling behind early to Plainview, the Lake City Tigers battled back to take the lead, but couldn’t hold it as they fell to the Gophers 61-42 in a non-conference game Saturday night. Plainview hit two quick three point baskets and opened up a 9-4 lead just three minutes into the game. Lake City answered with a 9-4 run of their own to knot the game at 13 at the midway point of the first half. The teams exchanged baskets throughout the rest of the half. With the Tigers leading by two and time winding down on the clock, Matt Schulz gave Plainview a lead they wouldn’t relinquish as he hit a three point basket to give the Gophers a 27-26 halftime edge. “I thought we had a solid first half, controlled the tempo and had good shot selection,” Lake City Coach Shawn Sweeney commented. “Unfortunately, there are two halves in every game and the pendulum swung in Plainview’s favor midway through the second half,” Sweeney concluded. The Tigers stayed close in the early going of the second half and pulled within three points with 9:50 to play in the game. However, Plainview went on a 20-4 blitzkrieg spanning the rest of the second half to notch the 61-42 victory. Although the Tigers held a 35-21 edge in the rebounding department, they were once again plagued by 20 turnovers. The Gophers were able to convert these turnovers into points which aided them put the game away. “Plainview changed the tempo with their press and trapping defense to get some transition baskets,” Coach Shawn Sweeney noted. Leading the way for Plainview (12-7) was Dillon Stoltz, who scored 15 points and grabbed six rebounds. Stoltz hit all seven of his shots at the charity stripe. Tony Theisen added 14 points and four assists for the Gophers. Nick Moyer paced Lake City with 12 points and eight rebounds. Teammates Eric Denn and Jordan Schumacher added nine and eight points, respectively. The loss drops Lake City to 3-10 overall on the season.

January 27, 2006

Lake City 26 24 50 Cannon Falls 30 30 60

KEY SURGE LEADS BOMBERS PAST TIGERS by: Quinn Sweeney The Lake City Tigers came out of the gate strong Friday night against HVL Blue Division lead Cannon Falls, but the Bombers used a late first half surge and solid play down the stretch to pull out a 60-50 victory. With the game tied at 6-6 after five minutes of play, Lake City went on a 16-6 run over the next seven minutes to open up a 10 point advantage, the largest of the game for the Tigers. After misfiring on several field goal attempts early in the half, the Bombers began to heat up before intermission. An 18-4 surge by Cannon Falls allowed held to take a 30-26 halftime advantage. Mike Bowen and Jordan Strelow both netted 12 points in the first half for the Bombers. “We controlled the tempo from the onset, but a few ill-timed turnovers coupled with a lack of offensive execution allowed them to take the lead at halftime,” commented Coach Shawn Sweeney. To open the second half, a pesky Tigers squad fought back and took a one point lead on two occasions, the latter with 12:14 remaining in the game. However, it wasn’t meant to be for Lake City as Luke Winchell scored all 14 of his points in the second half to guide the Bombers to victory. “We got another gutsy effort against one of the top teams in the league and we are due to get off the schnide soon,” Sweeney added. Bowen paced the Bombers (7-2, 13-5) with 19 points, five rebounds and four assists. Strelow netted 16 points, grabbed eight rebounds and collected six steals. Jordan Schumacher had a season-high 15 points and four steals to pace the Tigers. Nick Moyer scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half and added eight rebounds. Stu Ekblad scored seven points, all in the first half and collected 11 rebounds. Turnovers were once again a problem for the Tigers, as they committed 24. The loss drops Lake City to 2-7 in conference play and 3-9 overall on the season.

January 20, 2006

Lake City 10 21 31 Rochester Lourdes 15 24 39

SCORING DROUGHT FOILS TIGERS UPSET BID by: Quinn Sweeney ROCHESTER, MN—The Lake City Tigers jumped out to an early 10-4 advantage Friday night but couldn’t hold on as the Lourdes Eagles rebounded from a cold start from the field to defeat the Tigers 39-31. Riley Koller connected on his first three field goal attempts and Jordan Schumacher had two assists and two steals to propel the Tigers to a 10-4 advantage with 12:08 remaining in the first half. Lake City then proceeded to miss their next eight attempts from the field and turn the ball over 10 times the remainder of the half. Lourdes meanwhile, started the game three of 21 from the field. Two three point baskets and some transition points allowed the Eagles to open up a 15-10 advantage at halftime. In the second half, both teams continued to struggle offensively. Mitch Rigelman ended a 14 minute Lake City scoring drought early in the first half with a bucket to pull the Tigers within five points. The Eagles started getting their shots to drop in the second half and opened up their largest lead of the game at 34-19 with 6:05. A resilient Tigers squad didn’t go away quietly. Lake City pulled within 37-31 with 1:30 to play but couldn’t hit any three-point baskets to pull out the victory. The Eagles added two free throws for the final margin of 39-31. Nick Reider led the Eagles (8-0, 12-3) with 12 points and four steals. Teammate Dan Lose added nine points and four steals. Koller’s 18 points and five rebounds led the Tiger attack. Rigelman chipped in with six points. Schumacher had five assists and four steals in the ball game. Although Lake City held a 28-20 edge on the glass, 25 turnovers plagued the Tigers. The loss drops Lake City to 2-6 in HVL conference play and 3-8 overall on the season.

January 13, 2006

Lake City 37 24 61 Hayfield 41 28 69

TURNOVERS HINDER TIGERS by: Quinn Sweeney LAKE CITY, MN—For one half on Friday night, the Lake City Tigers were able to match the Hayfield Vikings frantic full court style of play. However, the Vikings pressure wore down the Tigers in the second half and allowed Hayfield to capture a 69-61 road victory in HVL conference play. The game started with offensive fireworks as Lake City opened up an 8-3 lead after one and a half minutes of play. Hayfield answered back with an 8-0 spurt over the next minute to take a three point advantage. The Vikings opened up an eight point lead with a little over six minutes left in the first half. Just as it looked as though Hayfield was going to pull away, an 8-0 Tigers surge near the end of the first half tied the ball game up at 32 and brought the Tiger faithful to their feet. Justin Olander’s theee-point play gave Lake City a 37-36 lead with a little less than two minutes left in the half. The lead didn’t last long as on the ensuing possession for the Vikings, Noah Hamer canned one of his four three-point baskets to put Hayfield back in front for good. The Vikings ended the first half with momentum clearly in their favor as a tip in with one second left gave them a 41-37 edge at intermission. “We did a poor job of keeping track of their leading scorer (Hamer) as he tagged us for 17 points in the first half,” Coach Shawn Sweeney remarked. The Hayfield pressure wore down the Tigers squad in the second half as Lake City struggled to get in a rhythm offensively. The Vikings picked apart the Tigers 2-3 zone for some easy baskets inside a built a double digit lead that proved too much for Lake City to overcome. The Vikings pieced together an 11-0 run over a five minute span in the second half to put the game away. “When we executed what we practiced we got lay-ups and when we freelanced we turned it over. I thought we did a number of good things in transition in the first half, did a better job of executing on the offensive end, and unfortunately allowed them to dictate tempo in the second half and ultimately the final outcome,” Sweeney noted. “Rebounding continues to be a major area of concern, as we were out rebounded by a smaller team 42-30 for the game. We need to have a nose for the ball and more desire to go get the basketball before this will change,” Sweeney concluded. Noah Hamer scored 17 of his game high 25 points in the first half to lead the Vikings attack. Darin Wagner added 10 points and 14 rebounds for the Vikings (4-8, 3-4). Riley Koller netted 15 of his 17 points in the first half to pace Lake City. He also grabbed five rebounds. Stu Ekblad chipped in with 11 points and teammate Nick Moyer added nine points and seven rebounds. Jordan Schumacher dished out five of the Tigers 13 assists on the evening. Eric Denn, returning to the line-up after missing one game with a hand injury, had six steals in the game. Contributing to the Tigers downfall was a season high 29 turnovers. The loss drops Lake City to 2-5 in conference play and 3-7 overall on the season. Lake City returns to action this Friday when they travel to Rochester to take on the Lourdes Eagles.

January 10, 2006

Lake City 17 13 30 Kasson-Mantorville 21 21 42

INEPT OFFENSE DOOMS TIGERS by: Quinn Sweeney KASSON, MN—The Lake City Tigers found out the hard way that life on the road in the HVL isn’t easy. Turnovers and an inept offense hindered the Tigers as they dropped a 42-30 decision to the Kasson-Mantorville KoMets on Tuesday evening. The game began with a fast pace offensive onslaught as the teams exchanged baskets in the early going. A three-point basket by Jeremy Wohlfiel gave the KoMets a 12-8 advantage with 13:28 remaining in the half. The Tigers battled back and tied the game at 12 before going on a five minute scoring drought. The KoMets seized the opportunity and gained a five-point lead. Riley Koller’s three-pointer with 2:17 left in the half cut the KoMet lead to four points heading to the break. Kasson-Mantorville enjoyed a 21-17 halftime lead. “ This was a game we needed to get on track in the win column and our timing and lack of execution were absolutely horrid on offense in the first half,” noted Coach Sweeney. Lake City’s offensive struggles continued in the second half as a three-minute scoring famine enabled the KoMets to open up a six-point lead. Jordan Schumacher gave Lake City a boost when he stepped in front of an errant pass near mid-court and took the ball in for an easy lay-up to pull the Tigers within two with 9:11 remaining. However it wasn’t meant to be for Lake City as the KoMets went on a 7-0 run over a six-minute span to put the game away. The Tigers scored only three points in the final 9:11 of the game. “Defensively we played well again. Early foul trouble and a huge free throw discrepancy, (KM 14-19), (LC 4-6), definitely contributed to the outcome in this contest. In the HVL if you hold a team to 42 points you should be able to come away with a victory,” added Sweeney. Drew Dorschner led the way for Kasson-Mantorville as he scored 15 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Dorschner was nine of ten from the charity stripe in the ball game. Wohlfiel added 11 points for the KoMets (3-3, 3-6). Koller led the Tiger attack with 11 points and four rebounds. Stu Ekblad netted six points and snatched four rebounds. Schumacher distributed four of Lake City’s seven assists in the game. An Achilles heel for the Tigers all season has been a large number of turnovers, and Tuesday’s game was no different. Lake City committed 22 turnovers compared to only eight for the KoMets. The loss drops Lake City to 2-4 in conference play and 3-6 overall on the season. The Tigers return to action on Friday when they play host to the Hayfield Vikings.

January 6, 2006

Lake City 24 22 46 Winona Cotter 29 28 57

STRONG START NOT ENOUGH AS COTTER CLAIMS SKIPPER'S CUP by: Quinn Sweeney LAKE CITY, MN—The Lake City Tigers and Winona Cotter Ramblers renewed acquaintances Friday night in the 11th playing of the Skipper’s Cup traveling trophy, with the winner taking a 6-5 series edge. A strong defensive start by Lake City didn’t hold up as Winona Cotter seized the lead with 7:51 remaining in the first half and never trailed again. The Ramblers put the game away with two key 7-0 runs late in the second half and won by a score of 57-46. Early in the first half, Lake City applied great defensive pressure on Sam Blank, a premier outside shooting threat. The teams exchanged baskets in the early going, and Jordan Schumacher converted a three-point play with 13:13 remaining in the first half to give the Tigers a 9-6 advantage. The Ramblers used a barrage of inside baskets by Jake Bauer and Jeff Gilbertson to knot the game at 13 with 9:52 to play in the first half. David Leaf converted two three-point baskets in a one and a half minute span to open up a four-point lead for the Ramblers. Riley Koller answered with a trey of his own to cut the deficit to one point. Bauer’s tip in with two seconds remaining in the half gave the Ramblers a 29-24 advantage at halftime. The Tiger’s lost the services of Senior guard Eric Denn late in the half, as he sustained an injury to his index finger. “Eric’s departure takes away from our offensive balance, but the rest of our guys picked up the slack and kept battling,” commented Coach Sweeney. A rejuvenated Tiger team opened the second half on a 7-2 run to tie the game at 31 with 14:26 remaining in the half. A key turning point in the contest occurred on the Tigers’ next possession as they turned the ball over. Cotter converted on the other end, which helped spark the first of two 7-0 runs by the Ramblers. Chris Wolfe converted a three-point play with 11:30 to play in the game to give the Ramblers a 38-31 edge. Koller connected on his third trey of the game to pull the Tigers within 42-38 with 8:40 remaining, but Brian Huegel pumped in a three-pointer of his own to push the Ramblers lead back to seven points. Huegel’s three-pointer ignited the Ramblers’ second 7-0 run of the half and put the game seemingly out of reach. “Our initial defense was solid throughout the contest, but our inability to garner long rebounds and limit Cotter’s second chance opportunities cost us,” lamented Coach Sweeney. He further added, “I was pleased with our effort and feel if we can continue to improve and get this type of effort we can begin to reap dividends in the win column.” Sam Blank of the Ramblers came into the game averaging nearly 20 points per game. The Tigers limited Blank to six points in the first half, but Blank scored 13 of his game high 19 points in the second half to lead Winona Cotter to victory. He converted five of six free throw attempts to help bolster his point total in the final minutes of the contest. Bauer scored 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Ramblers (8-3, 4-1). The Tigers were led by Koller, who netted 18 points and snatched eight rebounds. Schumacher scored nine points and dished out four assists for Lake City. The Tigers committed 19 turnovers, which ultimately helped contribute to their demise. The loss drops Lake City to 2-3 in conference play and 3-5 overall on the season.

December 30, 2005

Lake City 24 22 46 Lewiston-Altura 23 26 49

TIGERS DROP FIRST TIGHT GAME OF SEASON by: Quinn Sweeney WINONA, MN—In their first tight ballgame of the year, the Lake City Tigers were unable to come up with a few clutch plays down the stretch Friday night, enabling the Lewiston-Altura Cardinals to escape with a 49-46 victory. Riley Koller scored seven of his eight points in the first six minutes of the game, helping the Tigers open up a 9-5 lead at the 12 minute mark. Lake City held their biggest lead of the game at 13-7 following Eric Denn’s first of four three point baskets. Lewiston-Altura answered back with an 8-0 run to briefly take a 15-13 advantage. The teams exchanged one point leads throughout the last three minutes of the first half. The Tigers took a 24-23 lead at intermission. Denn opened the second half scoring with a three-point basket and added another shortly there after to give the Tigers a 32-27 lead with 12:12 remaining in the contest. Lewiston-Altura responded with an 11-3 run over the next five minutes to take a 38-35 lead. With Lake City trailing 42-37, Denn connected on his fourth and final trey of the game with 3:51 remaining. On the ensuing possession for the Cardinals, Jay Stensgard hit a three-pointer of his own to push the lead back to five. Stu Ekblad converted all four of his free throw attempts in the final minutes to give the Tigers a chance at victory. With 1:10 remaining and Lake City trailing by three, Lewiston-Altura missed a free throw, but the Tigers were unable to come up with the rebound and sent the Cardinals back to the line. Loren Kreidermacher hit both free throws to give L-A a 49-44 lead with 29 seconds remaining. Ekblad scored the final points of the game with 16 seconds remaining, but the Tigers were unable to foul the Cardinals and time expired. “It was good to play in a tight contest finally. We anticipated this type of game prior to tip off and it was everything we expected. I thought our guys battled hard but failure to execute on the offensive end of the floor at crunch time was our demise,” commented Tiger mentor Shawn Sweeney. Eklbad led Lake City with 18 points. Koller had eight points and 13 rebounds. Denn’s hot shooting from beyond the arc (four for six) gave him 12 points on the evening. Stensgard had 13 points, three assists and four steals to fuel the Cardinals attack. C.J. Stiever had 12 points for Lewiston-Altura (4-6). The Cardinals held a 39-38 edge on the boards, and Lake City committed 23 turnovers to the Lewiston-Altura’s 15. The loss drops Lake City to 3-4 overall on the season.

December 29, 2005

Lake City 18 16 34 Rushford-Peterson 33 23 56

TROJANS TOO MUCH TO HANDLE FOR TIGERS by: Quinn Sweeney WINONA, MN—The Rushford-Peterson Trojans presented many match-up problems for Lake City and exploited them en route to a sound 56-34 victory on Thursday in the first round of the Winona State Warrior Classic. The Trojans opened up a quick 8-0 lead and never looked back as Lake City struggled all night to generate any offense and stop the inside game of Rushford-Peterson. The Trojans canned four three-point baskets and had a 21-13 edge on the glass in the first half, which enabled them to open up a 33-18 halftime lead. After Lake City scored the first points on the second half, the Trojans went on a 16-1 run over a six minute stretch to put the game out of reach. The Tigers, who were playing without starting point guard Jordan Schumacher, had no players reach double figures in the scoring department. Nick Moyer led Lake City with nine points and five rebounds. Riley Koller added eight points. Stu Ekblad chipped in with seven points and nine rebounds. Rushford-Peterson’s Tyler Drinkall nearly singlehandedly won the game as he scored 19 points, grabbed seven rebounds, had seven steals and recorded three assists. “Drinkall was a thorn in our side all night long,” Coach Shawn Sweeney commented. Adam Norton added 10 points for the Trojans (7-1). “We had trouble dealing with their size, not only the height but the weight differential. They just were too big and strong inside for us,” Sweeney remarked. “They have multiple three sport athletes on their squad and their athletic prowess surfaced time and again throughout the night,” Sweeney added. The loss drops Lake City to 3-3 overall on the season.

December 20, 2005

Lake City 22 24 46 Triton 18 13 31

DEFENSIVE EFFORT LIFTS TIGERS by: Quinn Sweeney DODGE CENTER, MN—A great defensive effort and solid shooting from the field propelled the Lake City Tigers to a 48-31 decision over the Triton Cobras on Tuesday evening. In the first half, the teams exchanged baskets and neither team led by more than three points in the early going. Near the end of the first half with the score tied at 14, Lake City went on a 5-0 spurt to take a five-point advantage. The Cobras answered back with two quick baskets, but Eric Denn connected on a three-point basket to give the Tigers a 22-18 lead heading into intermission. Denn scored all nine of his points in the first half. To open the second half, the Tigers found holes in the Triton zone and converted easy lay-ups. Lake City tallied the first eight points in the second half and never looked back. Triton self-destructed in the second half with 14 turnovers. Stu Ekblad and Riley Koller found each other for baskets frequently to help put the game out of reach. Ekblad scored 12 of his game high 19 points in the second half. Koller scored all eight of his points in the second period. Together, Ekblad and Koller combined for 20 of the Tigers’ 26 points in the second half. “It was a good win on the road going into the break,” coach Shawn Sweeney noted. “We played solid team defense and reached our defensive goal for the first time this year,” he said. “We had patience on the offensive end but still had too many unforced errors. We look forward to the challenge Rushford-Peterson presents in the Winona State Holiday tournament,” Sweeney concluded. Ekblad pulled down nine rebounds to go along with his 19 points to lead the Tiger attack. Denn had six of the Lake City’s 17 steals in the ball game. A key to the Tigers success in the game was the defensive effort; allowing only 13 second half points. Lake City also enjoyed a 34-19 edge in the rebounding department. Derek Sorenson and Tanner Porisch led Triton with eight points apiece. The win moves the Tigers to 2-2 in conference play and 3-2 overall on the season. Lake City returns to action next Thursday, when they face off with Rushford-Peterson at 8:45 pm in the Winona State Holiday Tournament.

December 16, 2005

Lake City 15 21 36 Kenyon-Wanamingo 21 33 54

SLOW START COSTLY AS TIGERS BOW by: Quinn Sweeney LAKE CITY, MN—The Lake City Tigers struggled to match Kenyon-Wanamingo’s rugged, physical play and a fast start aided the Knights as they defeated the Tigers 54-36, handing them their first home loss since February 10, 2004. The Knights opened the game on a 15-1 run over the first eight minutes of the contest. Lake City struggled to put the ball in the basket in the early going, as they missed 12 field goal attempts to open the game. Matt Fick scored a basket off a nice pass from Jordan Schumacher for Lake City’s first field goal of the game. Fick’s basket helped spark an 8-0 run, that helped the Tigers pull within six. The teams traded 6-0 runs to end the half, and the Knights took a 21-15 lead into intermission. In the second half, Schumacher hit a three-point basket to pull the Tigers within three with 14:30 remaining. Following a scramble for a loose ball, the Knights’ Nate Steenblock buried a trey to push the lead back to six. Fick converted a three-point play to pull the Tigers within four, at 29-25 with 12:28 to play, but that is as close as Lake City would get. Offensive rebounds and easy lay-ups helped the Knights go on a 15-3 run over a five-minute span to put the game out of reach. “Kenyon-Wanamingo got out of the gate quick, and we spent the rest of the game trying to reel them in,” Shawn Sweeney noted afterwards. “Jordan (Schumacher) had a solid effort at point guard with five assists and five steals, but more importantly did a good job running the team,” Sweeney remarked. “Matt Fick had a strong performance off the bench at both ends of the floor,” Sweeney noted. Brian Syverson was a catalyst in the Knights run, as he scored 12 of his game high 18 points during a ten-minute stretch in the second half. Stu Ekblad paced the Tigers with 10 points. Schumacher played a solid game at the point guard position, as he scored six points, dished out five assists and had five steals on the evening. The Tigers shot just 24% from the floor in the game and were out rebounded by the Knights 41-29. The loss drops the Tigers to 1-2 in conference play and 2-2 overall on the season.

December 13, 2005

Lake City 41 28 69 Zumbrota-Mazeppa 26 31 57

KOLLER PROPELS TIGERS TO FIRST CONFERENCE WIN by: Quinn Sweeney LAKE CITY, MN—On Tuesday evening, Lake City played host to rival Zumbrota-Mazeppa in the home conference opener for the Tigers. A quick start out of the gate and a great game from Riley Koller lifted the Tigers to a 69-57 victory. Lake City jumped to a quick 8-2 lead over the first three minutes of the game. The Cougars countered with a three-point play, but the Tigers went on a 7-0 run over the next two and a half minutes to take a 10-point lead. Two key 10-4 runs by the Tigers gave them a 41-26 lead at halftime. Koller was on fire from long distance in the first half, knocking down all four three-point attempts. Koller scored 14 of his 22 points in the first half. Luke Horsman spearheaded a Cougars charge as they slowly chipped away at the Tigers lead. Zumbrota-Mazeppa pulled within 11 on two occasions, but the Tigers made plays down the stretch to put the game away. Horsman scored 19 of his game high 29 points in the second half. Lake City was able to overcome 23 turnovers by shooing a torrid 65% from the field in the game. Koller’s 22 points, six rebounds and four assists led the Tigers (1-1, 2-1). Stu Ekblad chipped in with 16 points and Eric Denn added 10. Nick Moyer provided a solid game in the post, as he scored nine points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out five assists. Horsman’s 29 points, four steals and three assists lead the Cougars (1-2, 1-5).

December 9, 2005

Lake City 24 33 57 Pine Island 36 41 77

STREAKS END AS PANTHERS TOPPLE TIGERS by: Quinn Sweeney PINE ISLAND, MN—The Pine Island Panthers jumped out to an early lead which they never relinquished in defeating the Lake City Tigers 77-57 on Friday. The victory over Lake City was Pine Island’s first in 12 attempts. The win also snapped Lake City’s 17 game conference winning streak. Pine Island was aided by a strong start, opening a 17-6 lead over the first eight minutes of the game. Luke Matzek scored 12 of his game high 18 points in the first half for Pine Island. Jordan Schumacher helped keep the Tigers within striking distance by hitting two three-point baskets in the half. The Panthers used hot shooting helped them gain their largest lead of the half at 16 points with a little less than two minutes to play, but two late baskets by the Tigers cut the deficit to 36-24 at intermission. The deficit proved to be too much for the Tigers to overcome as the Panther lead slowly grew throughout the second half. Pine Island made 12 of 19 free throw attempts to help put the game out of reach. Matt Fick capped the scoring for the Tigers by hitting a long three-pointer with only a few seconds remaining on the clock. Jordan Schumacher led the Tiger attack with nine points, on three of five shooting from beyond the arc. Nick Moyer chipped in with eight points. Mitch Rigelman added eight points on four of four shooting for Lake City. Luke Matzek led Pine Island with 18 points, five assists, four steals and four rebounds. Lake City was unable to overcome 23 turnovers in the ball game, and in turn Pine Island shot 61% from the field. “We gave up to many transition lay-ups, which helped bolster their (Pine Island’s) shooting percentage,” Coach Shawn Sweeney remarked. “We cannot allow teams to run on us and good looks at the basket,” Sweeney noted. The loss drops Lake City to 0-1 in conference play and 1-1 overall on the season.

December 6, 2005

Lake City 32 33 65 Wabasha-Kellogg 21 24 45

Tigers Notch Win In Season Opener by: Quinn Sweeney LAKE CITY, MN—Wabasha-Kellogg made a short trek up the Mississippi River Tuesday night to renew a long time rivalry with the Lake City Tigers. Both teams struggled to find a rhythm, but the new look Tigers were able to thwart any serious comeback attempt from the Falcons in the second half, defeating Wabasha-Kellogg by a score of 65-45. The win gave Coach Shawn Sweeney his first victory at the helm of the boys program in Lake City. The Tigers opened the game strong, posting the first eight points on the scoreboard. Senior forward Mitch Rigelman was a catalyst in the strong start for the Tigers. Rigelman hit his first four shots in the game and helped the Tigers open the game on a 10-3 run over the first seven minutes. After a Falcons basket by B.J. Hall, the Tigers rattled off seven consecutive points to take a 17-5 lead with 7:53 remaining in the half. With less than two minutes to play in the half, Lake City went on a scoring frenzy, collecting six quick points. A Falcons trey as the buzzer sounded made the score 32-21 in favor of Lake City at intermission. In the second half, it was more of the same as the Falcons continued to find their groove offensively. Lake City tallied 13 of the first 17 points in the second half, including an 8-0 run over a two minute span. The Falcons answered with five quick points to pull within 14, but that was as close as Wabasha-Kellogg would get as the Tigers pulled away in the final minutes to win by a score of 65-45. “I thought all our guys worked hard on both ends of the floor. We obviously need to get a better handle on time and situation and making our possessions count on the offensive end. I was pleased with our balance with 3 guys in double figures. It’s important at this juncture to remember this was the first extended varsity experience for the majority of our team,” Lake City coach Shawn Sweeney noted. The Tigers rode a balanced scoring attack to victory. Junior forward Nick Moyer paced the Tigers with 13 points and seven rebounds. Senior forward Stu Ekblad added 12 points. Rigelman chipped in with 11 points to the Lake City total. Bryant Dick spearheaded the Falcons attack with 14 points including nailing all five attempts from the charity stripe. B.J. Hall added 10 points and collected eight rebounds. The win moves Lake City to 1-0 on the season. The W-K is now 0-2. The Tigers return to action on Friday, when they travel to Pine Island to take on the Panthers.