NEW MARKET – Southmont’s five seniors had a great Senior Night, as the Mounties used a fourth quarter rally to pick up a 50-43 win over Fountain Central.
The Mounties move to 8-11 with the win, while the Mustangs fall to 9-11.
A 9-0 rally over a two-minute stretch of the final quarter moved South from a one-point lead and stopped a Mustangs 6-0 streak.
Leading only 32-31 and facing the momentum of the visitors run, the Mounties opened a more comfortable lead and then hit some free throws to seal the win.
“I was very proud of our defensive effort all game,” South coach Michael Byrum said. “We just had some shots that wouldn’t fall until we were able to get that run in the fourth. We faced a lot of adversity and the guys handled it well, and that’s another part of tonight that makes me proud of the guys.”
Four South players, including one of the seniors, were in double-digits in the score column.
Senior Hayden Hess was one of three players with 11 points. Nine of his points came from the line on a 9-of-11 evening. He added two steals and an assist to his stat sheet.
Vince Reimondo also had 11, with nine coming in the first half. The junior had three steals and a helper.
Coming off the bench with seniors starting, Evan Watson subbed in to score 11, shooting 5-of-7 from the field, take three steals and dish out three assists, and fellow junior Austin Foley also came off the bench to hit five field goals, including his last four in a row, to finish with 10.
“We are blessed to have these five seniors,” Byrum, the first-year coach, said. “They are a great group of young men. They are good dudes who show up every day and work hard.”
Hess, along with Fox, Kyler McCandless, Dawson Mason and Carter Hubble, started the game. The four, along with Carter Hubble, who is still re-habbing an injury, along with managers Logan Link and Austin Simpson, were honored before the game.
For the night, the Mounties were 18-of-42 from the field, 1-of-6 from long range and 13-of-19 from the line. They won the rebound battle 30-26, as Lucas Oppy had six to lead South. They finished with 11 turnovers.
Fountain Central jumped out to a 9-4 lead, but the offense failed them into the second half. The visitors hit only one field goal in the third quarter, and 16 turnovers became 19 points for South.
“It was a one step forward, two steps backward night,” FC coach Greg Dean said. “We would turn them over and turn it right back over. We lost guys on defense a couple times, and then a few shots wouldn’t fail or we didn’t take care of the ball on offense. We needed better possessions.”
The Mustangs were led in scoring by Will Harmon with 13 points, including a 7-of-10 night at the line. He had four steals.
Isaac Gayler and Owen Acton added 11 points each. They also led their team with five rebounds apiece. Gayler had two assists and a steal, while Acton had two steals and an assist.
Overall, the visitors were 12-of-32 from the field, missed all six three-point attempts and were 19-of-25 from the line. Their 16 turnovers became those 19 South points.
Both teams lost a game due to weather Friday, and rescheduling becomes part of next week’s agenda.
The Mustangs Tuesday game at Sheridan will now become a road conference makeup game at North Vermillion. They have a home game against Crawfordsville on Feb. 22.
Southmont travels to Cascade on Tuesday.
Southmont won the JV game 42-37. Levi Miller led FC with 13 points, while Dean McGaughey had 16 to lead the Mounties.
