"It was another weekend of learning experiences for the boys against two high-powered programs," Assistant Coach Ella Jurenka said. "One headed to Class B and the other, defending State Championships.
"As we work at teaching resilience to this young team, we hope to help them learn to cope with challenges while understanding that they can improve their skills through hard work and dedication. We encourage them to view mistakes as learning moments and opportunities to improve."
"We are working hard at helping them find their identity and understand their roles, all while working together toward a common goal."
"Our priority is to set small daily goals, recognize the success in our practice, and know that there is no such thing as failure. The best way to forecast the future is to create it! "
The Pioneers played Fort Benton at Fort Benton this past weekend, and last year's state champs, Box Elder, also played at home. Watching a high-caliber team like Box Elder is fun as a basketball fan, especially when they dunk. But I also know it's hard to face such a good team and feel awful after losing, but these Pioneer boys need to hold their heads high because this past weekend showed some really good things. You can see their effort and their teamwork getting better each game. With that being said, though, the Pioneers walked away this weekend from 2 losses. They lost to Fort Benton by 38 with a final score of 35-73. And they lost to Box Elder by 37 with a final score of 40-77. Here are the breakdowns of those games:
Against the Longhorns, Karter Jurenka started the Pioneers off strong with a nice reverse layup. Both Eyon Sherburn and Jaesun Yirsa grabbed a couple of boards and had a couple of good steals. Jayton Ophus had a great lob pass to Jaesun for 2 points, and Jaesun also scored on a take to the middle of the key. Unfortunately, Fort Benton scored on every turnover the Pioneers had, putting the Pioneers down by 10 after the first quarter with a score of 8-18.
Eyon, Jaesun, and Tommy Sant all contributed in the second quarter with boards and steals, and Jaesun had a nice bucket on an out-of-bounds play. Braxton Hajenga and Karter also had a steal and a bucket for the Pioneers. The Pioneers went into halftime down 23 with a score of 14-37.
The Pioneers came out and scored 10 points in the third quarter, with buckets by Karter and Tommy. Both Karter and Jaesun scored on free throws as well. Unfortunately, the Pioneers couldn't dig themselves out of the hole they were in and went down by 31 after three-quarters of play.
The Pioneers had a great steal from Aidan Morsette and some free throws in the fourth quarter, as well as a nice board from Colter Han and some free throws; he also had a steal. Travis Wilford had a nice steal, Karter made a big three-pointer, and so did Sonny Phillips. The final score was 35-73.
Team Stats vs Fort Benton: Rebounds: 22 with Karter having 8, Free-throws: 10/16, Steals: 7 with Karter having 4, Assists: 5 with Tommy having 2, Turnovers: 22
The Pioneers then turned around and played a very tough Box Elder team, which the Pioneers struggled against when they would press. Box Elder got some big, fast break layups and dunks from Big Sandy's turnovers. But the Pioneers held their own and were aggressive on defense. Eyon started the Pioneers off with a 3-pointer, and Jayton had a nice steal while Jaesun attacked the boards. Aidan got a steal, and the Pioneers scored on a nice pass from Aidan to Jayton to Jaesun. Jaesun had another jumper to help give the Pioneers 10 points to end the quarter. Box Elder scored on some fast break, stepped back, and took to the basket, putting 23 points on the board, putting the Pioneers down 13 after the 1st quarter with a score of 10-23.
The Bears went on a run in the 2nd quarter, which the Pioneers struggled with, but did out-rebound them a few times up and down the court. Box Elder scored an additional 30 points to Big Sandy's 15 2nd quarter points. Jaesun scored on a couple of buckets, one from a great pass from Jayton. Karter scored on a 3-pointer, and Braxton and Eyon had nice takes to the basket for a bucket. The Pioneers went into halftime down by 28 points with a score of 25-53.
The 2nd half was more like the 1st half, but you could see that the Pioneers worked so hard till that final buzzer. Aidan had a nice 3-pointer and take in the 2nd half. Braxton also had a nice 3-pointer, and Josh Hagan had a nice board and bucket to end the game for the Pioneers. The final score was 40-77.
Team Stats vs. Box Elder: Rebounds: 31 with Jaesun and Karter each having 9, Free throws: 5/7, Steals: 9 with Eyon having 4, Assists: 6 with Jayton having 3, and Turnovers: 41.
