For the Daily Reporter
FORTVILLE — The Mt. Vernon Marauders have officially ended their season on a high note.
After a narrow victory over Westfield on Tuesday night, the Marauders defeated conference foe Yorktown, 57-45, on Friday night to ensure good vibes within the program during preparations for their sectional title defense.
Much like the season itself, the game itself ended on a high note, as Yorktown had tied the game at the end of the third quarter to put the outcome in doubt. But Mt. Vernon’s seniors had other ideas.
The game started off well, as seniors Cade Gentry and Peyton Meadors made the team’s first four shots to force a quick Yorktown timeout, then built the lead to 17-8 at the end of the opening quarter. The Tigers, led by Luke Dunn and Daivionte Osuna (22 points and 12 points respectively), tied the game at 38 at the end of third period.
“We kind of lost focus, especially in the third quarter,” Mt. Vernon coach Ben Rhoades said afterward as his players were heading out for Senior Night festivities. “We weren’t moving and sharing the ball well enough and were losing our man numerous times.”
But Mt. Vernon’s four seniors (Meadors, Gentry, Max Burhenn and Keith Rupert) all made plays in the fourth quarter to ensure the outcome was not in doubt in the final moments. Meadors calmly drained four free throws, Gentry knocked down one of his five 3-pointers, Burhenn continued to scoop up rebounds (nine total), and Rupert faked out his man for an easy layup for his only bucket of the game.
“Working with these four guys has been great,” Rhoades said. “I can only thank them for being such great teammates my first year here. They’ve built their own tradition now, and we will do our best to build on that in years going forward.”
With the win, the Marauders finish the regular season 10-11 overall, but 5-2 in the Hoosier Heritage Conference, good for a third-place finish. They now await the winner of Pendleton Heights and Richmond next Friday in their effort to repeat as sectional champions.
“We are going to play a good team no matter who we face,” Rhoades said. “I’m just glad we don’t have to play until Friday so we can get some of our guys healed and rested up and go in there and focus on the 32 minutes in front of us each night.”
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Mt. Vernon 57, Yorktown 45
YHS;8;13;17;7;-;45
MV;17;8;13;19;-;57
Mt. Vernon (10-11, 5-2 HHC) – Gentry 8 2-2 23, Meadors 5 8-8 20, Burhenn 2 0-0 4, Jarrard 1 1-2 3, Bell 0 2-2 2, Heard 1 0-0 2, Rupert 1 0-0 2, Frank 0 1-2 1. Totals: 18 14-16 57.
Yorktown (5-16, 1-6 HHC) – Dunn 8 3-3 22, Osuna 5 0-0 12, Evans 2 0-1 4, Harris 1 0-0 3, Moore 1 0-1 2, Neal 1 0-0 2. Totals: 18 3-5 45.
3-pointers: Mt. Vernon 7 (Gentry 5, Meadors 2), Yorktown 6 (Dunn 3, Osuna 2, Harris 1).
Rebounds: Mt. Vernon 26 (Burhenn 9, Meadors 7, Gentry 5, Frank 2, Bell, Heard, Jarrard 1), Yorktown 18 (Evans 8, Moore 6, Neal 2, Dunn, Osuna 1).
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