Eagles boys avenge loss, win two

Photo by ROGER LALONDE

Sandy Wheeler Eagle i Contributor Charter School's Gage Wheeler led the Eagles on defense in their two recent wins.

Photo by ROGER LALONDE

Sandy Wheeler Eagle i Contributor All eyes are watching the ball as the Eagles Zach Gober makes a foul shot in one of the two Eagles victories.

The First Baptist Lions came to Marco on Tuesday as the only team to defeat the Eagles this season.

The locals sported an 8-1 record entering the contest and the No. 1 seed for the upcoming Sunshine Athletic Conference Tournament was on the line.

With Dalton Herrity and Zach Gober nailing early three pointers, the Eagles opened up a five-point advantage after one stanza at 13-8. The Eagles defense and rebounding were keys to the early success.

In the second quarter the Eagles were intent on taking it to the Lions and with Gage Wheeler controlling the boards, the locals increased the lead to double digits half way through the quarter. Gober fired in 12 points in the quarter, including two threes and four of four at the foul line. The half found the Eagles up 30-18.

In the second half the Lions began to roar and closed the gap with some nifty inside play and better defense on the perimeter. The lions outscored the Eagles in the third session and cut the lead to nine after three at 38-29.

In the early part of the final quarter the teams traded baskets and in the final minutes the Eagles led by 16. The Lions had to foul and the Eagles became uncharacteristically cold at the line. The Eagles missed six free throws and the Lions hit three from behind the arc to close within nine with one minute to go, but that would be as close as they would get, with the MICMS cagers securing a 54-43 win.

Leading the way in scoring were Gober, with 23 and Herrity with 14 points. Tanner Fulcher and Wheeler added seven each.

On Wednesday Seacrest came to Marco with a very young and undermanned squad. The Eagles opened up an 18-0 lead early in the first quarter and took a 30-5 lead at the half.

This was a night for the non-starters to shine and they did! Yali Luna had his best offensive night of the season in leading the Eagles with 12 points. Seventh grader Trevor Dye came off the bench and grabbed a slew of rebounds and also hit double digits with 10. The team’s leading scorer all season, Zach Gober, tallied nine points in very limited action. The Eagles final margin was 56-18 and moved their record to 10-1 heading into the Collier County Athletic Conference season. The Eagles travel to The Village School on Tuesday for a 7 p.m. tip off.