The Kennett Indians defeated the Perryville Pirates 78-65 in the quarterfinal round of the Class 4 District 1 Tournament, held Monday night in Fredericktown.
While the Pirates went down to defeat, the effort shown by the team under head coach Chris Hahn that turned around the team’s season was something to be proud of.
With Dyson Watson scoring 31 points for the Indians, Sire Thomas scoring 12 points, and Antonio Flakes, 11, it proved to be too much for the Pirates to overcome.
It was Watson at the helm of the Indians’ offense, scoring 13 points in the game’s first quarter, giving Kennett a 20-12 lead. Then, Thomas took the reins in the second quarter, putting up 10 of 12 points during the closing moments of the first half to stretch Kennett’s lead to 46-27 at halftime.
As for the Pirates, it was three-point shooting that kept the team in the game, with Eli Schott scoring all nine of his points in the game’s first half on 3-of-3 shooting beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Waylon Huber and Jake Cissell made three-point buckets in the first half.
In the third quarter, once again, it was Watson who shot a 6-of-6 from the free throw line, increasing the Indians’ lead to 65-41 moving into the fourth quarter. By the end of the game, Kennett had shot 15-of-23 from the three-point line.
The Pirates got their game on in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Indians 24-13. Carter Blechle scored six of his eight points, Karston Schilli laide up six of his 10 points, and in an attempt to rally the game for the Pirates, Evan Hayde made seven of his 17 points, bring the Indians’ lead down to 10 points, but in the end was too little, too late to win the game.
According to Hahn, his team didn’t play with urgency, toughness, or effort. He noted that the team didn't seem present in the first three quarters of the game. He complimented his team, however, for pulling the score closer after the Pirates were down almost 30 by attempting a comeback at the end of the game.
With the loss, Perryville ends its season with a 10-16 record and a seven-game string of losses. Just before that, the team had beaten crosstown rival St. Vincent and won 10 games for the first time in six years.
Hahn blamed his team’s seven-game losing streak on complacency after winning against St. Vincent for the first time in a long time, but he considered it part of the learning process as the team rebuilds, having only won two games last season.
“We’re hoping that, with consistent effort, the boys are going to continue to improve,” Hahn said.
In addition to the end of the season for the Pirates, the game also served as the end of seniors Blechle, Cissell, Hayden and Schott’s high school basketball careers. Cissell has every reason to be proud as he leaves PHS with the school’s three-point shooting record.
Hann complimented the seniors for “buying into” his system of play and accomplishing so much after only four months under his leadership.
