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Tri-Village junior Trace Couch nets two of his 21 points Saturday
against Springfield
Southeastern. The 6'6" transfer from Eaton yanked
down 15 rebounds as the Patriots
opened the 2016 season with a 66-62
win in overtime. CNO Photos by Dylan Knoop
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Patriots open
season with overtime win
Southeastern nearly pulls off a win
By George Starks
NEW MADISON- With 4.2 seconds left on the clock in overtime,
Tri-Village senior Tyler VanWinkle stood at the foul line looking to
shoot a pair.
The Patriots held a slim 64-62 lead over Southeastern and VanWinkle had
a chance to put the season opener on ice.
After dropping the first one, the senior took a deep breath and sank
the second.
At that point, a hard fought battle was finally over as the Patriots
posed a 66-62 victory over the Trojans.
It was a night when Tri-Village missed one opportunity after another
against a tough team from Springfield.
“We knew Southeastern was going to be a tough team,” said Tri-Village
coach Josh Sagester. “We seen them last night (Friday) and they hit 10
threes and the Bertemes kid (Jake) is a pretty skilled kid but our kids
came out with a win. I hate to keep beating a dead horse but our kids
find a way to win. We made a couple of plays down the stretch and we
put ourselves in a position to wi.”
Bertemes proved to be a thorn in the side of the Patriots all game long.
The Southeastern senior netted 21 points on the night but none bigger
than those coming at the end of regulation.
With the Patriots holding a 57-54 lead, Bertemes draind a trey from
deep in the left corner as time expired to force the overtime.
“We left the door open and they stepped through making a couple of
shots,” said Sagester. “I’m very proud of our effort tonight. I asked
our guys to do some different things that they have never been asked to
do.”
The difference maker came in the form of 6’6” junior Trace Couch, a
transfer from Eaton.
Coming off the bench in the first quarter, Couch scored 21 points,
pulled in 15 rebounds and blocked three shots as well as altering
several shots, helping to keep the Patriots in the game all night long.”
He can play, he’s a player,” said Sagester. “He’s definitely going to
help our team by giving us a post presence offensively and defensively.
I’ve been very lucky here over the past several years to have a post
presence and sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. He showed up
on our doorstep and getting him eligible was very important to us.”
Coming in off the bench with the Pats down 4-3 early, Couch paid
immediate dividends by scoring seven straight points and helping the
Patriots to gain a 13-13 tie after one.
In the second frame, it was junior Gavin Richard that caught fire early
as T-V opened up a nice 21-15 advantage.
Just as it looked as if the Pats were going to open things up,
Southeastern would close the gap.
Once again the Patriots would get the offense going and hold a 27-22
lead at the break.
The Trojans would claim their first lead since the opening quarter at
the 2:21 mark of the frame when junior Colton Spears would hit a trey
giving the Trojans a 38-36 advantage.
It was a pesky bunch from Clark County that held a slim 43-42 lead
after three and forcing overtime in the end.
While the Trojans found ways to score, they found ways to keep the
Patriots at bay on defense.
A defense the Patriots would fight the whole night.
“You’ve got to play some good basketball teams to know what you have,”
admitted Sagester.
It was a very emotional night as the Patriots honored their 2015, 30-0,
state champions before the start of the game. In addition, the state
banner was presented to Patriot Nation.
“Tonight, was a very emotional night for us with the ceremony we had
before the game,” Sags stated. “We have high expectations and lofty
goals and we’ve got to go out and play for our people. I knew they were
going to be a good basketball team.”
Friday, the Patriots will host Newton in the Cross County Conference
opener and will travel to Northridge on Saturday.
“It’s not going to be an easy schedule,” Sagester pointed out. “Newton
is a much improved team and it’s going to be a task for our kids who’ve
been role guys in the past. Thankfully we are 1-0 and able to celebrate
the opening night win.”
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In
a long anticipated night, the 2015 state championship banner was
unveiled to a huge
opening night crowd at Tri-Village.
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