“Puffs” review

Sports December16, 2022 11

MHS Boys Basketball is off to a slam dunk of a season

By:Akhil Kumar LO’T Sports Co-Editor

The boy’s basketball season is off to a great start. They have won four out the five games they have played so far and are excited to see how they will perform at conference. The team had a successful week of games. On Friday December 2, the boys’ played Galesburg in a home WB6 game, winning 91-32 with seniors Brock Harding and Owen Freeman leading the scoring.. The next day, they played Urbana in a nonconference game finishing 86-32. On December 6, the team won a non-conference game against Geneso there with a score of 91-31. Most recently the boys team played Rocky on Friday, December 9th and dominated them 78-40. While the team is happy with its success, they are gearing up to play 3 tough teams that are ranked top 10 in the state. They will also compete against Pleasant Valley in the last game of the Illinois/Iowa Shootout held at Augustana on December 17th. Head Coach Taylor is excited about the rest of the season and is confident in the team’s abilities commenting, “The players continue to work extremely hard. We have great senior leadership led by Brock Harding, Grant Welch, Owen Freeman, Jasper Ogburn, Maddux Dieckman, and HysonBey Buie.” During the holiday break from school, the boys will get a chance to participate in the Pekin Holiday Tournament, one of the oldest holiday tournaments in the state. These games will provide challenges and opportunities for the team to continue to succeed, and Coach Taylor is eager to see his team keep up its good work ethic. Good luck to the boy’s basketball team in the month ahead! Senior Owen Freeman goes up for a tip off against Galesburg Photo courtesy of Moline Boys Basketball Twitter.

Senior Sam Veto goes up for a tip off against UT Photo courtesy of Moline Girls Basketball Facebook

Lady Maroons Basketball team gains momentum after recent wins

By: Selah Jaggers LO’T Sports Editor

The girls basketball team started their season playing 3 away games at the Joliet West Tournament starting on November 14. The girls took a tough loss against Lincoln Way Central with a score of 49-65 in their 1st game. Next, they played against Joliet Catholic, but fell short again with a close score of 55-63. And to end the tourney, the team played Joliet West, which resulted in a final score of 30-58. While the outcome of the tournament wasn’t what they had hoped for, the team learned a lot about what they needed to work on in the future. Although the girls took some hard losses, Senior Corynn Holmes still maintains a positive outlook, saying, “I’m excited for the season to progress as we become a more cohesive and efficient team”. The Maroons played another non-conference game against Minooka on November 19, and the result was their 1st win with a final score of 50-47. The girls’ next game was a home game at Wharton Field House against conference rival Galesburg. Unfortunately, the girls came up short to the Silver Streaks with a final score of 47-60. The girls had high hopes for a better outcome in their next conference match against Rocky but after going back and forth throughout the whole game, the final score was a disappointing 47-55 loss. As the Maroons plunged on into their tough Western Big 6 schedule, they faced former MHS girls basketball Coach Steve Ford who is now coaching the Allemen squad at home on Saturday, December 3. Again, after a tough battle back and forth, Allema came out ahead and tool the took the 59-47 win. After that tough loss, the girls refocused for their game against UT at the Panther Den on December 8. Senior Sam Veto had a fantastic game, pulling down a game-high 17 points, and 10 of those points came in the 4th quarter to give Moline the “W” with a final score of 45-44. The girls continued their winning streak in a confidence-boosting win against Sterling on December 10, with a final score of 49-26. And while the girls have struggled in their season so far with a 3-6 overall record (1-3 in conference play), they still remain optimistic. Senior team captain Sam Veto states, “I’m excited for us to showcase our talent and how good we’re going to be.” All the girls are ready to pull down some wins, and they know that they are capable of it with continued hard work and dedication.