Bulldogs Upset Wildcats 63-45

Peetz's Bulldog Basketball team entered the CHSAA 1A District Tournament as the seven-seed facing the No.2-seed Fleming Wildcats on February 26.

After losing to the Wildcats by 10 in mid-January, the Bulldogs hoped the lessons learned from the close two-point loss to Fleming on February 18 could lead to a third try upset. Peetz needed a hot start and seniors Cooper White and Markus Bernhardt led the Bulldog offense to a 25-to-10 first quarter lead that gave the underdogs a big cushion and dictated the pace of the game.

Fleming was able to get their offense on track in the second quarter, and were able to narrow the deficit but still trailed 34-to-21 at the half.

Fleming senior Brandon Williams started the second half for the Wildcats by hitting a three pointer then putting up two more off an inbounds steal to edge closer, 34-to-26. Near the end of the period, the Wildcats had closed to within three at 37-to-34, but Cooper White led a 6-to-0 run in the final minutes to end the quarter ahead 43-to-34. The Bulldogs continued the momentum into the fourth quarter, and pulled away for an 18 point victory, 63-to-45. White led the scoring with 21 points in the win.

The victory paired the Bulldogs against the Merino Rams, with the winner earning a trip to the finals on Saturday. The Bulldogs suffered an 11-point loss to the Rams in the beginning of January, and faced a big challenge against the number 3 seeded Rams' speedy and physical defense.

The Bulldogs handled the Merino pressure well to start the game, and kept in the game by slowing the Rams' offense and scoring key points to keep within striking distance. The Rams focused on White, forcing the Bulldogs to adjust their offense.

The Peetz boys hung in with the Rams, and only trailed 22-to-16 at the half. But the second half had the Rams beating the Peetz defense, going on a 12-to-2 run while ratcheting up the defensive pressure on the Bulldogs, forcing turnovers and bad shots. Peetz only managed 12 points in the second half, and fell to the Rams by a final score of 59-to-28. Peetz junior Nolan Hill led the Bulldogs with 9 points, while White was held to just three points by the suffocating Rams defense.

With the loss to Merino, the Bulldogs were paired against a familiar opponent in the Briggsdale Falcons in Saturday's third place game. A win would advance the Peetz squad to the state brackets, but they would have to beat another team they had lost to twice in the season.

An upset was not meant to be as the game started with the Falcons flying away to a 32-to-9 lead in the first quarter, scoring at will against the Peetz defense while limiting the Bulldog's scoring chances. But being down more than 20 points did not stop the Bulldogs from fighting back, and they clawed their way back, keeping pace with and even outscoring the Falcons in the second and third quarters, but the first quarter explosion by Briggsdale was too much for the Peetz squad to overcome, and the Bulldogs fell by a final score of 76-to-55. White led the Peetz scoring with 21 points and Bernhardt scored 18 in the loss. The defeat ends the Bulldogs' season with an 11-and-11 record, 3-and-6 in league.