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Noah Barnard
The Pendleton County Wildcats put together their most successful stretch of play yet this season as they pulled out three exciting victories and moved into the driver’s seat of the district seeding rankings.
The Wildcats traveled to face longtime rival Harrison County on Feb. 2 and after trailing for nearly the entire contest, they rallied from 13 points down in the fourth quarter to stun the Thorobreds 55-53. Pendleton County outscored Harrison County 15-3 in the final four minutes and got clutch shots from Tredyn Thomas (11 points), Jacob Redden (15 points), and the knockout punch senior Noah Barnard (9 points) as he drained the go-ahead three pointer with 15 seconds left to put the Wildcats ahead by two. They would go onto to stop the Thorobreds on the final posession to hold seize the thrilling win.
“This was a game where we just found a way,” said head coach Sam Elsbernd. “Nothing was going our way for most of the night, but these are tough kids and I’m very proud to be their coach,” he added.
On Feb. 5, the Wildcats would once again put together a fourth quarter rally, as they were able to claim a home victory over 38th district rival Nicholas County. Similar to the Harrison County game, the Wildcats looked flat on the offensive end and found themselves needing a big effort to avoid an upset loss. Nicholas County led after each of the first three quarters as the Wildcats had to claw back from an eight-point deficit with 5:40 remaining in the game. Pendleton County got crucial baskets from Tredyn Thomas, Jacob Redden and sophomore point guard Ethan Verst during the 14-4 run that enabled the club to pull out a 47-45 win. Thomas put the Wildcats ahead with a driving layup that he converted with 30 seconds left in the game. He along with Braydon Kidwell led the team in scoring with 13 points each.
“This wasn’t pretty but we found a way to get it done. This game was like watching ‘Rock em’, Sock em’ Robots’ and we were able to get the last punch. I thought the difference in this game was the defensive effort and energy we got from Ethan Verst. He took four charges and came up big for us tonight,” Coach Elsbernd explained following the win.
Pendleton County made it three in a row on Feb. 6 as they hosted Lloyd Memorial from the Ninth Region. This matchup was a back and forth affair that numerous lead changes throughout the first half before the Wildcats gained control during the third quarter. Pendleton County took a seven point advantage into the start of the fourth quarter and ballooned their lead to as much as 12 before Lloyd put together a comeback if their own with six minutes to go. Lloyd would go onto trim the Wildcats lead down to three, 50-47 with just under three minutes remaining. Wildcat junior Mason Askren knocked down a big three-pointer to give the Wildcats the momentum they needed to fend off Lloyd as they held onto a 60-55 win. Pendleton County converted seven of 10 free throws in the final minute to secure the victory.
“The difference in this game was Mason Askren. It was good for us to get him going as he aggressive on offense and hit a big shot for us late. I was also happy with the interior defense and toughness shown by Ethan Caldwell. Looking back on this week, I’m really happy where we are and what we’ve overcome. We’re starting to get consistent play from several guys and that’s only going to help us going forward,” Coach Elsbernd said.
Pendleton County will look to continue their winning ways beginning with a Feb. 9 road matchup at Bourbon County. The Wildcats will then host Paris on Feb. 11 and Augusta on Feb. 12 to conclude the week.