It was a tough day at the office for the Altoona-Midway Middle School basketball team on Monday … until they compared it to Tuesday.
The AMMS squad battled bravely in a pair of back-to-back Mineral Belt League games to begin the week, but came up well on the short end in both contests against talented opponents.
The Jets traveled to Parsons on Monday and were defeated by St. Patrick’s 37-22. With no rest for the weary, the Altoona-Midway cagers returned home the following night to square off against the talented, undefeated Thayer Flyers, and suffered a 78-5 landslide.
AMMS vs. St. Pat’s
St. Patrick’s raced to a 14-1 first quarter lead. Led 22-5 at halftime, and 37-11 after three quarters, before the Jets tallied the final 11 points of the game for the 37-22 final.
“We did a bunch of things right in this game, including playing with a lot of energy and hustle,” said AMMS head coach David Batzer. “For the first time this year, we outrebounded an opponent (14-12). Unfortunately, we had zero offense in the first quarter and had to play from behind the entire game.”
Caden Sicka led the Jets with 9 points and 5 rebounds. Zach Good had 6 points and 3 assists, Eliot Ard had 4 points, Broghan Douglas had 2 points, and Toryn Ellsworth had 1 point.
Gorman led the Saints with 12 points.
“We battled all the way to the end,” Batzer said. “Five of our kids scored in the fourth quarter, which we won 11-0 thanks to some nifty passing from Zach Good (3 assists in the quarter). Despite the final score, this was our most complete game of the season.”
St. Patrick’s also won the “B” game 33-6. Alex Lockhart led AMMS with 3 points, Destiny Raymond chipped in 2, and Broghan Douglas added 1 point.
AMMS vs. Thayer
Thayer is undefeated and basically untested this season, and Tuesday was no different.
The Flyers raced to a 28-0 lead after just one period of play. Their advantage ballooned to 50-3 at halftime and 69-5 after three, finishing up with a 78-5 final.
“It’s hard to find highlights in this game like this, but the one thing that stood out was the effort,” Batzer said. “I told the kids before the game not to look at the scoreboard. Just keep doing what was in their power to do, and at the end of the game they could walk away with their heads held high. They never quit and they never backed down.”
Carrico paced the Flyers’ offense with 21 points, while Schultz tallied 12 and Umbarger added 11. Three other players netted eight points each for Thayer.
Caden Sicka netted a deuce and a trey to account for all five of the Jets’ points.
“Caden played really big tonight,” Batzer said. “He battled every possession on the boards, and I was really proud of his toughness. He even hit a 3-pointer, his first of the year.
“This was one of those nights where I had to remind the boys that the game of life is bigger than the game of basketball,” Batzer added. “One of our players broke his wrist in the B-game, and after that, no matter what the outcome of the game, the well-being of the team was more important.”
Thayer also posted a 50-7 win the “B” matchup. Schultz had 22 points for the victors, while AMMS got three points from Easton Matlock and two apiece from Toryn Ellsworth and Destiny Raymond.
The Jets, now 1-8 on the season, were slated to cap off a three-game week on Thursday, playing host to Edna Middle School.