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Friday, Jan. 26 – In the opening game of the 10th annual Rock the Ribbon Roundball Shootout, the Rockbridge County High School boys basketball team suffered a 69-56 home loss to Eastern Mennonite on Friday afternoon in Lexington.
The contest, which drew a large crowd that included students and teachers enjoying some time out of class, kicked off the 12-game event, which raises funds for the American Cancer Society.
It was the sixth consecutive loss for the Wildcats (2-17), who were playing their third game in four days.
The game was close early on, with both teams shooting well from 3-point range. The tall and athletic Harrisonburg-based Flames (14-4) took an 18-13 lead at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, EM extended its lead to nine, but RC battled back to tie the game 26-26 and briefly took a one-point lead before the Flames got the lead back and were up 33-30 at halftime.
Early in the second half, RC’s leading scorer, Henry Lambert, picked up his fourth foul and had to sit on the bench for a good portion of the half. EM took advantage, extending its lead to 50-38 by the end of the third quarter.
The Wildcats continued to battle in the fourth quarter, but the Flames finished strong, maintaining a double-digit lead for the rest of the game.
Lambert led RC with 16 points, sinking two 3-pointers, and was named to the all-tournament team. Also stepping up were Milo Mulitalo with 15 points and Sam Ballstaedt with nine points on three 3-pointers. Noah Hamm chipped in five points.
EM’s Drew Hatter led all players with 28 points and was named to the all-tournament team, while Prodigy Simms added 20 points, sinking four 3-pointers. The Flames’ 6-foot-7-inch forward, Shawn Valentine, scored 11 points and energized the Flames’ fans with a dunk late in the game.
The Flames made eight 3-pointers, while RC hit seven.
RC committed 11 turnovers, while EM had eight.
The Wildcats will return to Valley District action on Tuesday when they play at Spotswood, starting with junior varsity action at 5:30 p.m.
For the full story on this week’s action, with photos from Friday’s game, please see our Jan. 31 newspaper.
