The Switzerland County varsity boys basketball team opened its season last Tuesday night with a pre-Thanksgiving visit to Class 4-A Floyd Central, and although the Floyd County school is nearly double the size of Switzerland County, the Pacers battled every step of the way before falling by four, 53-49.
Quinn Meyer opened the season and the game with a three-pointer, but Floyd Central responded with a run of six straight points by Nick Bomersbach. After a Highlander timeout, Connor Schellenberg nailed another three-pointer, and Floyd Central held a 9-3 advantage.
Back came the Pacers, getting a bucket from Quinn Meyer and a steal from Keegan Kincaid that he converted into a layup, and Switzerland County was down by just two.
Floyd Central responded to that run by scoring the final five points to close the first quarter with a 14-7 lead.
After Keegan Kincaid opened the second stanza with a freethrow, Floyd Central’s Quinton Miller scored to push the lead to eight. That’s when Switzerland County’s offense caught fire again, getting a basket from Keegan Kincaid; a three-pointer by Austin Clark; and a freethrow from Anthony Dennis to close to within two, 16-14, at the halfway point of the period.
The Highlanders responded with four straight points; but Clint Swanson scored to stop that run, hitting a jumper and then converting a pair of freethrows. Jordan Thompson scored inside at the end of the quarter, and the teams went to the halftime break with Floyd Central clinging to a 22-18 lead.
Quinn Meyer opened the second half with a three-point play to slice the gap to one; and after Floyd Central scored, another basket by Austin Clark kept things close. Quinton Miller then converted a three-point play; but Keegan Kincaid drilled two freethrows and the Pacers just wouldn’t go away.
Floyd Central then went on a big run, scoring seven straight points while Keegan Kincaid and Austin Clark were both on the bench with foul trouble. A last second shot by Quinn Meyer stopped the bleeding, but at the end of the quarter Floyd Central held a 37-29 lead.
The final quarter started with eight straight points by the Highlanders to swell the lead to 45-29; but again the Pacers simply wouldn’t quit, going on a run of seven straight points.
Quinn Meyer got things rolling with a basket; and that was followed by a three-point play by Trevor Smith. A pair of Keegan Kincaid freethrows cut the lead to nine with 4:22 to play.
Floyd Central got a pair of freethrows, but Keegan Kincaid knifed his way to the bucket for two. The Highlanders then got three freethrows to go up by 12, but again that sparked a Pacer run.
Switzerland County got a pair of freethrows from Clint Swanson to begin a run of eight straight charities, as Austin Clark hit four straight and Keegan Kincaid had two. Floyd Central, meanwhile, was struggling at the line, seeing its lead narrowed to seven with 16-seconds left.
A Trevor Smith three-pointer with two-seconds remaining cut the lead to four, but the Pacers were unable to get the ball back, and Floyd Central escaped with a 53-49 decision.
Keegan Kincaid and Austin Clark led the Pacer charge, each finishing with 13 points; and Quinn Meyer finished in double figures with 12. Trevor Smith and Clint Swanson each had six; and Anthony Dennis finished with one.
Connor Schellenberg led the Highlanders with 18 points; while Quinton Miller had 14 and Nick Bomersbach added 10.
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In the junior varsity game, the Pacers fell by a score of 41-31.
Braden Burk led Switzerland County with 12 points; while Bob Tressler had five; T.J. White had four; and Nathan Hunter and Chase Ritch each finished with three. Ben Curran and Dakota Taylor each contributed two points in the contest.