The Monarch boys’ basketball team saw their season come to a close Thursday night after losing to Hoisington 63-48 in the Lyons Class 3A Sub-State Semifinals.
Hoisington (18-4) picked up the 3-0 sweep over Thomas More Prep – Marian this year defeating the Monarchs twice in the regular season on their way to getting the conference championship. TMP, who finished their season at 12-10, has yet to beat Hoisington since joining the Mid-Central Activities Association going 0-5 against the Cardinals in the last two years.
TMP had an electric start to the ballgame as Hoisington’s main two players, Cody Stetler and Derrick Kaiser, got in foul trouble in the first half. The Monarchs led by as many as eight in the second quarter and held a 29-24 lead at halftime.
TMP scored the first bucket of the second half to take a seven-point lead but then back-to-back 3-pointers by Kaiser made it a 31-30 contest just like that.
The Cardinals, the #1 seed in the Lyons Sub-State, would eventually tie the game up at 35 apiece midway through the third quarter and then go on a 12-1 run to take control of the game.
TMP was led in scoring by Jacob Fouts who ended with 11 points. The Herd did a good job defensively on the 6’8″ Stetler holding him to only six points while battling foul trouble, but the Cardinals had others step up to help their cause. Kaiser finished with 16 points while Trent Schremmer added 15.
TMP completed the year with one extra win than they had last season and also earned their first postseason victory since 2009. The Monarchs will lose eight seniors for next year.
Joe Hertel’s Post-game Interview:
Hertel 3-1
Highlights