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Ryan Goetzinger goes up strong for two of his 12 points during
TRC action against Chatfield last week. (Photo by Krist Rogich)
By Charlie Warner
Argus News Editor
The Caledonia boys basketball team avenged two earlier Three Rivers
Conference losses last week, when they topped #9-ranked
Plainview-Elgin-Millville 75-68 Tuesday night, and then drubbed
Chatfield 70-52 Thursday night. The Warriors finished off a very busy
and successful week with a 63-52 win over Fillmore Central Saturday
night.
The three wins brings the Warriors’ winning streak to 11 straight
games, their TRC record to 16-2 and their over-all record to 19-5.
Warriors 75 Bulldogs 68
The first time Caledonia and PEM met, the ‘Dogs stuck it to the
Warriors 69-39 on Jan. 11 in Caledonia. The much-improved Warriors
topped PEM by seven points last Tuesday at a jam-packed gym in Elgin,
utilizing a stifling defense and much better shooting.
“Our kids really stepped it up for this game,” a very happy coach Josh
Diersen said. “We shot just 28 percent in the 30-point loss. Tuesday
night, we shot 55 percent from the field and 79 percent (11 of 14) from
the free throw line. We played a good team game, played excellent
defense, and kept our composure in a very loud Elgin gym.”
The Warriors were up by as many as 11 points in the first half, but the
league-leading Bulldogs kept fighting back, and kept the game close.
CHS used a full-court press and trapping half-court defense to shut
down PEM’s offense. The Bulldogs made just one of 14 shots from beyond
the three point line in the first half.
The Warriors held a seven to 10 point lead most of the game, and once
again nailed their free throws at the end of the game when the ‘Dogs
were trailing and were forced to foul to get the ball back.
Senior guard Craig Loeffler had another big night for the Warriors, as
he scored 26 points. Loeffler was 5 for 9 shooting treys, 8 for 15 from
the field and 5 for 7 from the charity line. He also had six rebounds.
Kody Moore added 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists, Bobby
Augedahl netted 12 points and had seven assists. Ryan Goetzinger was
the fourth Warrior to hit double figures, with 12 points. He had a
double-double with 10 rebounds. Zach Gran had two points and three
assists, and Kyle Runningen and Isaac Fruechte each had two points.
Warriors 70 Gophers 52
Chatfield was the other team that beat CHS in the TRC this season, and
the Warriors avenged that loss with an 18-point thrashing of the
Gophers last Thursday at Caledonia.
The local boys played an excellent defensive game, according to
Diersen, as they held the high-powered Chatfield offense to just 52
points.
“They beat us 88-77 earlier in the season. We played much better defense Thursday night,” Diersen noted.
Loeffler had another big night for the Warriors, scoring 26 points. He
was 6 of 10 for treys, and nailed 6 of 6 from the free throw line. He
also had two rebounds and two assists.
Moore added 15 points, four rebounds, and five assists, and Goetzinger
had 12 points and seven rebounds for the third Warrior to hit double
figures.
Augedahl scored four points and had four steals, Runningen also had
four points, Gran had three points and Dustin King, Alex Schleich, and
Cody Haugstad had two points. Alex Klug and Fruechte each pulled down
five rebounds.
Caledonia was 10 for 25 from three-point land (40 percent) and shot 44
percent from the field. The Warriors had their best game of the season
from the free throw line, nailing 12 of 13 for 92 percent.
Warriors 63 Falcons 52
After having the game postponed twice due to snow storms, Caledonia and
Fillmore Central finally met last Saturday night at Caledonia. Those
attending the game were treated to a fast-paced, physical game.
“Fillmore Central always plays very physical and they have some very athletic kids,” Diersen said.
The Warriors out-scored the Falcons 35-31 in the first half and 28-21 in the second half for the 11-point win.
Loeffler hit the 20-point mark for the third straight game, leading
both teams with 20 points. Augedahl was right behind with 18 points,
Moore had nine, Gran had eight, Haugstad had five, and Goetzinger,
King, and Schleich each scored one point.
This week
The Warriors close out the regular season with a Tuesday road trip to
Preston to battle the F-C Falcons, and then host Wabasha-Kellogg
Thursday, Feb. 28. The Section One seedings will take place this week.
Diersen figures his Warriors will be a three or four seed, although
Caldonia could move up to a two seed if PEM drops another game.
“We have a very tough sub-section this year with La Crescent, PEM, and
Winona Cotter all in there. We are healthy, our kids are playing very
good basketball right now. I feel we are peaking at the right time. It
will be an exciting tournament.”
You can contact Charlie Warner at
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