East Hardy senior Colten Spaid recorded a career-high 35 points enabling the Cougars to slash Union 87-38 during senior night in Baker last Wednesday.
“I was proud of the seniors how they came out here and got the win. Colten [Spaid] is a kid who doesn’t get a lot of playing time, so for him stepping up like this was great. These seniors have been with me a long time, so for them to come out and have a big night was good to see in front of a huge crowd. Everybody was here tonight to watch our seniors, so for them to put on a show was great. For Colten to come out and score 35 points with the kids feeding him and being excited was tremendous. It was great for him to have this payout and he is a great kid,” East Hardy Boys Basketball coach Chris Hahn remarked.
It was a special night for the seniors honored in a pre-game ceremony before being the only ones to score in double figures as Spaid led the charge, followed by Seth Smith with 12 points and Adam Baker with ten points in the win over the Tigers.
“It feels really good to get the win. I am proud of my team getting the ball around and we are working it well. We’re all happy and they were up on the bench. It was an amazing feeling and for everyone around me to be happy was just awesome. It means everything to me being a Cougar, I love this sport and I love everything about here,” East Hardy senior Colten Spaid commented.
Spaid plans to attend Eastern Community Technical College before transferring to West Virginia University to pursue a degree in Sports Management.
Smith plans to become a “division one” chicken farmer after high school.
Baker plans to attend West Virginia University and major in Business.
The Cougars opened the game with a steal by Baker, but the ensuing shot hit the rim and Union’s Ryan Bennett collected the rebound before scoring for the Tigers at the 7:12 mark.
East Hardy answered with a 3-pointer by Smith for the go-ahead lead that wasn’t relinquished at the 6:47 mark, 3-2.
Both teams missed shots twice over the next minute and change with all four rebounds going to the Cougars as Spaid collected a pair, Bryce Tharp and Christian Dove snatched one apiece.
Union’s Daniel Savage and Peyton Haines made steals during that time frame without points to show for it with the latter fumbled out of play.
Baker assisted Tharp on a jumper for East Hardy at the 5:13 mark, 5-2.
“It is a real special feeling, there’s no [private]other feeling like it to be an East Hardy Cougar. It was a real special night, especially for Colten Spaid scoring 35 points. We were going crazy on the bench,” East Hardy senior Adam Baker noted.
Spaid and Baker collectively stole the ball for the Cougars, but it was taken back by Savage only to be snatched away by Dove leading to missed shot and rebound by Nathaniel Getz for the Tigers.
After a turnover, Smith made two free throws on the ensuing East Hardy possession.
Savage hit a jumper for Union on the next series at the 4:18 mark, 7-4.
Dove grabbed an offensive rebound and added a field goal for the Cougars.
A defensive board collected by Dove led to a layup by Spaid at the 3:10 mark.
Union responded with a basket by Kenneth Adams at the 2:54 mark.
East Hardy (9-11) located the hoop on the next series as Baker knocked down a jumper near the foul line.
A steal was made by Smith, who passed to Spaid with a dish to Dove for the basket.
The Tigers (3-14) fumbled the ball out of bounds, then Spaid drilled the first of his six 3-pointers with 1:33 remaining in the first period as East Hardy took an 18-6 advantage.
Baker made a steal and scored with 1:02 to go as the senior power continued to dominate.
In the waning moments of the period, Baker swiped the ball again and passed to Spaid knocking down a perimeter shot just before the buzzer for a 23-6 lead.
East Hardy’s Dawson Price grabbed an offensive rebound to begin the second period and was fouled, then added one free throw.
Adams hit a 3-pointer for Union on the following possession just ten seconds later at 7:36 to cut the deficit to 24-9.
Over the next minute, East Hardy hit the rim four times and the Tigers missed one shot before Adams made a field goal at 6:31.
Andrew Tharp netted a 3-pointer for the Cougars at the 5:35 mark off an assist from Riley Mongold to make it a 27-11 game.
Union stepped out of bounds and East Hardy missed a shot with the ricochet bouncing out of play before a timeout was called.
Coming out of the timeout, the Cougars set a trap and the Tigers walked,
Price notched a basket for East Hardy on the ensuing series, then Andrew Tharp swiped the ball and Noah Lang assisted Justin Teets on a jumper for a 31-11 advantage at the 4:30 mark.
Adams garnered a perimeter basket for the Tigers at the 4:20 mark.
The Cougars outscored Union 10-2 to close out the first half with Price and Alex Miller notching two baskets apiece and Spaid adding a spinning jumper putting the crowd into frenzy en route to a 41-16 lead at intermission.
East Hardy’s Seth Smith snatched a defensive rebound to commence the third period and Spaid scored a jumper along the baseline.
The Tigers responded with a 3-pointer by Haines at the 7:11 mark, 43-19.
Spaid answered for the Cougars with a trifecta just 14 seconds later.
Bennett netted an old-fashioned three-point play for Union on the next possession.
Three missed shots by the Cougars came over the next minute with rebounds by Dove, Bennett and Adams with a steal by Dove during that time and the latter board by Adams led to a 3-pointer by Savage for the Tigers at the 5:31 mark, 46-25.
Spaid netted a basket in the paint, then Bryce Tharp snatched a defensive rebound for the Cougars and Baker finished with a putback at 4:53 to double the lead, 50-25.
During the last three minutes and change of the third period, Spaid put on a show scoring 12 points for East Hardy including an old-fashioned three-point play and a perimeter basket plus hauled in three boards for a 62-30 lead.
The Cougars bench and fans were cheering loudly for Spaid making the plays.
Smith opened the final stanza with a steal and Baker assisted Josh Hahn on a jumper for the Cougars at the 7:34 mark.
Adam made two free throws for the Tigers at the 6:55 mark, then East Hardy responded with a 3-pointer by Mongold for a 67-32 advantage.
Smith collected a defensive rebound and drew a foul for two more points at the line.
The senior momentum was strong as Smith swiped the ball again and dished to Spaid for a perimeter basket, then it was Spaid making a steal and returning the favor with an assist on Smith’s 3-pointer as the Cougars pounced to a 75-32 lead with 5:18 remaining.
Union tried to quiet the crowd with a 3-pointer by Savage, but East Hardy roared back with a trey from Spaid just 16 seconds later at 4:47, 78-35.
The Cougars finished the final four minutes of the game with a 9-3 scoring edge which included two field goals by Baker, one by Smith and a 3-pointer by Hahn countering a perimeter shot by Savage as East Hardy cruised to an 87-38 victory.
Union was paced by Adams with 19 points in the loss.
In the 8th grade contest, EHEMS defeated Union Middle 55-21 guided by J.W. Teets with 12 points and Tanner Whetzel with 11 points.[/private]
The Cougars look for further senior leadership this Friday at Moorefield.