Bruner's put back seals 43-41 win for Blackbirds

Pettisville advances to Grand Canyon, face Edgerton tonight

By NORRIS LEDYARD

Expositor Staff Writer

BRYAN - The Bear Cave was already full of the heat generated from the North Central comeback win over Hilltop. A pair of arch rivals, Stryker and Pettisville, had the nightcap match in Division IV sectional action. What do you do?

If you are Head Coach Greg Nofziger, grab the thermostat and crank it up! The Blackbirds played a team defense which glowed white hot, applied full court pressure and added a 1-3-1 trap during fourth quarter play on the Panthers.

Then, with 2.9 seconds left in regulation, Aaron Bruner's stick back of Jacob Rupp's miss gave the Blackbirds their third lead of the evening, 43-41.

Those last seconds saw multiple time outs, scheming by both head coaches, the old picket fence by Stryker and a desperation heave by the Panther's Kyle Ruffer fall short. The final buzzer signaled the end of the contest, with Pettisville (12-9) advancing to Napoleon to play Edgerton in the late game Tuesday, March 9. For Stryker (8-13), it was time to clear out their lockers for the season.

While the Panthers enjoyed leads as large as nine points, Pettisville drew the contest to one possession with 4 minutes left in the third quarter when play was tied at 31.

From there, Coach Nofziger increased the intensity throughout the fourth period as his team concept frazzled the Panthers. After Rupp's steal and bucket with five minutes left in the game, Taylor Brown's frustration grew to the point of slamming Rupp down to the floor.

Moreover, Stryker's offense came unglued with wild passes and a five second call with the game tied at 41. During the Blackbirds' time out, Panthers' Head Coach Joe Good placed a time out request with the referees, should the Blackbirds score with time on the clock. With 55.8 seconds left, Pettisville did a spirited stall to setup Rupp's attempt and Bruner's winning shot in the lane.

Even though the Panthers passed the ball in after the bucket, the referees restored time on the clock to show 2.9 remaining. The Panthers made one pass and immediately called their last time out at 3/4 court. Once the players took the court, Head Coach Nofziger saw the plan and called time out. Stryker put the ball in play and Ruffer's last second heave fell short. The clock showed all zeros and Pettisville advances in tournament play with the victory.

There were four ties in this contest. Pettisville held the lead for a little more than 2 minutes, 32 seconds of game time. When the clock showed all zero's, it was a Pettisville win for the books.

For the Blackbirds, Bruner had 11 points, Rupp scored 10, Zane Miller had 8, with Taylor Short putting in 7 points, Lincoln Frey with 4 and Greg Waidelich with 3.

Please buy your tournament tickets for the Pettisville - Edgerton contest at Pettisville High School before driving to Napoleon. Take a friend along, because these Blackbirds have more left in their tank and another trip to the dance.