Lions remain in hunt for NCC title

(Above) Travaughn Luyobya makes a move to get past a St. Edmond defender.  The Lions won the contest, 79-44.  -Reporter photo by Chris Barragy

by Marianne Gasaway

Clear Lake remained in the hunt for a North Central Conference title last week, as they topped St. Ed’s in an NCC match and defeated Charles City in a non-conference clash.  Clear Lake is 11-1 heading into the week and 5-1 in the NCC. 

This will be an important week for the Lions, as they face league-leading Algona (5-0) and Humboldt (3-2).  The Algona game was played Monday, Jan. 18.  The Lions host Humboldt Friday in a 7:45 pm. game.  Tuesday, Jan. 26, Clear Lake is at Clarion-Goldfield-Dows (1-4).

CL 63, Charles City 51

The Lions stepped out of conference play last week to travel to Charles City (3-7).  Clear Lake came away with a 68-55 victory on the road against a 3A school.

“We came out with good energy against a very athletic team and I thought protected the paint very well,” said Coach Jeremey Ainley.  “They wanted to get to the rim and we played great D inside the three-point arc -- holding them to 3/25 from two-point range.”

The Lions got up early by four and built the lead to 14 at halftime, 36-22.

“In the third quarter I thought we got a little sloppy on offense and on defense -- started fouling, etc.,” continued Ainley.  The lapse allowed the Comets to outscore the Lions, 13-10, and pull within 11, 46-35.

The Lions controlled the final quarter to secure the win.

Carson Toebe led the Lions with 26 points and had 13 rebounds.  Andrew Formanek got in a little foul trouble early, but finished with 12 points and 15 rebounds and Eric Ritter played an overall game with eight points, seven rebounds and eight blocks.

 Travaughn Luyobya and Jagger Schmitt also played steady and contributed seven and six points respectively. 

Off the bench, Joe Faber scored three points and Noah Peterson had one.  

CL 79, St. Ed’s 44

A slight delay didn’t cause the Lions to miss a beat when they took on Fort Dodge St. Edmond Saturday.  A strong second quarter lifted the Lions to a 79-44 conference win.

“After getting the game moved back a day I was anxious to see how the guys would respond,” said Coach Jeremey Ainley.  

The game was tight early on and the coach noted his team was “racking up fouls at a record pace.”  With the game tied 10-10, Carson Toebe provided the spark the team needed.  Toebe got a big steal and a dunk which seemed to get things going defensively.  It also got the Lions out and running in transition.  Thirty-three second quarter points blew the game open and gave the Lions a 50-24 lead at the half.

“In the third we continued to move the ball and get great looks, but more importantly guard really well,” said Ainley.  The key to the win was holding the Gaels to 5/20 shooting from field goal range and protecting the paint, he added.

Toebe ended the game with 28 points, including five three-pointers, six rebounds and six assists.  Andrew Formanek was a force with 15 points and 17 rebounds in three quarters of action.

“Joe Faber came in a gave us a huge spark of the bench with 22 points,” added Ainley.  Faber was five-for six from three-point range. “Joe is continuing to get better and will be huge for us if this team wants to achieve its goals.”  

Eric Ritter had another steady game with 10 points.  Point guard Travaughn Luyobya handed out six assists and score two-points.    Jagger Schmitt also finished with three assists and two points.