Lions top C-G-D; fall to West Fork

(Above) Clear Lake point guard Zach Lester brings the ball down the floor. Against Clarion-Goldfield-Dows Lester scored 14-points.  -Reporter photo by Chris Barragy

The 2015 Clear Lake Lions opened the season last week, playing a non-conference and conference game.

West Fork 65, CL 56

A growing rivalry between two strong North Iowa basketball programs provided the start to the 2015 basketball season.  West Fork used a strong inside game to top the Lions, 65-56.

Jacob Kuhlemeier and Gunner Myers proved too much for the Lions, as they combined for 44 of West Fork’s points.

Thomas Storbeck had a hot hand for the Lions.  The junior made five of 11 three-point attempts on his way to 20 points in the game.  Justin Sholly was also in double figures with 12 points.

“For our first game I was proud of our effort,” said Lions Coach Jeremy Ainley.  “We played hard and fought back after starting out down 9-0.  We even took the lead at the end of the first.  We have a lot of guys in new roles, first year starters and first year varsity players.  We just didn’t execute against their size and had too many turnovers.”

The teams were nearly even after the first quarter.  Clear Lake held a slim 17-16 lead after one, but the War Hawks went on a run in the second to finish ahead at the half, 34-29.

West Fork also had a strong finish in the fourth and outscored the Lions 23-18 on their way to the win.

Parker Truesdell put in nine points for the Lions, Zach Tatum had six, and Zach Lester scored five points.  Parker Pitzen and Nick Naumann each added two points.

Tatum was a force on the boards with 11 rebounds.

“I thought that Zach Tatum played really well for his first varsity game with 11 rebounds, as well as Jarod Anderson with eight assists after not playing for a couple of years,” added the coach.

CL 69, C-G-D 54

The Lions opened their quest to repeat as North Central Conference champs with a 69-54 victory over Clarion-Goldfield-Dows Friday, Dec. 4.

“I was very pleased with the improvement we made from game one to game two,” said Coach Ainley.  “We played again with great effort, but executed a lot better offensively and defensively.  Our pace of play was better and helped with the outcome as we were able to get them in foul trouble and seemingly wear them out.”

Clear Lake started strong and jumped out to a 21-13 first quarter lead, fueled by 10 points from Thomas Storbeck.    However, the second quarter was another story.  The Lion offense came to a screeching halt, scoring just seven points.

The Cowboys pulled to within one, 28-27, by halftime.

The Lions righted the ship at halftime and used a steady performance in the second half to win by 15, 69-54.

Storbeck scored a game-high 23 points and had seven rebounds in the win.  Zach Lester was also in double figures with 14.  The rest of the Lion starters were balanced, with Parker Truesdell and Justin Sholly each putting in six points and Parker Pitzen adding five.

“Zach Lester played a great game for only his second only start and was aggressive right from the start which set the tone,” said Coach Ainley.  “Thomas Storbeck continued to shoot the ball well, but I thought he was a lot more efficient with his shots and also played a better overall game with seven rebounds and three assists.”

Zach Tatum gave the Lions a lift, coming off the bench to score 10 points and pulling down seven rebounds.  Jarod Anderson added five points and had two steals in a reserve role.

Sholly led the team on the boards with eight rebounds.