Panthers beaten down by Jasper

Brandon Miniard, Sports Writer, [email protected]

Saturday night began on a historic, albeit emotional, note for Corydon Central athletics. Just a half hour before the Panthers junior varsity basketball game, the athletic department welcomed Mick Frederick, Jake Wiseman and Quentin Combs as the latest members to its hall of fame.
Upon the conclusion of the JV game, Frederick, Wiseman and Combs were all honored for their inductions in front of a crowd filled with Panthers faithful. Following the festivities, the Panthers took the court.
After losing a tight contest to Mid-Southern Conference-rival Scottsburg 56-53 a night earlier, the Panthers returned home as they welcomed Jasper. Using their superior strength and physicality, the visiting Wildcats breezed their way to a 63-41 victory.
It didn’t take long for the Wildcats to jump ahead as they scored the first 13 points of the contest. The Panthers needed more than five minutes into the period to take the lid off the basket when junior forward Anthony Martin knocked down a pair of three pointers. Senior guard Bryce Weber ended the period by converting a pair of free throws as the Wildcats led 17-8 to conclude the first quarter.
After a three-point barrage in the opening frame, the Wildcats forced their way inside in the second quarter as Gus Heichelbech battled Panthers’ junior center Austin Vaughn inside, coming away with six points. Tanner Erny followed with four points, while Conner Foley went 3 for 4 at the free-throw line in the period. The Panthers tried to keep up with another four points from Weber, a triple from senior guard Owen Shireman and a three-point play from junior guard Tyler Fessel, but it mattered little as the Wildcats headed to the locker room with a 30-18 advantage.
The Panthers came out somewhat more disciplined to start the third quarter as they began trying to chip away at the deficit. Weber led the charge with eight points, six from Martin and another bucket for Fessel. Despite the Panthers making a number of defensive stops, the Wildcats stayed afloat with a trio of triples from Mundy, four points for Erny and a basket from Grant Young, allowing the Wildcats to head into the final period up 45-34.
Whatever sparked the Panthers’ offense in the third quarter died out in the final minutes as the Panthers managed only seven points, courtesy of five points from Shireman and a pair of Fessel freebies. The Wildcats, meanwhile, put the finishing touches on a dominant night with five points from Foley, a three from Jack Ahlbrand and buckets from Heichekbech, Young and Cameron Howard. Erny, Mundy and Charlie Kabrick combined to go 4 for 6 from the charity stripe to seal the Wildcats’ 63-41 victory.
The Wildcats had a trio of double-digit scorers, led by Mundy’s 19, while Young had 11 and Foley chipped in 10. Weber led the Panthers with 14 points, while Martin notched 12.
The Panthers will head out to Tell City for the Perry-Spencer County Holiday Tournament with action starting Tuesday when they take on Perry Central at 11 a.m. They will play either the winner or loser of the Crawford County-host Marksmen game later that evening.

Jasper – 17 13 15 18 – 63
Corydon Central – 8 10 16 7 – 41
Jasper (6-1) – Mundy 19, Young 11, Foley 10, Erny 9, Heichelbech 8, Ahlbrand 3, Howard 2, Kabrick 1.
Corydon Central (2-5) – Weber 14, Martin 12, Shireman 8, Fessel 7.
3-point goals – Jasper 7 (Mundy 5, Ahlbrand 1, Young 1); Corydon Central 5 (Martin 2, Shireman 2, Weber 1).