Eagles pick up late-week win

Boys basketball

     Midland recovered from a pair of losses to pick up a late-week win in Tri-Rivers Conference boys basketball action last week.

     Alburnett grabbed a big lead early and went on to defeat the Eagles 65-30 in a Tri-Rivers Conference game Dec. 8 in Wyoming. The Pirates led 39-9 at halftime.

     “The story of our season thus far has been ball security,” Midland coach Dalton Harms said. “We have to do a better job of taking care of the ball. We went down 17-0 right away, and you can’t spot a team that good that many points. We are letting our opponents dictate the tempo right now and not playing our game.”

     Warren Etten led Midland in scoring with nine points. Iziek Soper had eight points and seven rebounds. Zain Sauer and Cale Crist had six points apiece. Jamisen Dodge made four steals.

     On Dec. 11, the Eagles (2-3) traveled to Springville and lost a 60-23 contest. The host Orioles took a 34-8 lead into halftime. Jon Thomsen scored seven points, and Crist came off the bench to add six.

     “This game was very similar to our other two losses this year,” Harms said. “We turned the ball over too much (33 turnovers). The first four games of the season were tough, as we played three of the top 10 teams in my opinion. We will use this to get better and move on.”

     Midland then bounced back with a 71-37 home triumph over Central City. The Eagles led 20-12 after one quarter, then outscored the Wildcats 40-17 over the middle two periods. Sauer had a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds, along with seven assists and 3-for-3 shooting from three-point range. Soper also scored 17 points and had six rebounds. Warren Etten had nine points, and Thomsen added eight.

     “We needed the confidence that we could play up to our potential when we take care of the ball and control the tempo,” Harms said. “Zain was really great this game. Our scoring was balanced, and when we can play like this we are tough to guard.”

Girls basketball

     Midland battled three Tri-Rivers Conference foes in last week’s girls basketball action.

     On Dec. 8, the Eagles (0-5) played host to Alburnett and lost 44-31, as the Pirates outscored Midland 31-18 in the second half. Allison Paulsen led the Eagles with 16 points. Amaya Terrell made three baskets from beyond the three-point arc, all in the fourth quarter, and finished with nine points. Ari Hacke had eight rebounds and five assists.

     “We were extremely aggressive out of the gate and moved the ball seamlessly,” Midland coach Jason Soper said. “In the fourth quarter we hung around, but ultimately we could not find our groove again offensively.”

     Next, the Eagles played a Dec. 11 game at Springville, and lost 53-34. Ella Rupp scored a team-high 12 points. Terrell and Paulsen had six points apiece, and Elizabeth Soper added five. Rupp had nine rebounds; Hacke and Paulsen had seven apiece.

     “We are not content with defeat, but I weas extremely proud of the fight in our team, and in my opinion we played our most complete game from start to finish,” coach Soper said.

     Midland then played host to Central City Dec. 12, and came up on the short end of a 36-16 score. The Wildcats’ 13-2 first quarter advantage gave them early control. Terrell scored six points, and Paulsen had four. Hacke pulled down 11 rebounds.

     “We played hard, but it was just one of those days where things just didn’t click,” the coach said.