The Mount Vernon boys varsity basketball season drew to a conclusion Thursday, Feb. 23, with a heartbreaker on the road.
The Mustangs had just cleared the hurdle of round one Monday, Feb. 20 at home before losing by three to Charles City in the second round on Thursday.
Monday, Feb. 20The team hosted the Crestwood Cadets in Class 3A substate round one action Monday, easily knocking the visitors out of contention with a 63-32 victory.
Brady Erickson led all scorers with 19 points and three rebounds in the win, with Jackson Kutcher and Joe Rhomberg each contributing 15 points. Kutcher added 10 rebounds to the effort.
Jensen Meeker added three rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Evan Brase chipped in five boards and a steal.
Thursday, Feb. 23 The Mustangs came up just shy of a state tournament berth with a 64-61 loss to their hosts, Charles City.
It was a back-and-forth battle between the two squads for most of the game, with Mount Vernon desperately trying to close a fourth quarter scoring gap in the remaining minutes of the contest.
Down 62-58 with 19.5 seconds left, Jensen Meeker found an open Joe Rhomberg for a deep three-pointer just a foot in front of the Mustang bench as his teammates erupted in celebration. The visiting team was now within one point with seven seconds to go.
Meeker found an open Brady Erickson with the team once again down by three points after a couple of successful Comet free-throws. Erickson took a three-pointer at the buzzer hoping to tie up the game, but the ball bounced twice on the rim before bouncing away and ending the contest, and Mustang season.
“Overall, I’m really proud,” said head coach Derek Roberts, in his first season at the helm with the Mustangs.
“We had some big wins this season, and made a good run there. The guys were real sad when it came to an end. Ultimately, Charles City was a really good team,” he said.
“They really hurt us on the boards. We just ultimately did not get enough shots to fall,” Roberts said.
At the open of next season, the team will be without its 13 graduating seniors from this year’s roster, including starters Jensen Meeker, Brady Erickson, and Zach Fall.
However, the coach said, not all is lost.
Monday, Feb. 20
Mount Vernon vs. Crestwood
CRE 13 6 7 6 32
MV 18 19 23 3 63
Mount Vernon
Points | Brady Erickson, SR PTS 19 FG 8/10 3PT 1/2 FT 2/4
Points | Joe Rhomberg, JR PTS 15 FG 6/12 3PT 2/7 FT 1/2
Points | Jackson Kutcher, JR PTS 15 FG 5/9 3PT 3/5 FT 2/2
Rebounds | Evan Brase, JR RBD 5 OFF 2 STL 1
Rebounds | Brady Erickson, SR RBD 3 OFF 2
Rebounds | Jensen Meeker, SR RBD 3 OFF 1 STL 2
Assists | Jackson Kutcher, JR AST 10 TO 2 A/TO 5.0
Assists | Jensen Meeker, SR AST 3 TO 2 A/TO 1.5
Assists | Evan Brase, JR AST 3 TO 0 A/TO INF
Crestwood
Points | Ty Cotant, JR PTS 16 FG 6/12 3PT 2/6 FT 2/2
Points | Topher Bigalk, SR PTS 6 FG 3/5
Points | Maurice Powell, SR PTS 3 FG 1/11 FT 1/2
Rebounds | Jackson Gaul, SO RBD 3 OFF 1 STL 1
Rebounds | Cody Fett, SR RBD 2
Rebounds | Zane Wemark, SR RBD 2
Assists | Jackson Gaul, SO AST 2 TO 1 A/TO 2.0
Assists | Maurice Powell, SR AST 1 TO 4 A/TO 0.3
Thursday, Feb. 23
Mount Vernon vs. Charles City
MV 14 10 16 21 61
CC 10 20 17 17 64
WaMaC-East Standings
Marion 12-2 W2 18-5
Solon 10-4 W9 18-5
Mount Vernon 9-5 L1 15-8
West Delaware 9-5 L2 12-11
Independence 4-10 L1 8-14
“We’ll have a handful of guys that’ll be back,” said Roberts.
MV BBB Agate Monday, Feb. 20 Mount Vernon vs. Crestwood CRE 13 6 7 6 32 MV 18 19 23 3 63 Mount Vernon Points | Brady Erickson, SR PTS 19 FG 8/10 3PT 1/2 FT 2/4 Points | Joe Rhomberg, JR PTS 15 FG 6/12 3PT 2/7 FT 1/2 Points | Jackson Kutcher, JR PTS 15 FG 5/9 3PT 3/5 FT 2/2 Rebounds | Evan Brase, JR RBD 5 OFF 2 STL 1 Rebounds | Brady Erickson, SR RBD 3 OFF 2 Rebounds | Jensen Meeker, SR RBD 3 OFF 1 STL 2 Assists | Jackson Kutcher, JR AST 10 TO 2 A/TO 5.0 Assists | Jensen Meeker, SR AST 3 TO 2 A/TO 1.5 Assists | Evan Brase, JR AST 3 TO 0 A/TO INF Crestwood Points | Ty Cotant, JR PTS 16 FG 6/12 3PT 2/6 FT 2/2 Points | Topher Bigalk, SR PTS 6 FG 3/5 Points | Maurice Powell, SR PTS 3 FG 1/11 FT 1/2 Rebounds | Jackson Gaul, SO RBD 3 OFF 1 STL 1 Rebounds | Cody Fett, SR RBD 2 Rebounds | Zane Wemark, SR RBD 2 Assists | Jackson Gaul, SO AST 2 TO 1 A/TO 2.0 Assists | Maurice Powell, SR AST 1 TO 4 A/TO 0.3 Thursday, Feb. 23 Mount Vernon vs. Charles City MV 14 10 16 21 61 CC 10 20 17 17 64 WaMaC-East Standings Marion 12-2 W2 18-5 Solon 10-4 W9 18-5 Mount Vernon 9-5 L1 15-8 West Delaware 9-5 L2 12-11 Independence 4-10 L1 8-14

Gallery • 1 Photos

Trent Bowman

Mount Vernon’s Ryan Vig (No. 2) drives the ball down the court in play against Crestwood last week.