Caleb Ferguson
Columbus North got off to a slow start out of the gate Wednesday night, and the Bull Dogs spent the rest of the night playing catch-up.
The Bull Dogs got withine on3 point with 3 1/2 minutes left in the game, but couldn’t get over the hump, and Covenant Christian made 8 of 8 free throws in the final 1:33 to hang on for a 54-46 victory.
“Our kids were hungry to play,” North coach Paul Ferguson said. “We were a little sluggish to start the game, but credit to them. They made big shots, and we missed big shots. Sometimes, it just comes down to the ball going in the hole, and like I told these guys, shooting covers a multitude of sins, and we just didn’t make enough shots tonight.”
The Bull Dogs (3-7) went just 2 of 17 from 3-point range. They were 19 of 51 overall from the field and 6 of 10 from the free-throw line.
The Warriors (5-5) finished 15 of 18 from the line and outrebounded North 31-23.
Covenant Christian jumped out to an early 8-0 lead and enjoyed its biggest advantage at 21-10 late in the first quarter. North got back within 21-15 at the end of one and trailed 28-21 at halftime.
The Bull Dogs still trailed 41-34 after three quarters before baskets by Caleb Ferguson, Garrett Long and Nate Enneking to begin the third quarter brought them within 41-40. But the Warriors, after going more than 6 1/2 minutes without scoring, answered with a 3-pointer. North got it back to 44-42 on a basket by Enneking with 1:39 left, but Covenant Christian put it away at the free-throw line.
Caleb Ferguson finished with 15 points to lead the Bull Dogs. Long added 10 points and seven rebounds, and Enneking also scored 10 points.
“The start hurt us, but I love the way be battled back,” Paul Ferguson said. “We stayed with it, got it to within one, but then down the stretch, the ball wouldn’t go in the hole enough for us tonight. I really liked some of the looks we had. We did some really good things out there. We just struggled shooting the ball tonight. We’ll look to bounce back from that. We’ll work on it (Thursday) and get back after it on Friday.”
Covenant Christian 54, Columbus North 46
Covenant Christian;21;7;13;13;—;54
Columbus North;15;6;13;12;—;46
Covenant Christian (5-5): Jameson Laughlin 1 2-2 4, Nef Farrell 3 4-4 2, Paxton Bacon 3 4-5 13, Joe Midla 4 0-0 8, Mark Crane 1 0-0 2, Mel Grandberry 0 0-0 0, Sam Woehr 0 2-2 2, Nathan Crane 5 3-5 13. Totals: 17 15-18 54.
Columbus North (3-7): Judah Lewis 0 2-2 2, Caleb Ferguson 7 0-2 15, Nate Enneking 5 0-0 10, Max Coomes 1 0-0 3, Nolan Pickup 3 0-2 6, Ben Ferguson 0 0-0 0, Drew Schiefer 0 0-0 0, Garrett Long 3 4-4 10. Totals: 19 6-10 46.
3-point goals: Covenant Christian 5 (Bacon 3, Farrell 2); Columbus North 2 (C. Ferguson, Coomes).
