Hauser’s Stryker Gill and Waldron’s Lucas Shaw battle for the ball as the Jets’ Taeshaun Tungate (4) and Ledger Gelfius (10) look on Tuesday at Hauser High School.
Tommy Walker | For The Republic
HOPE — It wasn’t the prettiest win by Hauser, but it was just enough to make the Jets undefeated in the conference.
Hauser clinched the outright Mid-Hoosier Conference for the first time since the 2017-18 season with a 40-34 victory over Waldron on Tuesday night.
“We’ve earned it,” Hauser junior Taeshaun Tungate said. “We’ve worked so hard over the summer to get to this point.”
When it looked liked the Jets (17-5, 6-0) were going to run away with the game in the fourth quarter up 31-20, the Mohawks (9-11, 3-3) went on a 9-0 run to make it 31-29 with under four minutes remaining. Tungate gave Hauser a big spark by draining a 3-pointer, and then a couple of defensive possessions later, got a steal and easy layup at the other end to extend the lead to 36-30.
That eventually sealed the win and the perfect MHC season for the Jets, who already had clinched at least a share of the crown.
“That game is a testament to what it is like to win in February and March in a high school basketball game,” Hauser coach Trent Moorhead said. “It’s not always going to be pretty. Offensively, our point tally wasn’t the highest, but we took great shots, and they didn’t fall tonight. It’s a testament to our defense and the way we defend and get after it and play hard in every possession to be able to win a game like that.”
It was a balanced scoring night for the Jets. Tungate and Stryker Gill led the way with 10 points apiece. Ledger Gelfius and Kam Blair each added eight.
“We’ve still got to clean up the free-throw shooting down the stretch, but I was proud of Stryker of going out there and burying those last two. I thought he did a good job of controlling the flow of the game for us. He does a lot of things that go unnoticed on the floor,” Moorhead said. “The plays he made, and the plays Taeshaun made down the stretch and the defense of Alex Cord and Gavin Keller played on Lucas Shaw, I really think that helped propel us to victory.”
Hauser will conclude its regular season with a home matchup against Greenwood Christian Academy on Thursday. The Jets will have a week off after that to prepare for sectional opponent South Ripley on March 1.
“I’m so proud of these guys and what they were able to accomplish from last year to this year to be undefeated Mid-Hoosier Conference champs,” Moorhead said. “We’re really proud of that, and it’s a testament to the work this group has put in.”
Hauser 40, Waldron 34
Waldron;6;6;8;14;—;34
Hauser;8;12;9;11;—;40
Waldron (9-11, 3-3): Max Jones 3 0-0 8, Lucas Shaw 5 1-2 12, Keith Settles 1 0-0 2, Clayton Randolph 1 0-0 3, Jacob Lindsay 1 0-0 3, Will Larrison 3 0-0 8. Totals: 14 1-2 34.
Hauser (17-5, 6-0): Alex Cord 0 0-0 0, Taeshaun Tungate 4 1-2 10, Ledger Gelfius 4 0-0 8, Stryker Gill 4 2-4 10, Gavin Keller 1 2-2 4, Kam Blair 2 4-4 8, Waylon Harper 0 0-0 0. Totals: 15 9-14 40.
3-point goals: Waldron 5 (Jones, Shaw, Randolph, Lindsay, Larrison); Hauser 1 (Tungate).
