It was the season opener for the Grundy R-5 basketball teams on Tuesday night as the two squads went on the road for non-conference games at Meadville.
The evening wasn’t as successful as the R-5 squads would have hoped as Meadville came up on the winning end in both contests. The Grundy R-5 boys fell to the Eagles, 61-47, while the Lady Panthers were nearly shut out by a strong Meadville club, 65-9.
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R-5 Boys
Turnovers and rebounds were the difference in the boys game, according to R-5 Coach Les Jackson.
“Turnovers really hurt us, especially in the first half,” Jackson said. “Meadville outrebounded us by 10, which was also a factor. But as the game progressed, we improved steadily.”
With just one starter back and only three players with any type of varsity experience, the Panthers got off to a slow start as Meadville took a 22-7 lead in the first quarter.
“Our inexperience really showed early,” Jackson said.
Meadville held the lead at the half, 41-25, and added to their advantage in the third quarter, where the Eagles were ahead, 57-29.
The Panthers were led by Bryce Rains, who had 19 points and five steals. Rob Crawford added 11 points and 13 rebounds while Tyler Jackson scored 8 points and had four assists.
Meadville was led by Cody Smith with 17 points and Willie Howe, who added 15.
The 0-1 Panthers will take part in the Novinger Tournament next week. Grundy R-5 takes on Brashear in an 8:30 matchup on Tuesday night.
R-5 Girls
The Grundy R-5 girls faced one of the strongest Class 1 basketball teams in northwest Missouri on Tuesday night and the final score reflected just how strong the Lady Eagles were.
R-5 could muster just two points in the first and second quarters and found themselves behind at the half, 44-4.
“They (Meadville) took control of the game from the beginning,” Coach Jackson said. “They have a very strong team and also a lot of depth. Turnovers really hurt us and we struggled against the press.”
The score at the end of three quarters had Meadville leading, 54-5.
Kala Smith scored 6 points to lead the Lady Panthers offensively.
Meadville’s Kaci Sargent had a game-high 17 points, 13 of which came in the first quarter. Kailee Cowan put in 16 points, including 10 in the first period.
“Sargent and Cowan had 23 of the team’s 29 first quarter points and that pretty much told the tale,” Jackson said.
The R-5 girls, 0-1, play Novinger on Monday night in the Novinger Tournament. The two meet at 4:30.
