Hartsburg-Emden boys fall to South County 57-48
Alec Hayes pours in 25 points bringing his career total to 999
Ryan Couturiaux reaches 1,000 points for South County

[January 28, 2017]   One thing is for certain when following Hartem boys basketball: the game is always going to keep you on the edge of your seat. The Stags matchup with the South County Vipers at the Auburn Coaches vs. Cancer Invite Friday night did just that for a couple reasons.

First, the contest had an air of excitement surrounding it as two players were competing against each other and both were attempting to reach 1,000 career points.

Second, the game was back and forth much of the evening and with Hartem just trailing by three points with 1:32 left to play in the game and senior Alec Hayes needing just one point to reach the elite milestone of 1,000 points, the Hartem fans were on the edge of their seats in anticipation.

Unfortunately on this night the ball did not bounce in favor of the Stags. South County controlled the game and played keep away from the Stags for the last minute and a half, forcing the Stags to foul time and time again. The Vipers went to the line three times and were a perfect 6 for 6 shooting those free throws. That sealed the 57-48 victory for South County.

Hartem had to hustle in this one all night long. South County, which makes up students from the communities of Waverly and Franklin, is a tough team and Hartem had their hands full all night long, especially with a guy named Ryan Couturiaux. Couturiaux needed just 13 points to reach 1,000 points in his career and everyone in half of the gym knew that.

But on the other hand, South County had their hands full with a guy named Alec Hayes. The other half of the gym knew Hayes needed 26 points going into the game to reach 1,000 points. So it was business as usual when Hayes made the first basket for the Stags. That 2-0 lead would be the only lead the Stags would enjoy for a while.

South County was pouring in the points early and fast. The Vipers jumped out to an early 12-6 lead, with Hayes scoring all six of Hartem’s points.

Finally Alex Vetter sank two free throws for the Stags but the Vipers kept answering back.

Couturiaux’s five points in the first quarter allowed the Vipers to keep the lead and with the first quarter coming to end, South County was up 15-10.

The Stags came charging back in the second quarter and quickly tied the game on a bucket by Hayes and a three from Vetter. The Stags even jumped in front 17-15 as Wolpert hit a jumper, giving the Stags their first lead since the opening basket.

Hartem’s biggest lead came at 21-17 but the Vipers managed to tie the game before halftime, 21-21.

South County nearly took the lead going into the locker room, but their attempt at the buzzer was in and out, much to the relief of the Hartem fans.

South County regained the lead in the third quarter as Couturiaux opened the scoring for the Vipers and his teammates followed suit. The lead was back up to 26-21 for the Vipers before Hayes finally hit a three around the 5:00 mark and put Hartem in the books.

South County just kept getting the best of the Stags here and ran the lead out to 31-24 before Hayes could connect from downtown again. Antonio Coit-Kirk pulled the Stags closer as he ran off four straight points and with less than a minute to play in the third quarter Hartem was within reach, trailing 33-31.

But it was time for Courturiaux to shine. The small guard got the ball in the corner and decided to go baseline against the big boys and toss up a floater that glided through the basket for his 1,000 career point.

The South County fans jumped up from their seats and erupted in applause, some of them holding papers showing the numbers 1,0,0,0.

With just a mere five seconds showing on the clock the Vipers coach called timeout so the young man could go into the stands and hug his parents and drop off the game ball. A very cool moment for all the fans in the gym.

That basket also gave the Vipers a 35-31 lead and moving onto the fourth quarter, the Hartem fans knew their own number 35 was just eight points away from 1,000. The anticipation of so much more excitement to come in the final eight minutes had hearts racing.

Coit-Kirk and Hayes fired up the Hartem crowd as they each got the ball to bounce in their favor. In the first two Hartem possessions, both of them tossed up shots that literally took a couple bounces around the rim before falling in.

With the score 35-35 here comes that other guy for South County. Couturiaux hit a three that had no trouble bouncing through the rim and the lead was back in the Vipers favor.

Alec Hayes had a hand in his face all night long but still managed to score 25 points.  The Stags fell 57-48 to the South County Vipers.

Hayes then answered with a three to tie the score again. So with the score resting at 38-38 and 6:26 left to play in the game, Hayes needed just three more points to reach 1,000.

The teams exchanged free throws over the next minute of play before South County managed to take a 42-40 lead. From this point on now matter how hard the Stags tried, things just didn’t quite go their way. The closest Hartem came within reach was one point, as Coit-Kirk sank two free throws with 4:22 showing and the score flashed 43-42.

Couturiaux was always at the right place at the right time this night and his three extended the South County lead 46-42.

Hayes missed an attempt at a three next but Coit-Kirk was picking up the Stags with his basket. Coit-Kirk made the score 48-44.

Freshman Jackson Smith then hit a huge three for the Vipers at the 2:40 mark that extended the lead 51-44.

Hayes and Coit-Kirk, who combined for fifteen fourth quarter points, kept the Stags’ hopes alive. Hayes hit a jumper in the lane with 2:30 left to play and then a minute later Coit-Kirk scored to make the score 51-48.

If you are keeping track, that means Hayes now just needs one point for 1,000.

The rest is just a bad memory for Hartem but one the South County fans will remember. Not everybody can have their cake and eat it, too. As the Vipers played keep away from the Stags, the Stags did what they had to do in committing fouls and those Vipers took advantage of the opportunity at the line. As South County sent Justin Gill, Mark Talbert and, of course, Couturiaux to the line, they were a perfect 6 for 6.

Appropriately the newest member of the 1,000 point club for South County sank the final two free throws and along with his 21 points on the evening, the Vipers handed the Stags a 57-48 loss.

For the Stags, Alec Hayes put up a tremendous effort in scoring 25 points, but he fell short of reaching his milestone by one point. He will have a shot at it today and it is a pretty good guess he will reach it quickly. Every player who reaches the elite milestone of 1,000 points always seems to say it means more when you win the game, too.

So while this night belonged to Couturiaux and South County, Hayes and the Stags will get another shot at victory this afternoon, Saturday, at 2 p.m. as they take on Springfield Calvary.

Hartem 48

Hayes 25
Coit-Kirk 14
Vetter 5
Wolpert 4


South County 57

Couturiaux 21
Gill 14
Fromme 7
Talbert 6
Smith 5
Morris 4

[Teena Lowery]