Hilltoppers defeat Pawnee on Senior Night

[January 24, 2023] The Hilltoppers had that senior night energy flowing on Saturday night as they defeated Pawnee 55-52.

Mount Pulaski ran out to an early 12-0 lead on the Indians. Jackson Fricke sank the first field goal of the game. Gavin Smith and Evan Cooper each drained 3s early to fire up the crowd. A quick steal and layup by Clay Aylesworth would cap off the 12-0 lead. After the Indians cut the deficit to 12-6, Aylesworth connected for a three to add to the Mount Pulaski lead. Evan Cooper finished the quarter with a couple buckets and it was Mount Pulaski on top 18-8.

Evan Cooper and Clay Aylesworth continued to make 3s in the second quarter, helping the Hilltoppers to a 24-12 lead. Mount Pulaski got out to a 28-12 lead after Beau Tschantz’s steal and layup just under the 3:00 mark. The Hilltoppers would get one more three from Cooper in the quarter and at halftime the score was 31-18.

The Hilltoppers kept the Indians at a distance in the third quarter. Evan Cooper and Eric Cooper each hit threes in the quarter. A.J. Bailey added four points and Fricke tossed in two points to give Mount Pulaski a 43-34 lead.

The Indians made a comeback in the fourth quarter and even got as close as 45-43 with 3:57 left in the game. The Hilltoppers had to kick it into high gear. A drive by Bailey to the basket and a three by Evan Cooper would quickly stretch the lead to 50-43. With just under two minutes left in the game Aylesworth’s layup gave the Hilltoppers a 52-45 lead. With Aylesworth and Cooper sinking free throws in the final seconds the Hilltoppers were able to hold on and win 55-52.

Evan Cooper led the Hilltoppers with 18 points. Clay Aylesworth added 13 points.

The Hilltoppers improved to 7-16 on the season.

Mount Pulaski won the JV game by a final score of 56-41.

The Seniors honored between the games were:


Senior Basketball players (L to R) - Evan Cooper, Jackson Fricke, Gavin Smith, Andrew Bailey, Clay Aylesworth and Ethan Payne.


Senior Cheerleaders (LtoR) - Mikayla Harris, Mallory Shehorn and Jayda Allspach

Senior Band Members (L to R) - Makenna Wilham and Jesse Carter

Basketball
Evan Cooper
Clay Aylesworth
Ethan Payne
Gavin Smith
A.J. Bailey
Jackson Fricke

Cheerleading
Jayda Allspach
Mikayla Harris
Mallory Shehorn

Band
Makenna Wilham
Jesse Carter
Alexis Johnson (not pictured)

Varsity scoring

Mount Pulaski 55
Evan Cooper 18
Aylesworth 13
Bailey 8
Fricke 8
Eric Cooper 3
Smith 3
Tschantz 2

Pawnee 52
Ellis 14
Surbes 14
McElroy 7
Butler 6
Banister 5
Wort 4
Fulton 2

JV scoring

Mount Pulaski 56
Cooper 9
Wade 8
Tschantz 8
Kuznik 7
Kretzinger 6
McCormick 5
Selinger 5
Gibbs 3
Leonard 2
Fitzpatrick 2
Deibert 1

Pawnee 41
Banister 8
McElroy 6
Martin 6
Koyne 6
Bettis 5
Fulton 3
Anderson 3
Clarke 2
Morell 2

[Teena Lowery]