Cruiser Boys down rival Orting

After a couple of losses the previous week, the Eatonville Cruiser boys' basketball team was looking forward to their rivalry game against Orting on Jan. 14. They had beaten the Cardinals handily earlier in the season, 60-39. So, they were hoping this would be the game to snap their two-game skid.

Orting played the Cruisers tough all night this time. Eatonville took a 21-17 lead at the half. Senior Tristan Schoepf helped power the Cruisers with 8 points. Kekoa Visperas had 6.

The Cruisers kept the lead just out of reach for the Cardinals and took the win, 48-41.
Schoepf led the Cruisers against Orting with a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Visperas finished with 16. 

On Jan. 16, the Cruisers played host to the White River Hornets.  The last time these two teams met, the Hornets handed the Cruisers a 64-36 loss.

The Cruisers were looking to get payback this time.

As opposed to their last game, the Cruisers kept things close all the way to the final buzzer. White River led by 1 point after the first quarter, and then the team took a 25-21 lead into the locker room at the half. Senior post, Jackson Roulst, led the Cruisers with 7 points at the break.

The game came down to the final seconds. It was tied with just under a minute left to play as the Cruisers had the ball. A missed shot by Eatonville and then an untimely foul against Eatonville sent the Hornets to the line for free throws. They converted and Eatonville struggled to tie it back up and had to resort to intentionally fouling to stop the clock so they would have time left to mount a comeback. 

Unfortunately, the Hornet shooters did great at the free throw line and the Cruisers fell, 51-47.

Kekoa Visperas led the Cruisers with 17 points and Jackson Roulst added a double-double, scoring 15 points and bringing down 12 rebounds. 
The Cruisers were hoping to get back on track with a trip to Franklin Pierce on Jan. 18. During the teams' last match, the Cruisers were dealt a tough 75-47 loss.

The hometown five would keep things close in the first half. Led by Jarod Humphrey's 8 points, the Cruisers took a 25-24 lead into the locker room.

The Cardinals started up the second half strong by outscoring the Cruisers 21-9. That scoring outburst was the difference in the game. The Cruisers weren't able to cut into the Cardinal's lead and eventually fell to the Cardinals with a score of  59-46.

Kekoa Visperas led the Cruisers with 14 points. Jackson Roulst was a beast on the boards bringing down 16 rebounds in the night along with 8 points.