Raiders trounce Trojans
By: Aaron Pyle
Friday, Jan. 15, the Girard Trojans traveled to Frontenac to face the Raiders in a conference battle. The girls’ game was canceled due to the Frontenac team having to quarantine due to a COVID-19 exposure.
For the boys, the team comes off a narrow 44-39 victory over the Riverton Rams Tuesday, Jan. 12. The win marked the second straight for the Trojans as senior Rigby Born led all scorers for Girard with 15 points. Junior Brahm Born finished with nine with senior Gabe Muia ended his night with seven points.
In the matchup against the Raiders (1-2), Girard (4-2) faced a Frontenac team coming off a dominating 67-28 victory over Baxter Springs Tuesday, Jan. 12. Last season in the first meeting between the two teams, the Raiders were able to capture the victory by narrowly defeating the Trojans 56-53.
The Raiders jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter by taking advantage of mismatches in the paint. Offensive production was held to a minimum early. Following a strong start by Frontenac, the brother pairing of Brahm Born and Rigby Born as the two scored all of Girard’s nine first quarter points.
Frontenac then picked up the pace defensively in the second quarter as the zone-trap defense of the Raiders gave the Trojans troubles throughout the contest. The Raiders were also able to get going from deep as the team hit five threes in the second quarter alone. Outscoring the Trojans 22-10 in the second quarter, the Raiders led 28-19 at halftime.
Early in the second quarter the Raiders pushed the pace even more as the team stretched the lead to double digits. Girard was unable to find a rhythm offensively as the team scoring two points in the first six and a half minutes of the third quarter. Girard was ultimately allowed to only five points in the third quarter altogether as Frontenac led by double digits headed into the final quarter.
From there, the Raiders were able to maintain their large lead for the remainder of the contest. Girard would get within ten points with two minutes remaining, but the Raiders perimeter game sealed the match. Frontenac went on to win the first meeting between the two conference rivals, 50-37.
Brahm Born led the Trojans in scoring Friday night with 13 points. Quinn O’Rand hit the double-digit mark in scoring as the junior ended the contest with 11 points. Rigby Born finished with six while junior Alex Coester closed the night with five points.
Following the contest, the Trojans (4-2) are slated to play in the Wilson County Classic Jan. 18-22. Opening the tournament, the boys’ team will face Fredonia (0-4) Monday, Jan. 18. The Lady Trojans (5-1) will face Fredonia (0-4) as well on Jan. 18 in the opening round of the Wilson County Classic.