Winning streak continues for Vikings

by Peter Jakey, Managing Editor

The Posen boys? basketball team shook off a sloppy effort in a 12-point home victory last Friday against a pesky Fairview squad that made eight three-pointers. The Vikings (13-0, 9-0) built double digit leads in every quarter to only have the Eagles trim it to single digits each time, until the final outcome. Fairview made things interesting when they cut Posen?s lead to six early in the fourth. That?s when the Vikings played liked the third ranked team in Class D, with a lights out, 9-0 run.

?What hurt us tonight was being lazy with the ball, 18 turnovers for the game, and to still get this win, I?ll take it,? said head coach Steve Hentkowski. ?Fairview played one heck of a game tonight.? The Vikings host Arenac Eastern tomorrow for homecoming before heading out on the road Tuesday for a game at Lincoln. WITH THE score knotted at six in the first, captain Shane Hentkowski scored eight straight points, highlighted by two sensational plays. One was an inbound pass he caught in the air and tossed in before landing, while another came from a defensive rebound where he went coast-to-coast for a layup.

Posen looked in control with a three-pass, fast break capped off by a field goal by Nathan Lenard (16-6), but Fairview kept raining those threes. They made one before the end of the first to get within seven, 16-9. ?They are a three-point shooting team,? said Hentkowski. ?That?s definitely what kept him in the game.?

Tyler Kuffel?s inside layup and Lenard?s three built a 12-point lead, but the scoring went back and fourth until the end of the first half. The score was 33-25 at the break. David Kerr scored seven of his 12 points in the third, including a pair of free throws to give the Vikes what they thought was a commanding 15-point advantage, 47-32. Fairview went on a 9-0 run to close out the third and start the fourth. THE SCORE was 47-41, when the Vikings stepped it up one last time and went on a 9-0 run themselves to seal the deal.

Lenard?s assist to Jerome Ciarkowski in the paint got it started. A baseline jumper by Hentkowski followed that. Kuffel made one from the free-throw line, Ciarkowski went in f

or another lay up on a nice move in the paint, and the run was capped off by Nick Hincka?s free throws to get him in double digits at 11. There were four players in double figures led by Ciarkowski?s 14, Hentkowski with 13 and Kerr with 12. ?We finally buckled down on defense,? said Hentkowski. ?You could see the intensity level pick up.? The coach said he?s got some players fighting through some injuries, but with a week between games, it would give some of the players a chance to heal up. It also was announced that ?Pack the House Night? will be Feb. 25 against Mio. Wear school colors and get in for a buck.

THE JUNIOR varsity won 64-30 for their seventh win. Lucas Litwinski scored 22, while Brandon Dietz had 21. Martin Mulka put in 10, while dishing out 10 assists. Warren Beach helped out with nine. The Vikes are 7-6 overall and 4-5 in the North Star League.

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