Boys fight to overtime in final league game

There is no other way to say it — it was a tough and painful loss.

The Pierson Whalers have been and continue to be a solid basketball team. The Whalers visited the Indians on Friday night, February 6, to complete the League VIII regular season. The Indians were celebrating senior night, following a big pep rally at the end of the school day. Both co-captain Sawyer Clark and Johnny Sturges were perhaps playing in their last home game. Both of these young men will be very much missed next season.

Coach Jay Card Jr. knew that the outcome of this game would have major implications on whether or not his team would be playoff bound. If Shelter Island had beaten Pierson and Smithtown Christian lost to Stony Brook, those two wining teams would finish with identical league records. Smithtown Christian did end up losing a 2-point game at Stony Brook, but the Indians lost to Pierson in overtime 67-56.

Bridgehampton, which is a Class D school, earned the number one seed and finished the League VIII season undefeated at 14-0. The Indians ended their season with a 7-9 record.

The game against Pierson was a superb high school contest. Both teams were tied at the end of the first quarter at 11. Co-captain Tristan Wissemann scored 7 of the 11 points but the Indians were called for six personal fouls during the opening period. The Whalers outscored the Indians 15-13 in the second quarter, nursing a 2-point advantage at halftime. Billy Boeklen scored 7 of the team’s 13 points. Meanwhile Robbie Evjen, the Whaler’s big man, had 13 of his game high 27 points in the first half.

Coach Card decided to stay with a man-to-man defense in the second half. Both teams scored 13 points during the third period, with the Whalers enjoying a slim 39-37 advantage to start the fourth quarter. But the continued one-sided calls for personal fouls —at one point 19 against Shelter Island and only five against Pierson — became a major factor in the game. In the end, Pierson made 21 of 32 foul shots and Shelter Island just 6 of 10.

The fourth quarter had two major turning points. Initially, the Indians gained control of the game and hit some huge shots, with Clark scoring 8 of his 13 points in the fourth. With about two minutes remaining in regulation, the Indians built a 54-48 led. But then the roof caved in on the home team. Wissemann went down hard on the floor after suffering an ankle injury, forcing him to come out of the game during a critical time. Then it was a combination of missed free throws, as well as two major lapses on defense, as Sean Sloane drove down the lane for two easy buckets.

But the Indians still had the lead, 54-52. With about 12 seconds remaining  the Whalers got a steal, the Indians fouled the shooter in the lane and he converted on both free throws to tie the score at 54-54. The Indians had one last chance as they raced the ball into the frontcourt and called a time out with 2.9 seconds remaining in regulation. The Indians coaching staff knew they couldn’t afford to go into an overtime period because Wissemann, although back on the court, was far from 100 percent and the Indians were in big foul trouble. Unfortunately, the final play did not result in a basket and the game went into overtime.

The momentum had changed in Pierson’s favor. Wissemann soon fouled out and the Whalers rolled to victory. Coach Dan White told Coach Card that he thought that Indians “outplayed and outcoached” his team, a nice gesture by the visiting coach, but it didn’t relieve the pain and disappointment of the players in the locker room.

Shelter Island had played a fantastic first 30 minutes, but it was that painful last two minutes of regulation that stays in the minds of players and coaches alike.

Let’s hope this game provides a real motivation for the returning five varsity players, and that learning how to protect a lead, especially late in the game, is a byproduct of this loss. Hopefully, Tristan’s ankle injury is not serious and he can return to the court real soon.

Next year begins right now.

The coaching staff and team would like to thank the cheerleading squad, parents, chaperones and loyal fans for their tremendous support throughout the season. For those who attended our home games, you know that the athletes played their hearts out on the court.

The great experiences that are derived from athletics are worthwhile, since it’s both “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat” that shape our characters.

And for seniors Sawyer Clark and Johnny Sturges, thank you for all your hard work, loyalty and friendship.