The gym bleachers were jammed-packed. One side repped black, for the blackout, while the other side wore white.
On Friday, Jan. 10, the varsity boys basketball team went into their game against Oviedo with hopes of an upset after losing to them earlier in the season, but Hagerty lost by a score of 58-47, falling to a record of 6-9 for the season. This was also the fourth consecutive loss to Oviedo in the last two seasons.
“I think our biggest challenge throughout the game was getting more opportunities on the offense for shots,” center Gavin Tait said.
Despite the loss, the score remained close throughout the game, and Oviedo was only up 35-34 at halftime. However, that gap widened when the Oviedo offense put up 16 points in the third quarter and kept Hagerty’s offense to only eight points.
Hagerty’s fourth-quarter defense was much better, only letting Oviedo score seven points, but, Hagerty could not capitalize on the slow offense and only managed to score five.
“Coming in after the second half we adjusted our defense to some of the actions that Oviedo was doing during the first half,” Tait said.
While the offense was not strong enough to come back and win the game, there were some bright spots. Junior guard Asa Kohn, who is averaging 16.1 points per game, led the team’s offense with 14 points, and senior Mason Morrow added nine points. Also, senior Josiah Ortiz led the team in assists, with 10. The team is averaging 58.9 points per game this season.
“At 6-9 currently, they look to improve defensively. Offensively they are running smooth. Putting the two together will allow for continued improvement,” athletic director Jay Getty said.
Starting with a Dec. 13 loss at Lake Nona, Hagerty has been struggling, losing seven of their last eight games.
“I definitely think we had our good and bad moments on both sides of offense and defense, but we are continually working hard to create better moments,” Tait said.
This type of start to the season has been unexpected because they have had two strong winning seasons coming into this year. With an impressive 42-14 record in the last two seasons, players hope they will have a chance to get back in the win column in their game against Atlantic High School on Monday, Jan 13.
