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Grand Valley recovers to beat Warren JFK
By Jim Flick
Warren
After leading by a point at halftime, Warren John F. Kennedy High lost 61-51 to Grand Valley High on Friday night.
“This team is a work in progress,” Warren JFK coach Shawn Pompelia said after the game.
Grand Valley (1-0) played a patient game, said coach Luke Strohm. The Mustangs went into the locker room at halftime trailing Warren JFK 22-21. But Grand Valley exploded in the third quarter, outscoring the Eagles 19-11 to take control of the game.
“Coming out of the locker room for the second half, we wanted to make a run,” Strohm said. “We started to push, and got a little confidence.”
Grand Valley’s confident scoring push gave them a 40-33 lead after three quarters. The Mustangs outscored the Eagles 21-18 in the game’s final quarter.
Grand Valley was led by junior A.J. Henson, who scored 22 points and sank three three-point shots.
Also scoring in double figures for Grand Valley were juniors Adam Moodt, who tallied 13 points, and Jeromy Rockafellow, who connected for 11 points. Junior Kevin Cedar scored nine points.
For Warren JFK (0-1), the scoring leaders were seniors Michael Fredericka and Pat Hull, who each had nine. MarTae Hainesworth, a senior, and sophomore Dominic Naples, both tallied eight points, and senior Carl Broadbent added seven points.
“I see young men hustling,” Pompelia said. “I see the effort from them. But obviously, we have a lot of work to do.”
Pompelia pointed out he was hired in September, so he and his coaching staff have had little time to work with the Warren JFK squad. “We knew coming in that this is not going to be an easy task. We know we’re nowhere near where we can be.”
Pompelia predicted the Eagles squad will improve significantly as the season develops. “They’re still learning,” he said.
In Friday’s game, the Eagles attempted too many three-pointers, Pompelia said, resulting in a poor 29-percent field goal percentage.
“We’re not going to win many games shooting 29 percent,” he said.
Each team sank seven three-pointers shots Friday.
In fact, the first basket in Friday’s game was a three-pointer – by Grand Valley center Adam Moodt. The Mustang burst out to a 6-0 lead before Seger scored Warren JFK’s first points, also on a three-pointer.
Another three-pointer, by Naples, gave Warren JFK its first lead late in the first quarter. The Eagles led 13-11 at the end of the first quarter.