Nelsonville-York defends home court against Vinton County for second year in a row
By: Sam Nolan
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NELSONVILLE, Ohio (WOUB) — The Nelsonville York Buckeyes (9-6, 4-4) hosted Vinton County (6-9, 5-3) for their first clash of the season Friday night. This one meant a little more to Coach Blaine Gabriel, who earned his first win against Vinton County in his tenure as Buckeyes coach last season. This one went in Nelsonville-York’s favor as well, as they took it 61-47.
The Buckeyes started hot, scoring the first six points of the game, but Vinton County burned a timeout that allowed them to claw back shortly after. The first quarter would end 11-9 Nelsonville-York, with no clear frontrunner from the jump.
The second quarter was much of the same, and it would have ended 25-25 had it not been for a Champ Schultz steal and layup to put the Buckeyes up 27-25 at the half. The first few minutes of the second half now became essential, with such a close game through two periods of play.
The Buckeyes answered the call in those first few minutes, going on a 10-2 run led by guard Weston Wheatley, who finished the night with 19 points.
“He’s starting to fill this offense. He’s starting to understand it, know the cuts, know what’s going on, and you saw that tonight,” Coach Gabriel said about Wheatley.
On the other side, Josh Montgomery had a notable performance for Vinton County, leading them in scoring with 15. Nelsonville-York entered the fourth quarter with a 45-33 lead thanks to the big run to open the second half, and there was no going back from there.
The fourth quarter was more tightly contested by itself, but the Buckeyes were able to turn on cruise control, winning the game 61-47. Next week is an important one for Nelsonville-York, as they’re slated to play both Meigs (9-6, 5-1) and Wellston (10-3, 5-2) barring weather cancellations. Vinton County will look to bounce back against Jackson (11-2) on Tuesday night.