Eskymo Season Ends In District Final
Eskymo senior Tyler Englund (12) runs a play as Mitch VanEffen (40) and Gladstone's Steve Seronko are nearby. The Eskymos lost the district title game, 59-51, Friday.
ESCANABA---Quinn Wakefield stood at center court, crouched over, head down, hands on his hips. The Escanaba Eskymo senior had just given everything he had, and he watched the final seconds of his high school basketball career tick off the clock.
Wakefield did not get the emotional, trophy-hugging moment that his brother Paul got almost exactly one year ago when the Eskymos whipped the Gladstone Braves, 65-39, to earn a trip downstate.
This time, the Eskymo season ended with a loss in the district championship game to Gladstone, 59-51. Wakefield did everything he could to keep his team alive, scoring 24 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, but the rest of the team had a tough night of shooting and Gladstone got revenge for last year's butt-whipping.
Last year, it was all Escanaba early, as the Eskymos raced to a 23-1 lead and the Braves were never in the game. But this time, it was Gladstone that started strong. The Braves shook off a noisy Eskymo crowd and built an 11-2 lead as Steve Seronko scored two layups off Kollin Jensen steals, and Johnny Cretens nailed a three-point basket.
Gladstone led, 18-12, after the first quarter, and led 27-16 when Seronko swished a three and was fouled. He completed the four-point play. The lead grew to 33-20 after another Seronko hoop with 2:16 to go in the half.
It was 33-22 at the break, but Escanaba did not give up. Wakefield started the second half with a tough basket, and Trent Schwalbach followed with a three to cut the lead to 33-27. Later in the quarter, Mitch VanEffen drained a three and Gladstone's lead was trimmed to 36-32.
In the fourth quarter, Gladstone led, 45-36, and it looked like it would be over when Esky's Tyler Englund missed two free throws.
But VanEffen hustled to get the rebound and passed to Englund, who buried a three to cut the gap to 45-39. On the next play, Braves center Kent King fouled out, and with 5:47 left in the game, Gladstone led by just six and their 6-foot-5 beast in the paint was on the bench.
But the senior leadership of Jensen wouldn't allow an Eskymo rally. He drove confidently to the basket on the next two possessions for layups, including a one-handed floater that made it 49-39.
As the final minutes played out, Wakefield bounced in a three with 1:39 left to make it a two-possession game at 53-47. But Escanaba was reduced to fouling at that point, and the Braves made six of seven foul shots in the final minutes and won the game going away.
Seronko led Gladstone (17-5) with 27 points, while Jensen helped out with 13 (eight in the final quarter). King had eight and Cretens chipped in with seven. Wakefield had 24 points to lead Escanaba (12-11). Englund added ten points and VanEffen and Schwalbach both had seven.
To read stories and see pictures from previous Eskymo games this season, click the button on the left side of this page.
The Escanaba student section stood for the whole game, and was quite noisy. Unfortunately, arch-rival Gladstone got the final cheer, 59-51. (Cody Frazer photo)
