Inspired Comanches coast to win

SHINER – There was plenty of motivation for the Shiner boys basketball team to perform well Friday night.

For starters, the Comanches wanted to put their 53-48 loss to Weimar last week behind them. The other reason was a special guest in attendance – Matt Pohler.

Pohler, a Shiner graduate and the Comanches’ leading scorer a year ago, was diagnosed with leukemia in November, and attended his first game this season. Shiner (4-5, 3-1 in District 29-A-Division I) didn’t let him down as they ran past Louise, 64-43, Friday at Shiner High School.

“It was fun seeing Matt in the stands,” Shiner forward Caleb Kalich said. “It made me a little nervous knowing that he was one of the greatest basketball players to walk down the halls at Shiner, but it was great to see him here knowing what all he’s going through.”

Pohler attended the entire girls game and the first half of the boys game wearing a surgical mask and warm clothing. He was surrounded by family and friends, including his parents – Don and Gerrie Pohler – and his brother Nick.

“It was great to have Matt back in the gym,” Shiner coach Noe McCarthy said.

The Comanches built a 17-9 lead at the end of the first quarter thanks to 5 points from Justin Stovall and 3 each from Chad Neubauer and Kris Patek. After giving up the opening basket of the game, Shiner closed out the period on a 17-7 run.

Both teams struggled at the start of the second quarter as it took more than two minutes for either team to score. Louise pulled within five, 19-14, midway through the period before Shiner scored seven unanswered points behind 4 points from Rigo Baray to build a 26-14 lead.

The Comanches led 26-16 at halftime as Baray scored 6 points in the second quarter. After halftime, Shiner took over.

Stovall and Kalich scored 8 and 6 points, respectively, in the third quarter to help the Comanches outscore the Hornets, 27-13, in the period and build a 53-29 lead entering the fourth. Louise outscored Shiner, 14-11, in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough for the Hornets.

Stovall led the Comanches with 15 points, while Kalich and Evel Jones had 11 and 10 points, respectively. Jones had his first triple-double of the season as he also recorded 12 rebounds and 10 assists.

“We were relaxed after halftime, moved the ball around better and took better shots,” Stovall said. “If we keep working hard, we can succeed.”

Shiner has a bye tonight and returns to the court Friday when it travels to Ganado. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

Moulton 56, Waelder 37

MOULTON – The Wildcats struggled from the start as Moulton built a 15-1 lead after one quarter of play and never looked back en route to a 56-37 victory Friday at Moulton High School. Matt Dornak and Bronson Zapata both had 6 points in the first quarter for the Bobkatz, and the only point Waelder (13-13, 4-1 in 31-A-DII) could muster in the first eight minutes was a free throw from Deondrae Fields.

The Wildcats got going as they outscored Moulton (5-0 in 31-A-DI), 12-10, in the second quarter to pull within 25-13 at the half. Fields and Tiburcio Blanton had 6 and 5 points, respectively, in the period for Waelder, while Zapata had 8 for the Bobkatz.

Clay Orona scored 7 points in the third quarter for the Wildcats as they used a 14-11 third-quarter run to pull within nine, 36-27, after three. Orona had 8 points in the fourth, but it wasn’t enough as Moulton closed out the game on a 20-10 run thanks to 6 points from Zapata and 5 from Dallas Rothbauer in the final period.

Orona led Waelder with 16 points, while Blanton and Fields finished with 10 and 9, respectively. Zapata led all scorers with 25 for the Bobkatz.

The Wildcats visit Nordheim at 7:30 p.m. today, while Moulton visits Austwell-Tivoli at 7:30.

Poth 64, Nixon-Smiley 33

The Mustangs could not keep Poth at bay in the final three quarters of play as the Pirates ran away with a 64-33 victory Friday at Poth High School. Nixon-Smiley (4-19, 2-6 in 28-2A) led 9-4 at the end of the first quarter, but the floodgates opened following the opening period.

Poth (5-3 in 28-2A) used a 25-8 second-quarter run to seize a 29-17 halftime lead before an 18-7 third-quarter spurt put the Pirates up 47-24 entering the fourth quarter. The Pirates outscored the Mustangs, 17-9, in the fourth.

Nick Pena led Nixon-Smiley with 10 points, while Sam Moore had 8. The Mustangs host Schulenburg at 7:30 p.m. today.