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Yellowjackets conclude unlikely season with fourth-place finish in state tournament

Justin Addison, Editor/Publisher
Posted 3/15/23

With one returning varsity player from a 16-9 team that last year lost in the first round of the district tournament, it was nearly inconceivable that Glasgow would finish this season in the Class 1 …

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Yellowjackets conclude unlikely season with fourth-place finish in state tournament

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With one returning varsity player from a 16-9 team that last year lost in the first round of the district tournament, it was nearly inconceivable that Glasgow would finish this season in the Class 1 final four. Mick Cropp and his Yellowjackets began an improbable season with a pair of wins before placing in their own tournament and the Salisbury Tournament. After winning the Slater Wildcat Classic, Glasgow won nine out of its next 10 games. That run included a district title and was followed by state sectional and quarterfinal victories to land in the state final four for the first time in six years. 

“We went from a team with one kid coming back to the final four,” Cropp said on Friday. “That’s a huge testament to these kids and how hard they worked this year.”

Despite their unbelievable run to the final site in Springfield, the Jackets could not finish the season with a win, falling 60-52 to St. Elizabeth in the semifinals and 81-45 in the third-place game.

Cropp said settling for fourth place was worth it for the experience of a lifetime for his players, particularly for seniors Edris Hamilton and Colton Boss.

“It was a great season,” Cropp said. “Not a great way to end it, but I’m going to miss these kids and this team. It’s been an emotional roller coaster for sure. We played a lot of really good teams. Very few teams know when their last game is. I feel like we had the comfort of that today.”

For Hamilton, the two losses in Springfield capped an outstanding high school career. He went from playing point guard on a team that won four games his sophomore season to surpassing 1,000 career points during the team’s come-from-behind win over Atlanta in the quarterfinal round in Moberly that sent the Jackets to the final four.

“Everyone wants to make it to state, and I’m just blessed with an opportunity to make it here,” he said.

Cropp recalled that challenging season two years ago but stressed Hamilton’s progress on the court ever since.

“I can’t express to you how much he’s improved since his sophomore year in all facets of the game,” Cropp said. “He stepped up. He’s been a great leader for us.”

Glasgow also welcomed back Boss to the varsity lineup after playing JV as a junior.

“As a sophomore, he played on varsity. He didn’t put in the work he needed to the next year and didn’t play on varsity,” Cropp explained. “He became a new dedicated man over the summer. He has really helped us in a lot of games this year. He’s got a great attitude, and he’s his own person. He’s going to be missed for sure.”

The Yellowjackets entered Thursday’s Class 1 semifinal riding a nine-game winning streak but drew an exceptionally experienced opponent in St. Elizabeth, which was playing in its fifth-consecutive final four.

The Hornets finished third in the state a year ago. They would go on to finish as runners-up after falling to two-time defending champion South Iron 56-47 in Friday’s championship.

Cropp said that experience was undoubtedly a factor and cited the many distractions that accompany a trip to the final four. “It’s difficult because there is so much going on besides basketball. We’re traveling, and hotels, and meals. Everybody’s excited, and I’m super happy they are excited. I’m super happy they’re getting to have these memories that will last forever. I was just relieved that a basketball game was starting.”

St. Elizabeth took control early in Friday’s semifinal, scoring in the first 12 seconds to take a lead that would last all game. A pair of 3-pointers by Caleb Oligschlaeger put the Hornets in front 10-3 less than five minutes into the game.

Glasgow missed five shots and turned the ball over twice in that time while falling behind the rebound count. The Jackets were held to just six points in the opening frame, a free throw by Boss, a transition layup from junior Jordan Fuemmeler, and a 3-pointer by junior Ryan Graves. Meanwhile, the Hornets surged on a solid inside game with eight points in the paint, three off turnovers, and six second-chance points.

“To start the game off, our defense played really well,” said St. Elizabeth coach Caleb Heckemeyer. “We held them to six points in that first quarter. After that, our defense still played pretty good, we gave up a few more points, but our offense stuck with it all game long. We got a lot of rebounds, especially (Jace Kesel) and Gavin (Williams) controlling the boards for us.”

Glasgow fired its way back in the second quarter, cutting the lead down to as little as four points on a layup by Hamilton in the waning minutes of the first half. The Jackets outscored St. Elizabeth 18-15 to reverse some of the damage, heading into halftime down 31-24.

The key for St. Elizabeth was controlling the paint in the first half. The Hornets won the rebound game, 23-10, over the first two quarters.

“I thought we got good shots in the first four to five minutes of the first quarter; they just didn’t go in,” Cropp said. “It was digging out of that hole the whole time. It seemed like every time we got it down to where we could get it to a one-possession game, we turned the ball over, or we missed a shot.”

For St. Elizabeth, the game plan was to keep Hamilton from penetrating while eliminating any outside shots for Fuemmeler.

“We wanted to make sure that we controlled Hamilton’s driving ability because he’s pretty quick,” Heckemeyer said. “With Fuemmeler, we wanted to make sure and take away his shot and make the other guys beat us.”

St. Elizabeth quickly extended its lead in the third quarter with a 4-0 run over the first two minutes of the second half. Heading into the final quarter, the Hornets held a 10-point advantage.

But Glasgow again inched back in an action-packed fourth quarter. Hamilton rattled off 11 straight points for the Jackets with three 3-point baskets over a three-minute span to bring his team within five points.

“I just took it upon myself to bring us back and keep my head in the game and keep my teammates in the game as well,” Hamilton said after the game.

The Hornets bumped their edge back to a three-possession game with a pair of free throws, but a jump shot by freshman Jackson Meyer cut the lead one more to five points.

For Glasgow, that shot would be its final of the game. St. Elizabeth converted three of four free-throw attempts in the last minute to seal the win and advance the state championship.

“It always stinks to come down and lose the first game because it’s hard to come back and win the second one,” said Cropp after Thursday’s loss. “We didn’t play terribly well today. We didn’t shoot the ball very well. I knew rebounding was going to be a chore for us because of their size and their strength, and they hurt us on the boards.”

Hamilton finished with a game-high 20 points, three 3-pointers, and 7-for-17 shooting from the floor. Fuemmeler added 16 on 7-for-19 shooting. 

St. Elizabeth won the battle on the boards with 45 rebounds, compared to 30 for Glasgow. Kesel hauled in a game-best 12 rebounds to go along with 16 points for the double-double. Oligschlaeger had a team-high 18 points, followed by nine points and 10 rebounds for Williams.

Glasgow 45

Jefferson 81

Things went downhill for Glasgow Friday morning. Jefferson (Conception Junction) entered the third-place game with a record of 28-3 after falling the day before 65-49 to eventual three-time champion South Iron.

The Eagles jumped out to a fast 8-0 lead following an early bucket in the paint by junior Brandon McQueen, followed by back-to-back 3-pointers by Memphis Bliley. The senior guard would end the day with six 3-pointers, three in each half.

“It was 8-0 right off the bat, and we had three or four turnovers,” Cropp recalled after the game. “We just got off to a bad start. We don’t see a lot of that throughout the year, and it’s really hard to simulate. It’s difficult to adjust to that fast enough.”

Jefferson is another team with extensive final-four experience, having made it to the final site three times in the last four seasons. 

“We got to play today one more time together, and I thought they did a great job,” said Jefferson coach Tim Jermain in an emotional post-game speech. “I enjoyed watching them play one more time.”

Glasgow finally broke the ice with a free throw by Jackson Meyer halfway through the first quarter. The Jackets would post 11 points in the first eight minutes but gave up 20, nine of which were scored off of turnovers.

The Hornets also made three of eight shots from the 3-point arc in the first quarter. 

“They hit too many open ones, that’s for sure,” said Cropp. “We didn’t do a great job with our communication. We had some miscommunication early. They did a good job setting screens.”

Leading by nine after one quarter, Jefferson went on a tear, outscoring Glasgow 24-17 in the second quarter to go into halftime up 44-28.

Cropp told his team at halftime to play hard and have fun. “We weren’t trying to concede anything at that point. But I think that if we were to play hard and have fun, then sometimes other things take care of themselves,” he said.

Jefferson held Glasgow to single-digit scoring in the third and fourth quarters to win the third-place trophy. To make matters worse, junior Jordan Fuemmeler, the Jackets’ leading scoring this season, left the game in the third quarter after suffering an injury to his hand while fighting for a rebound.

Fuemmeler finished the game with a team-high 17 points on 5-for-11 shooting from the field with a 3-pointer. He made all six free-throw attempts.

Hamilton finished with 10 points on an uncharacteristically cold day of shooting. He made three of 13 shots from the field and missed all three shots from the arc.

The Yellowjackets received a boost from junior Preston Thies, who finished with perfect 5-for-5 shooting the field for 10 points. 

Nine Glasgow players collaborated on the boards, led by senior Colton boss and freshman Jackson Meyer with six each and Hamilton with four. As a team, the Jackets’ had 27 boards, compared to 29 for Jefferson.

The Eagles were led by Bliley, who made an astounding 10 of 14 shots from the field and six of eight from 3-point distance to finish with a game-high 27 points. 

“I knew it was going to be my last game, so I just wanted to end it with a bang. I just went out shooting,” Bliley said.

Senior Matt Jermain finished 19 points on 5-for-13 shooting from the 3-point line.

Glasgow ends the season 23-8 overall with a district title. It was the Yellowjackets’ first 20-plus win season since 2017 when they placed fourth in the state for the second consecutive season. 

“We’re disappointed to come down here and not get a win,” Cropp said after Friday’s loss. “I’m awfully proud of the kids for the season we had.”

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