Following a dramatic 77-76 win over Ohio Dominican, the Ashland Eagles were looking for a little more breathing room than they had in their last contest.  They got that breathing room, and then some, on Senior Day at Kates Gymnasium, as the Eagles knocked off the Tiffin Dragons 73-59. 

The men’s team followed an impressive women’s game that saw the Eagles win in dominant fashion. The men’s team was looking for similar success on a day that honored the team’s four seniors, DaWuan Thomas, Brook Turson, Cole Krizancic and Paul Honigford. 

The Eagles came into Saturday’s matchup atop the GLIAC South Division, with a 12-8 conference record, 18-8 overall. 

The Dragons came into the matchup with a much different story than the Eagles.  Tiffin is dead-last in the GLIAC South with a 3-16 conference record, 7-19 overall. However, one of those GLIAC wins came against Ashland.

“We came in a little more hungry”, said coach John Ellenwood.  “We were playing for a lot today. There was a lot on the table.  Whether it was playing for our seniors, playing to avenge a loss earlier in the season, or getting a share of a league title, which has never been done here before.”   

A win in Saturday’s game meant a lot more than your typical Eagles win.  With a one-game lead over the second place Findlay Oilers (11-9, 14-10), the Eagles clinched at least a share of the GLIAC South Division title. 

Honigford led AU in scoring with 13., hitting three-of-five from three-point land.

 With all the seniors in the starting lineup, the Eagles struck first, scoring quickly off the jump ball.  The Dragons answered right back with a jumper of their own.  After those quick buckets, both teams failed to score for nearly five minutes.  Wendall Davis broke the deadlock, hitting two free throws with 15 minutes to play in the first half.

Slow-paced offense and tight defensive play was the formula for both squads as the score tightened at 6 a piece with 12:45 to play.

“I think our guys were a lot more focused,” said Ellenwood. “When we’re focused, we’re a pretty good defensive team.  I still think we could’ve did better job on the boards.”

With both squads shooting poorly from the field early on, Honigford drilled a three, lifting the lid off of the rim.  With 10 minutes to play in the first half, the Eagles were leading the Dragons 11-6.  The Eagles at that point were shooting 4-13 from the field. Luckily for AU, Tiffin was shooting much worse, 2-15 from the field.

When asked about how big his seniors were, Ellenwood’s answer was short and simple.  “Huge,”said Ellenwood.  “Cole and Paul had great shooting days and I was very happy.  They haven’t been playing as many minutes as probably they want to, but they understand that it’s a team game.”   

With the lid lifted, the first half belonged to Honigford, who shot the Eagles out of their dismal start.  With 6:47 to play in the half, Honigford led all scorers with eight.  The score was 23-8.

When asked about the emotions he had today getting the Eagles rolling, Honigford’s intentions were very clear. 

“Shoot the ball well,” said Honigford.  “It’s a good feeling.”

Once the Eagles got going, they didn’t look back.  Sophomore Jett Speelman nailed a three with 4:27 to play before halftime, to give the Eagles a commanding 30-10 lead.

The Dragons tried to narrow the gap, cutting the lead to just 10, but the Eagles were having no part of it.  With nearly a minute left to play in the first half, the Eagles were up 15, 35-20. 

The Dragons drilled a three with little time to play in the first half, cutting the Eagle lead to just 12.  At the halfway point, the Eagles were on top 35-23.  At the half, Honigford and Davis led all scorers with eight each.

The Eagles came out of the locker room and began the second half with plenty of energy, scoring five points in the first 45 seconds, capped off by a Cole Krizancic three pointer. Three straight defensive stands later and the Eagles were on top by 21 points with 16 minutes to play.

“We’ve had some teams shoot the ball real well against us too,” said Honigford.  “I thought our defense definitely stepped up tonight.”

The Dragons couldn’t seem to slow the Eagles down, who finished multiple possessions with three-pointers.  With 12:30 to play, the Eagles were up 55-30.

The Eagles played great defense through the first 10 minutes of the second half, holding the Dragons to just 33.  The Eagles were on top 57-35 with less than nine minutes to play.

The Dragons had a few shining moments in the second half as they continued to shoot very efficiently from three-point range. But it didn’t take long for the Eagles to increase their lead after Honigford drilled a three with less than six minutes to play.  At the final media timeout, the Eagles were leading the Dragons by 17, 64-47. 

The Eagles continued to roll coming out of the timeout, as Krizancic drilled another three, giving the Eagles a 69-51 lead.

“We just wanted to push that lead out, and ultimately get the guys who don’t play a lot of minutes into the game too,” said Krizancic.

With less than two minutes to play, Ellenwood subbed in all of reserves for his four seniors, who received a standing ovation as they made their way to the bench.

Saturday’s win helped improve the Eagles to an overall record of 19-8, 13-8 in GLIAC play.  The Eagles have one game left on their schedule as they take on Lake Erie, Thursday night, on the road.