Ava Middle School Bears Wrap Up Basketball Season

The Ava Middle School Bears wrapped up their 2016 season with games at Willow Springs and Strafford.
The Bears started the week by dropping two games at Willow Springs on Monday, Dec. 15. The 7th grade Bears were defeated 37-30 by Willow Springs. Willow Springs led 20-14 at halftime and led 32-23 after three quarters of play.
Blayne Mendel’s 15 points and Corey Heinlein’s 9 points led the scoring for the Bears. Reece Adams, Zach Olsen, and Aiden Duckett added 2 points each to round out the scoring.
Willow Springs won the 8th grade contest 45-23. The host Bears led 21-10 at halftime.
Zach Mendel led Ava’s scoring with 7 points, followed by Zack Miller and Bryse Dodson with 5 points each. Payton Evans, Kyle Thompson, and Tanner Crandall chipped in 2 points each to complete the scoring for the Bears.
The Bears traveled to Strafford on Dec. 15 to close out the season. The 7th grade Bears fell to the Indians 46-25. The Bears trailed 19-9 at halftime and trailed 30-20 after three quarters of play.
Mendel led the scoring for the Bears with 20 points. Adams and Heinlein scored two points each, and Brayde Koop chipped in a point to complete Ava’s scoring.
Strafford won the 8th grade contest 36-29. The Bears trailed 14-4 after the first quarter of play, and were never able to recover.
Mason Cole led Ava’s scoring with 10 points, followed by Zack Miller with 8 points. The rest of the scoring for the Bears included: Zach Mendel 7, Payton Evans 2, Tanner Crandall 1, and Colton Marler 1.