The winning streak for the Cheney boys was short lived at one.
Following last week’s 61-48 victory over Rogers in the “Railroad Rumble” rivalry game — a non-leaguer that ended a seven-game losing streak — the Blackhawks relapsed in a 63-56 loss to North Central as the team returned to Greater Spokane League play.
Turning back the clock to the win, head coach Travis Peevey said that the energy of the Spokane Arena crowd played a part in his team’s win.
“It’s always fun to play in an environment like that where the energy is really ramped up,” Peevey wrote in an email. “It was a great experience for the kids to get to play in the arena in front of our fans and have a win on spirit night.
Unlike recent outings, the Blackhawks kept the pressure on the 2A GSL Pirates and held the scoreboard edge in all but the first quarter.
Jakeb Vallance and Gentz Hilburn each scored 17 points for Cheney (0-7, 6-12). “The seniors didn’t shy away from the bright lights,” Peevey said. “They’ve played in a few spirit games so they stepped up big time for us.”
Cheney returned to GSL play at North Central where it was not the finish but the start that made the difference. The Blackhawks and Wolfpack were even with each other in the second half after NC held a 30-23 halftime edge.
“It was hard to find many things I was disappointed with, a few costly turnovers and defensive lapses at different spots in the game ended up being the difference,” Peevey said was the turning point against NC.
The Blackhawks closed out Peevey’s first season Feb. 7 at University (4-4, 14-5), the team they opened the season with in a 53-47 loss, Dec. 6.
“We played them game one of this season and could not shut the door after being up at half so it will be nice to see them again,” Peevey said.
Paul Delaney is a retired Free Press Publishing reporter and can be reached at [email protected].
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