TOLEDO — Through three quarters of play, Toutle Lake’s Zach Swanson, the reigning Co-C2BL MVP, had been neutralized by the Toledo defense.
Swanson had scored just six points heading into the fourth, and the Riverhawks scored the first seven points of the fourth to take a two-point lead with just under six minutes to play.
Swanson wasn’t going to be denied the entire night, however, as he scored the Ducks’ final 10 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 8.9 seconds to play.
“He’s gonna make a big play. He will,” Toledo coach Grady Fallon said. “We just have to weather it and keep after it. Of course, today, he makes it at the end, so you can’t really weather that storm.”
That three stood as the game-winner, as Trevin Gale’s potential game-tying free throw clanked out with one second remaining, giving the Ducks a 59-58 win.
The Riverhawks (6-3, 2-2 C2BL) outscored the Ducks (7-1, 2-1 C2BL) in three of the game’s four quarters, but a second quarter lapse came back to haunt them in the end.
Toledo entered that frame with a 13-9 lead, but Toutle Lake went on an 11-0 run to open up a seven-point lead.
Fallon noted that not only were the Ducks the more physical team in the second, but the Riverhawks made a series of mental errors that gifted Toutle Lake easy baskets.
“If you’re good and going to beat a good team, you can’t have mental mistakes,” Fallon said. “That execution is something that there’s still growing pains with.”
The Ducks finished the quarter with 23 points and took a 32-26 lead into the break.
Toledo was able to claw back and take the lead in the fourth quarter, however, as Kaven Winters led a balanced offensive attack. Winters led the way with 20 points, while Cooper Fallon added 10, Trevin Gale scored nine, and Adam Kruger recorded eight.
Rayder Stemkoski also tallied nine off the bench, including a three in the first-half that prevented the Ducks from pulling away early.
“He sparked us,” Fallon said. “He had a great night. And he’s been doing that off the bench. That’s kind of become his role, being that sixth or seventh man … He’s definitely a spark plug.”
Winters and Fallon finished with double-doubles, as Fallon hauled in 14 rebounds while Winter grabbed 10 of his own while adding four steals. As a team, the Riverhawks won the rebound battle 37-26 and only turned the ball over 12 times.
They’ve now lost two of three after starting the season 5-1, but they’ll have a chance to get back in the win column on Thursday at Mossyrock.
