Cougars stop Indians 58-49

Kobel reaches 1000 

By Steev Riccardo

The Bartlett Indians once again failed to solve the Quaboag Cougars dynamic duo of junior Thomas Jankins and freshmen sensation Jake Wlsniewski and dropped a tough Southern Worcester County League contest 58-49 in Warren last Wednesday night.

Despite the loss, the Indians senior co-captain Nick Kobel added to his legendary Bartlett sports career by reaching the 1000-point plateau with 4:47 left in the game. With the feat, he joins a very elite club, becoming only the twelfth boys’ player in Bartlett history to do so.

The Indians jumped out to a 13-10 lead after one quarter behind a pair of hoops from sophomore Alex Givens-Perry and junior co-captain Matt Huberdault.

The Cougars played tough lock down defense on the Indians, holding them to only 5 baskets and no free throw attempts in the second quarter and outscoring them 16-10 for a 26-23 halftime lead.
 
The third quarter followed a similar trend as the Indians were lulled further into Quaboag’s game plan which once again held the high-powered Indian offense to only ten points.
 
Trailing 41-33 heading into the final quarter, the Indians needed a spark. Huberdault hit a big three point shot at the 5:37 mark of the fourth quarter making a 41-40 game, and moments later Kobel connected on another three-pointer, which put him at 1,000 for his career and brought the large Bartlett crowd that made the trek to Warren to their feet.

The game was stopped for a few minutes as Kobel was presented the game ball; he then proceeded to bring it to his parents who were in the stands for the historic moment.

Amidst all the excitement, the Indians had taken a 47-45 lead, but the Cougars went on a rampage and outscored the Indians 13-2 in the last few minutes to preserve the win.

Huberdault led the way for the Indians with 14, Kobel added 11, and Givens-Perry finished with 11 points.

The Indians junior varsity put together a solid game and beat the Cougars jayvees 43-40 behind 13 points by Anthony Higbie and 9 points from Neil Flanagan.  Both Higbie and Flanagan were also promoted to the varsity squad prior to the game; both will play on both squads for the final week of the season and then stick with the varsity for post-season play.
 
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