The Seward boys’ basketball team played a pair of rematches last week in its district competition, beating Hastings 66-53 at home Feb. 23 and falling to Omaha Roncalli 71-39 in Omaha Feb. 26.
The Jays had four players reach double figures in scoring against Hastings, led by Tresten Hass with 19. Hass was perfect from the floor, making seven of seven attempts and was 1-1 at the free-throw line.
Layne Luebbe added 16, Bostyn Happ 15 and Jack Vyhnalek 10 for SHS.
The win put Seward in a semifinal battle against Omaha Roncalli, which beat Seward in Seward Feb. 17.
“Pairing the Roncalli district to play them again is just part of it,” Coach Trevor Menke said. “We knew it was a strong possibility the last few weeks of the season. We definitely made some tweaks.
“They are an impressive team, and when they shoot the ball like they did the two times against us, they can play with about anyone in Class B.”
Roncalli led 21-12 at the end of the first quarter and 37-19 at halftime. The Crimson Pride defense held Seward’s offense in check, not letting anyone reach double figures. Layne Luebbe led the team with nine points.
Seward ended the season with a 9-14 record and graduates eight – Kobe Policky, Tresten Hass, Bostyn Happ, Kayson Salyer, Sam Sagehorn, Karson Dyer, Jack Vyhnalek and Kyle Riley.
“Our seniors were absolute warriors for us this year. Most fans get to see that on game night, but their teammates and coaches witnessed it all season long in their approach to the process and attitude and effort in practice every day,” Menke said. “They indeed have HUGE shoes to fill and are leaving such high standards for those to follow.”
