LocalSportsJournal.com

RAVENNA- A bad first quarter, when it scored only five points, put the Catholic Central boys basketball team in comeback mode for the rest of Tuesday night’s road game with Ravenna.

Despite battling all the way, the Crusaders were unable to make up the ground that had been lost and they wound up falling short, 54-38 to snap a three-game winning streak.

The Bulldogs doubled up the Crusaders in the first quarter, 14-7. Things didn’t improve for the Crusaders in the second, although defensively they fared better, only being outscored, 8-5. Ravenna held a 22-15 advantage at the half.

Ravenna kept its foot down on the Crusaders in the third quarter, and bounded into the fourth quarter with a 39-26 lead after a 17-11 third quarter. Each team scored 15 points in the final period.

“We slowed the game down, and got our big men touches but couldn’t finish enough other plays to keep pace with the Bulldogs,” Crusaders head coach Rob Recknagle said. “We’re making great improvements, and keep building a strong foundation for the post-season.

“We kept the game from opening up, getting the Ravenna lead under 10 points at several points, but never close enough to rattle the Bulldogs.”

Grant Becklin led the Ravenna offense with a team high 15 points. He was followed by Travis May with 14 and Kyle Beebe chipped in with 13 points. Beebe led the Bulldogs with nine rebounds and seven assists.

Jaden Johnson had his sixth straight double double with 21 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Crusaders. He was also 2 for 2 from behind the 3-point arc. Chase Willer contributed six points off the bench.

The Crusaders slipped to 4-8 overall with the loss, and will next see action on Friday at Muskegon Heights.

Ravenna won its second straight and raised its record to 9-4 overall. The Bulldogs are next scheduled to see action Thursday night at North Muskegon.