The Mulberry Grove Aces couldn’t bounce back from an early deficit as they fall to Macon Meridian 69 to 53 in the ninth place game of the Vandalia Holiday Tournament on Monday. The Aces would hit two key three pointers in the first quarter, but the Hawks would match that and take a 16-10 lead at the end of the quarter. The second quarter was a close one as Mulberry Grove hit four shots from the field and Meridian hit just five, but one more three pointer for the Hawks gave them a 13-10 advantage in the quarter as Mulberry Grove trailed 29-20 at halftime. The third quarter would continue to be a battle as the Aces got plenty of good looks at the basket but shots would not fall. Despite that, Mulberry Grove stayed close with Meridian in the quarter but were outscored 16-13 as the Hawks lead was edged out to 12 points as the Aces trailed 45-33. Conner Hartmann heated up for seven points in the fourth quarter while Jackson Icenogle hit for six, but Meridian’s big center would go off for 12 points in the quarter and the Hawks went 11 for 13 from the free throw line in the closing minutes to push their lead out further and hand the Aces the 69-53 loss. Three Aces would finish in double digit scoring as Icenogle led the way with 19 points, Logan Bauer had 11 points and Landon Sugg finished with 10 points. Mulberry Grove drops to 5-11 on the season and will be off for a week before they return to the court on January 7 at Lebanon.
Mulberry Grove Scoring:
Jackson Icenogle – 19 points
Logan Bauer – 11 points
Landon Sugg – 10 points
Conner Hartmann – 9 points
Hagan Henrichsmeyer – 2 points
Aiden Walker – 2 points
