Trojans Beat Keyser, 70-58

KEYSER, W.Va.—The Hampshire Trojans rode a strong second quarter and a 10-0 run in the third quarter to knock off the Keyser Golden Tornado, 70-58, in varsity boys’ basketball action at Tornado Alley Thursday night.
Robbie Miller tallied 26 points for Hampshire, while Will Hughes added 15. The Trojans scored 23 points from the free throw line.
Preston Hartman had 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead Keyser; Matt Wilmer chipped in 14 points. No other KHS players scored more than five points. Jeremy Green had eight rebounds for KHS; Peyton Hartman and Jarell Ross each had two steals.
Keyser jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead on a Preston Hartman three and a deep jumper from Matt Wilmer. Hampshire cut the lead to 7-6 with 4:36 remaining in the first quarter.
Keyser got a pair of put-back layups from Preston Hartman and Jeremy Green, then Hampshire scored six straight points to close the quarter. The Trojans led, 12-11.
Hampshire continued to surge, building a 22-13 lead before Tony Amtower’s right wing three-pointer broke the spell for Keyser. The Trojan lead moved to double figures, 26-16, on a pair of Robbie Miller free throws with 2:49 left in the half. The two teams traded buckets the rest of the half; Hampshire led 35-24 going into the locker room.
Miller topped Hampshire with 14 first-half points, while Hartman led Keyser with 11.
Keyser was plagued by foul trouble; Amtower, Hartman, Peyton Hartman, and Maverick Nelson all had two fouls at the break, with Nelson’s keeping him off of the floor for the final ten minutes of the half.
The third quarter started evenly; a Matt Wilmer three-pointer pulled Keyser back within ten points, 44-34, with 4:56 left in the third quarter. The Golden Tornado moved within single digits for the first time in the half on a Nelson layup at the 2:20 mark; Hampshire led, 45-37.
The Trojans answered emphatically, launching a 10-0 run to zoom ahead by 18 points before a Wilmer layup to close the quarter. KHS trailed, 55-39, through three periods.
KHS held HHS without a point for the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, but had only a Peyton Hartman layup to show for it offensively.
A Preston Hartman three-pointer with 3:54 left pulled Keyser within 13 points, 57-44.
HHS pushed the lead back up to 16, but Keyser closed again. A Wilmer three with 1:38 left kept KHS hope alive, down 61-50. After a pair of Trojan free throws, Wes Stullenbarger knocked down another three to cut the lead to ten. KHS got no closer the rest of the way, with HHS hitting their free throws and KHS’ desperation threes not falling.
Hampshire (6-6) entertains Northern on Saturday.
Keyser (7-5) will host Mountain Ridge on Tuesday.

Keyser is defeated by Hampshire, 70-58

KEYSER, W.Va. — Robbie Miller went for 26 points including four threes as No. 5 Hampshire upset No. 4 Keyser Thursday night at Keyser in Appalachian Mountain Athletic Conference play.

Will Hughes also had a strong game inside with 15 points and 13 rebounds for Hampshire and J.P. Binotto had a team-high eight assists as well as seven rebounds and eight points. Josh Moreland also got into double figures for the Trojans with 13 points on 7-for-10 shooting from the foul line.

Keyser was led by Preston Hartman’s 18 points and 11 rebounds. Matt Wilmer added 14 and Jeremy Green had eight rebounds to go with his seven points.

Hampshire led at the end of each period with a 12-11 lead after one quarter then surging for 23 points in the second to take a 35-24 edge into halftime.

Keyser won the JV game 65-53. R.C. Pratt led Keyser with 22 points. Brian Wesson had 17 for Hampshire.

Hampshire (5-5, 4-2 AMAC) hopes to extend its three- game win streak Saturday when it hosts Northern. Keyser (7-5, 5-4) looks to turn things around Tuesday hosting Mountain Ridge.

Frankfort wins, 60-55

SHORT GAP - Ladies and gentlemen, the rumors that the Keyser-Frankfort rivalry is dead have been greatly exaggerated.
Indeed, it is as alive as ever.
Frankfort used some hot initial shooting to get ahead and frenetic defense to get back into it late as the Falcons came-from-behind to torch the Tornado 60-55 last night in Short Gap.
“This was all the kids,” said Frankfort head coach Scott Slider, “They just wanted to come out and win.”
That “will to win” was obvious to anyone in attendance at Frankfort last night, and the Falcons showed they came to play right off the tip as James Jones hustled down the lane to put Frankfort on top 2-0.
There would be no less than six lead changes or ties during the initial eight-minute span, with both teams playing out of character.
Keyser was unable to get into transition, and veered fro its’ normal gameplan instead trying to take advantage of a big size advantage for the Golden Tornado inside.
Senior Preston Hartman was the beneficiary of those feeds, and he scored 11 of Keyser’s 17 first-quarter points .
However, Frankfort would not be outhustled on this night, and withstood the onslaught of athleticism by the Golden Tornado by moving the basketball well to open shooters and knocking down those attempts.
Skyler Minke connected on a trio of treys in the period and Logan Wolford provided inspirational play on both ends of the floor to propel the Falcons to a 21-17 lead entering the second stanza.
It was just Wolford’s third game of the season since suffering internal injuries in the opener against Mountain Ridge, and the junior would prove pivotal.
Keyser continued to get multiple shots at point blank range in the second quarter, and Frankfort flat out played over their heads the entire period. Frankfort took advantage of numerous breakdowns in Keyser’s perimeter defense and poor guardplay, and converted those mental lapses and lack of lock-down into easy baskets.
After all that the Golden Tornado still trailed Frankfort, 34-31, at the half.
Wolford scored four of his team-high 15 points on a transition basket, as Keyser once again failed to get back quickly, and a nifty baseline move to push the Frankfort lead to seven at the 5:43 mark of the third period.
Keyser went back inside, this time to Jeremy Green, but the Falcons answered again with back-to-back buckets by Wolford and Travis Meyers to stretch the advantage to 42-33.
Green made it worse, losing his cool and possession of the basketball when he pushed a Falcon after he was fouled chasing a loose ball.
Meyers coverted 1-of-2 technical free throws, giving the Falcons a double-digit lead, 43-33.
Frankfort decided to begin to hold the basketball with 2:33 to play, and Keyser took advantage of the Falcon’s poor ballhandling to get back in it and regain the momentum.
Hartman got the Golden Tornado going with four-straight to end the period, and teamed with is little brother Peyton to score six more and tie it up at 43-all with 5:39 to play.
Green regained the lead for Keyser with another inside move a minute later, and Preston finished off a 15-0 run spanning 7:33 with a 3-point play to give Keyser a 48-44 advantage with just over four minutes to play.
But the Falcon’s were not dead yet.
Dustin Meyers ended the run for Frankfort with a follow, and Frankfort continued to trade blows with Keyser chipping away slowly at the slim lead.
Wolford tied the game at 52 with a pair of freebies, and followed a Hartman basket with a 3-pointer to give Frankfort the lead at 55-54 with just over a minute to play.
And the Falcons never looked back.
Dustin Meyers followed up a shot and another Minke free throw with a big rebound to seal the game, and Keyser backed off the basketball with five seconds to play conceding defeat.
It was not Duke-Carolina, but the team in Carolina (or Columbia) blue came out on top this time.
Jones played a strong all-around game for Frankfort to finish with 10 points, while Travis Meyers scored eight points and pulled down 10 rebounds.
Minke added 13 points for a well-balanced Frankfort attack.
Preston Hartman finished with 23 points for Keyser, Green added 17.
Keyser falls to 10-4 and will travel to Allegany on Tuesday.
Frankfort won just its’ second game in 10 tries and will try to continue the roll at Southern Garrett on Tuesday as well.
Keyser won the jayvee matchup, a heated contest as well, 45-41.

Frankfort Stuns Keyser, 60-55

SHORT GAP, W.Va. — What a difference a month can make.

The Frankfort Falcons, who lost to Keyser 74-29 on Dec. 23, got revenge exactly one month later, upsetting the fourth-ranked Golden Tornado 60-55 Friday night in an Appalachian Mountain Athletic Conference game.

The difference, according to Frankfort coach Scott Slider, was effort. “We had two terrible practices coming into tonight where our boys just did not play hard. Tonight we played hard for all 32 minutes.”

That they did as the Falcons (2-8, 2-5 AMAC) controlled the game from start to finish, never wavering or panicking, and clinging to a lead that never grew to more than six at the end of any quarter. Frankfort led 21-17 after one quarter, 34-31 at halftime and 43-37 entering the final period.

“We didn’t get rattled and we controlled the ball, only having 10 turnovers. We were very balanced on offense and played very tough man-to-man defense for the entire game.” Slider said.

Logan Wolford led the balanced Frankfort attack with 15 points. Skyler Minke had 13 points and four of the Falcons’ six three-point goals. James Jones added 10 points and Travis Myers led the team with 10 rebounds to go along with his seven points.

Keyser (7-4, 5-3) was led by Preston Hartman who had a game-high 23 points. Jeremy Green had 16.

Keyser won the jayvee game 45-41. R.C. Pratt had 11 points for Keyser and J.P. Twigg had 11 for Frankfort.

Frankfort hosts Southern and Keyser visits Allegany on Tuesday

Keyser Runs Over Fort Hill, 65-39

CUMBERLAND – Keyser beat For Hill 65-39 in boys basketball Wednesday night, the Golden Tornado dominating the Sentinels to go 7-3 on the season.
Jeremy Green led Keyser in scoring with 14 points, followed by Wes Washington with 11 and Matt Wilmer with nine.
Jordon Helmick was the leading scorer for Fort Hill with 14 points, followed by Devin Lee with 13.
Keyser out-rebounded Fort Hill 52 to 25. Taige Redman was the Golden Tornado's leading rebounder with eight rebounds, followed by Jeremy Green with seven.
Wes Washington had six assists and Jarell Ross had four steals.
Fort Hill jumped out to a 7-2 lead at the start of the game, but from there it was all Keyser, with the Golden Tornado outscoring the Sentinels 50-11 through the heart of the game. The Sentinels were limited to two points in the second quarter.
Keyser led 13-9 after the first quarter, 31-11 after two and 52-18 after three.
The Golden Tornado next play Friday night against Frankfort.
On the JV side, Keyser won 74-40, with Peyton Hartman and Andrea Restelli both scoring 18, RC Pratt with 13 and Chris Halbritter with 11. Pratt had 10 rebounds and Harman eight.

Keyser Beats Southern, 45-42

KEYSER, W.Va.—On a night where the foul shots weren’t falling for either eam, Matt Wilmer hit a pair of clutch free throws from the charity stripe with 10.8 seconds left and Preston Hartman hit one of two with under five seconds left to preserve a 45-42 win for the Keyser Golden Tornado over the Southern Rams in varsity boys’ basketball action at Tornado Alley Friday.
Keyser never trailed, but were pushed to the limit by the Rams, who trailed by ten late in the third quarter but got within one point before Wilmer’s free throws.
Jeremy Green led Keyser with 14 points, six rebounds, and four steals. Wilmer had 13 points.
Scott Livengood had 12 points for Southern.
Green tallied a quick six as Keyser led 8-2 with 3:07 left in the first quarter.
The big lead would be short-lived.
With Keyser’s Maverick Nelson sitting with two fouls, the Rams attacked the hoop and pulled within a bucket at 10-8 with under a minute to go on a Calvin Hilliard layup.
The Golden Tornado led 14-10 after the first quarter. Wes Washington, active on both ends, had five first-quarter assists and eight for the game.
A Hilliard layup pulled the Rams within two to open the quarter, and the two teams yo-yoed for most of the rest of the quarter: Keyser still leading, but unable to push the lead to more than four.
One reason for the Rams’ success near the hoop was the continued foul trouble of Nelson, who picked up his third foul with 3:32 remaining.
Southern pulled even for the first time since 2-2 when Scott Livengood finished off a nice passing sequence with a layup.
It was 20-all with 1:13 left in the half.
Ethan Brady had a chance to give Southern their first lead of the game, but missed a pair at the line. A Wilmer runner as time expired gave the Golden Tornado a precarious 22-20 lead at intermission.
Green had eight points to lead Keyser at the half; Livengood tallied the same for Southern.
After Livengood tallied to tie the game again, Keyser scored eight straight to open up their biggest lead of the night at 30-22 with 4:12 left in the third quarter.
Green scored the final four points of the run, ncluding a high-flyingfinger roll.
Southern scored four of the next six points, then back-to-back Nelson layups off nice feeds from Hartman and Wilmer, respectively, gave Keyser their first double-digit cushion.
It was 36-28, Keyser, heading to the fourth quarter.
A Livengood layup cut the lead to six, but a double-clutch jumper from Hartman put Keyser back up by eight points with 6:10 left.
Both teams missed opportunities at the line, a theme all night, then Southern hit one of two and Green canned a pair.
The Golden Tornado led 40-31 with 4:16 left, but from there, the Rams chipped away.
A Hilliard three-point play at 2:58 cut the lead to five, then Wilmer hit one of two at the line to put KHS back up six.
With 2:10 left in the fourth quarter, Chris Schad hit a critical three to halve the KHS lead.
From there, Keyser milked the clock, and neither team scored until Schad hit a pair of free throws with 12.7 seconds left after a Hartman foul.
With 10.8 seconds left, ilmer hit two big foul shots for KHS.
Jarell Ross threw the Rams a lifeline with 6.4 seconds left, fouling Schad at midcourt. The first foul shot was good, but the second rimmed out, and Keyser clung to a two-point advantage.
Hartman, with a chance to ice the game, hit the first of two to re-establish the three-point lead, but his second attempt rimmed out.
A desperation heave from Schad from 23 feet hit the far side of the rim, and Keyser escaped, 45-42.
Keyser (6-3) is at Fort Hill Wednesday for a tripleheader. Southern (1-8) host Mountain Ridge Tuesday.

Alco Upends Tornado, 67-55

KEYSER – Allegany used its’ overall inside-outside balance to beat Keyser at home last night, 67-55.

Allegany used it’s superior size and strength inside to take a quick first quarter lead, as initially the Golden Tornado had no answer for the Camper’s Jordan Grady.

Grady and company controlled the painted area, but only after Casey Roberts and Cody Ellsworth opened up the interior with back-to-back 3-pointer’s bookending a Maverick Nelson put-back for Keyser.

Robert’s extended the Alco lead with a freebie, but Jarell Ross came back for Keyser losing his man under the rim to keep it close at 7-4.

Keyser went cold, and Alco kept feeding its’ monster inside, and the Campers ran off to a 17-8 first-quarter lead on Grady’s back.

Dustin Wharton capped the quarter with a trey as Allegany went inside-out, and things didn’t look much better for Keyser when the Campers continued to roll through the first four minutes of the second stanza.

Preston Hartman did his best to keep it close for Keyser, but Allegany went to Grady inside and Wharton and Ellsworth outside. A mid-quarter 6-0 spurt gave the Campers a 12-point lead at 27-12, but Keyser’s athelticsm and bench would prove pivotal in the period.

Jeremy Green got the 13-2 quarter-ending blitzkrieg started when he converted a 3-point play, and Hartman, Nelson, Wilmer, and Wes Stalenbarger made it 11 unanswered points before Alegany could sneak a bucket in.

Taige Redman came right back with two more for Keyser, erasing a 13-point deficit and pulling within four, 29-25, at the half.

Keyser was able to come within a bucket right out of the locker room when Hartman hit again, but a 6-0 Alco run was the beginning of the end for the Golden Tornado.

Wilmer and Green teamed to pull the locals to within a bucket once more during the period, but Allegany was too big and too disciplined to allow Keyser’s speed and athletic ability to take this one away.

Alco led 49-38 after three quarters, and converted 12-of-17 free throws over the final 2:50 to seal the deal.

Robert’s paced Alco with a game-high 20 points. Grady, Ellsworth, and Wharton rounded out the high-scorers for the Campers with 14, 13, and 12 points respectively.

Hartman led the locals with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Wimer added 13 points and dished out six assists, while Maverick Nelson finished with 10 points.

Allegany improves to 6-1 and will face off with the 6-1 Mt. Ridge Miners on Thursday.

Keyser will host Southern Fiday.

Allegany Defeats Keyser, 67-55

KEYSER, W.Va. — Casey Roberts scored 20 points and Jordan Grady had 14 and a huge game on the boards as third-ranked Allegany downed fourth-ranked Keyser, 67-55, in an Appalachian Mountain Athletic Conference boys basketball game Tuesday night.

The Campers got a strong team performance to remain unbeaten in conference play. With four scorers reaching double figures, Allegany improved to 7-1 overall and 4-0 in the AMAC.

Roberts hit six field goals, five free throws and also had four assists. Grady had a double-double with 14 points and a game-high 17 rebounds.

Cody Ellsworth added 13 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals and Dustin Wharton had 12 points and a game-high six assists.

Preston Hartman led Keyser (5-3, 3-2) with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Matt Wilmer chipped in with 13 points and six assists, and Maverick Nelson had 10 points. Jeremy Green had seven points and 11 rebounds.

Allegany bolted to a quick 17-8 lead after one quarter before Keyser closed to within four, 29-25, at the half. The Campers padded their lead with a 20-point third quarter to take a 49-38 cushion into the fourth.

Keyser won the jayvee game 48-42 with R.C. Pratt and Peyton Hartman scoring 12 points. Jake Schade had 17 for Allegany.

The Campers play at Mountain Ridge on Thursday and visit Fort Hill on Friday. Keyser plays again Friday, at home, against Southern.

Keyser Crusies past Berkeley Springs, 75-54

BERKELEY SPRINGS - Matt Wilmer scored a game high 26 points to pace Keyser to its’ fifth win of the season last night, a convincing 75-54 victory over Berkeley Springs.
Wilmer added five steals and four assists for the Golden Tornado, who trailed 11-9 after a period of play.
Keyser came out flat-footed and fell behind 7-0 to the homestanding Indians, but worked their way back to within a bucket after eight minutes had expired.
Wes Stallenbarger sparked a 24-point second stanza with back-to-back-to-back 3-point field goals for the Golden Tornado, and Wilmer tallied nine points in the period as well as Keyser took a commanding 33-20 advantage into the locker room after doubling-up the Indians in the quarter.
Keyser outscored Berkeley 23-12 in period three to take a 20-point lead into the final quarter and led 52-32.
Maverick Nelson grabbed 10 points and scored 10 more for Keyser to earn a double-double, while Preston Hartman hauled in 11 loose caroms and scored nine.
Ryan Redick and Lenny Roach both scored 15 points for Berkeley Springs, while Mike Twigg rounded out the double-digit scoring with 10 points.
Keyser is 5-2 on the season.
Keyser won the jayvee contest as well, rolling to a 70-22 win that was never in doubt.
R.C. Pratt led the jayvee with 21 points, while Peyton Hartman and Langston Hines both added 10, the latter coming away with five steals and the former seven boards. Chris Halbritter scored nine points.
Keyser made it a program sweep, as the freshman beat the ‘lil Indians 55-21.

Keyser Pulls Away from Northern, 58-33

KEYSER, W.Va. — The game was close early, but a strong defensive effort in the second quarter broke the game open as fourth-ranked Keyser defeated Northern 58-33 Wednesday evening at Keyser High School.

After leading 10-6 after one quarter, Keyser held Northern scoreless for more than five minutes in the second to open up a 20-11 lead by halftime. In the second half, Keyser was just too quick and athletic for Northern as it continued to widen the lead to 40-26 entering the fourth quarter before taking the 25-point win.

Jeremy Green’s double-double led Keyser with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Preston Hartman had 13 rebounds to go with his seven points. Matt Wilmer was solid all around with seven points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals. Maverick Nelson was also in double figures for the Tornado with 13 points.

Thomas Holtschnieder led Northern with eight points.

Keyser also won the JV game 62-43. R.C. Pratt led Keyser with 16 points, and Cody Humberson had 18 for Northern.

Keyser (4-2) will be on the road Friday against Berkeley Springs. Northern (4-5) hosts Frankfort on Saturday.

Keyser Stymies Northern, 58-33

KEYSER — The Keyser Golden Tornado held the Northern Huskies without a field goal for over ten minutes in the first half and used a pair of second-half runs to build a comfortable lead en route to a 58-33 win at Tornado Alley Wednesday night.
Jeremy Green paced the Keyser effort with 14 points and ten rebounds, with Maverick Nelson close behind with 13 points. Matt Wilmer had seven points, six assists and four steals.
Thomas Holtschneider led Northern with eight points.
Both teams came out cold; Green picked up the game's first basket on a fade-away baseline jumper with 5:49 left in the first quarter, then back-to-back Northern layups gave the Huskies a small lead before Green hit a pair at the foul line with 3:42 left to tie the game at four.
Matt Gibson re-established the Husky lead with a pair of foul shots with 2:58 left in the first quarter, but the Golden Tornado finished the quarter on a 6-0 run.
After a Wes Washington free throw with 2:54 left, Maverick Nelson hit a three from the left wing to give Keyser a 8-6 lead at the 2:15 mark, then a Preston Hartman layup with under a minute to go off a nice baseline feed from Nelson pushed the cushion to four to end the quarter.
Washington picked a Husky pocket and went untouched for a layup ten seconds into the second quarter.
Jarell Ross hit a six-footer at the 7:24 mark, then Washington tallied another layup at 7:08. Keyser led, 16-6. Hartman continued the Tornado surge with a layup from the left block with five-and-a-half minutes left in the half. Northern finally ended a drought of over ten minutes from the field when Dylan Miller hit a jump shot from the foul line. A pair of Holtschneider free throws pulled the Huskies back within single digits, 18-10, with 1:49 left in the second quarter.
Hartman finished out the Keyser scoring for the first half with a second-chance bucket with 47 seconds left. To close out the half, Northern's Trevor Tombley hit the first of two free throws with 4.6 seconds left. Keyser led at the half, 20-11.
Hartman led all scorers with six first-half points; Washington was close behind with five.
The Huskies cut the lead to seven with fifteen seconds gone in the third quarter on a ten-foot jump shot from Ed Herpel, but Keyser re-established their nine-point cushion when Green found Nelson in transition for a layup.
After a Rayner stick-back for Northern, the Golden Tornado found the accelerator.
Buckets by Green, Wilmer, Hartman, and Wilmer again propelled the KHS lead to 30-15 with 4:23 left in the third quarter. A Holtschneider layup out of a Northern timeout halted the run, but Wes Stullenbarger picked up a layup in transition, then turned provider, losing a Husky defender with a pump-fake and slotting the ball to Jeremy Green for a six-foot jump shot.
Then it was Green to Nelson with 2:25 left in the third quarter to give Keyser their biggest lead of the night so far at 36-17.
The Huskies picked up their play, however, pouring in the next seven points to cut the lead to 36-24 with 1:15 left in the quarter, but that was as close as they could get. Nelson ended the run with a layup, then the teams traded foul shots the rest of the quarter. Keyser led 40-26 after three periods. After Northern pulled within 12 points on a pair of foul shots, the Golden Tornado went on a 7-0 run to put the game out of reach at 47-28 with 4:40 left. Green then scored six straight Keyser points to push the lead above 20.
Playing predominantly junior varsity players the final few minutes, the Golden Tornado led by as many at 26 and cruised to a 58-33 win.
The game was originally scheduled for Tuesday night but was pushed back a day due to inclement weather.
The Golden Tornado won the junior varsity game, 62-43, thanks to a 20-point outburst in the fourth quarter.
Northern (4-5) hosts Frankfort on Saturday.