Cedar races past Crofton to stay unbeaten

HARTINGTON — Cedar Catholic showed in its home opener last week that quick hands, and long distance shooting can be a dangerous combination.

The Trojans blasted Crofton 70-31 Tuesday for a MidStates Conference win.

Cedar now boasts a 3-0 record on the year, but the Trojans are going to face some very stiff competition right after Christmas.

Brady Steffen gave the Crofton offense fits, collecting seven steals on the night and forcing several other turnovers. As a team, Cedar earned 16 steals and forced 24 Crofton turnovers.

The Cedar offense also caused problems for the Warriors, as everyone seemed to have a hot shooting hand. The Trojans ended the night with four athletes in double figures, led by Tate Thoene’s 19 and Myles Thoene’s 18 points.

The Trojans stormed out of the gate to build a quick 11-2 lead before Crofton called a time out to try and regroup. The break didn’t help much, though, as the Trojans finished the first quarter with a 15-6 run to take a 26-8 lead at the close of the opening frame.

The early offensive explosion was fueled by eight Carter Arens points and seven from Tate Thoene.

“We started the game really fast, we pushed the ball well and got some easy buckets,” Coach Matt Steffen said.

Crofton worked to slow down the Trojans’ fast break in the second quarter, limiting the Trojans to just eight points, while the Warriors knocked down 17 of their own to whittle their deficit to nine points, 34-25, at the halftime break.

Cedar came out of the locker room with a renewed energy and a desire to shoot the long ball as they hit 4-6 from downtown in the second half.

The Trojans outscored Crofton 28-2 in the third quarter to put the game away.

Myles Thoene powered the thirdquarter surge, connecting for four three-pointers without a miss. Charlie Schroeder was also hot in the third quarter, hitting for four jumpers. Tate Thoene chipped in with six third-quarter points and Brady Steffen added a bucket in the frame.

Reserves came in midway through the final frame to mop up.

Cedar 26 8 288 — 70 Crofton 8 172 4 — 31

Cedar Crofton FG 25-47 11-32 3PT 6-17 1-7 FT 2-5 6-14 Reb 37 29 TOs 11 24 Fouls 14 10

SCORING

Cedar - Tate Thoene, 19; Myles Thoene, 18; Charlie Schroeder, 12; Carter Arens, 10; Brady Steffen, 4; Carsen Arens, 3; Mack Kuehn, 2; Hunter Thoene,

2. Crofton - Jayden Eilers, 7; Mason Ostermeyer, 7; Payton Bartels, 6; Roy Knapp, 5; Paul Burbach, 2; Andy Knapp, 2; Austin Tramp, 2.

REBOUNDS

Cedar - Tate Thoene, 9; Charlie Schroeder, 9; Brady Steffen, 7; Carter Arens, 3; Jackson Bernecker, 3; Myles Thoene, 2; Hunter Thoene, 1; Blake Arens, 1. Crofton - Payton Bartels, 5; Andy Knapp, 5; Austin Tramp, 2; Justin Potts, 1; Roy Knapp, 1; Jayden Eilers, 1; Mason Ostermeyer, 1; Paul Burbach, 1.

ASSISTS

Cedar - Brady Steffen, 5; Tate Thoene, 3; Carsen Arens, 3; Carer Arens, 2; Jackson Bernecker, 1; Blake Arens, 1. Crofton - Justin Potts, 1.

STEALS

Cedar - Brady Steffen, 7; Tate Thoene, 4; Myles Thoene, 3; Jackson Bernecker, 1; Charlie Schroeder,

1.