BY MICHAEL DAVID

The Sun Valley Community School Cutthroats welcomed the visiting Dietrich Blue Devils to the Fishtank Thursday for a basketball tilt on Senior Night.

The Blue Devils came away with a hard fought victory, winning 60-55. But the night belonged to Cutthroat senior Peter Morawitz.

Morawitz, one of the most decorated athletes in Cutthroat history, was honored before the contest for his contributions to the basketball program for the last seven seasons.

The senior has captured two State Tennis Singles Championships and has a chance at a third this spring.

He was a captain on the Cutthroat State Champion Soccer Team and has grown into the leader on the hardwood for the Cutthroats’ extremely young and talented varsity basketball squad.

Dietrich remained undefeated in conference play after outlasting the Cutthroats in front of a large crowd in Sun Valley. Along with Morawitz, the home team started three freshman: Wilson Baker, Braden Buchanan, and Sid Tomlinson and sophomore Caelin Bradshaw. Other underclassmen getting significant playing time were freshman Jack Colgate and George Murray and sophomore Jackson Giles.

The Cutthroats kept the game close in the first half behind the scoring, rebounding and blocked shots of Tomlinson. Tomlinson patrolled the paint, denying the Blue Devils time after time, and the upstarts trailed Dietrich 34-27 at halftime. Sophomore Brady Power provided most of the scoring for the visitors, dropping 22 points on the Cutthroats in the first half.

Dietrich began to pull away and threatened to make the game a blowout in the third period, extending their lead to 48-37 three quarters through the ball game. However, Morawitz and the underclassmen rode the emotion of the evening and the crowd to pull within three points with less than one minute to play at 58-55. The Cutthroats had the ball and an opportunity to tie the game, but Power iced the game with two free throws after a turnover to provide the 60-55 final score.

Sun Valley Community School will take on the Carey Panthers at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29  in Carey.