BY MICHAEL DAVID

Before the District II-A play-in game against Castleford, Coach Connor Wade and his squad got confirmation that their senior leader, Peter Morawitz, would not be available due to illness.

But the freshmen and sophomores embraced the challenge as they took the court at The Fish Tank on the campus of the Sun Valley Community School Monday night. Still, despite a valiant effort by the young Cutthroats, the Wolves were able to come from behind to defeat the Cutthroats 48-44, ending the season for this promising young squad.

The Cutthroats came out firing on all cylinders, staking a 16-4 first quarter lead behind the scoring of freshmen Sid Tomlinson, Wilson Baker and Jack Colgate and sophomores Caelin Bradshaw and George Murray. The Wolves began to cut into the lead in the second quarter, forcing turnovers with a frenetic full-court press, much to the delight of the large contingent that had traveled from the Magic Valley for this contest. However, the home team maintained a four- point margin at the midway break.

The teams battled evenly through most of the second half, as Tomlinson handled most of the scoring and rebounding duties for the Cutthroats against a senior-laden Castleford team. The Wolves grabbed their first lead of the game late in the final quarter, and were able to hold on for the 48-44 victory to move into the District II-A playoffs versus the top-seeded and undefeated (18-0) team from Lighthouse Christian.

The Cutthroats finished their season with a record of 5-10. But Coach Wade was impressed with the way his team dealt with the adversity and is looking forward to next season and beyond with this talented group of freshman and sophomores.