On senior night, regulation was not enough as the Warriors and Lions needed extra time in a classic EBC contest at the West Branch Fieldhouse on Friday night.  West Branch prevailed in overtime 55-51 to stay perfect in the EBC at 6-0 and improve to 7-5 on the season.

West Branch knew the second time through the rough EBC schedule would be a challenge and Minerva gave the Warriors everything they could handle tonight.  West Branch jumped out to an early 7-0 lead, but Minerva trimmed the lead and trailed by only one, 19-18, at the half.  West Branch would take a ten point lead in the third period at 31-21, but Minerva would not go away and battled back to tie the game.  The fourth quarter was a close affair as neither team was able to pull away.  After a West Branch turnover with :17 left, Minerva held the ball for the last shot.  After a couple timeouts and a West Branch foul, Minerva was unable to get a shot off and the game headed to overtime.

In overtime, the score continued to stay close as West Branch would build a four point lead, but Minerva was able to cut the lead back to two multiple times from the free throw line.  Jeremiah Thomas was the key down the stretch in overtime as he was perfect from the line including six straight in the final seconds to keep the Warriors ahead.  In all Thomas was 10-10 from the line with a game high 28 points which also included two three point baskets.

Gavin Gregory finished the day with 10 points but had to leave midway through the third quarter.  The rest of the Warriors battled, playing strong defense and hitting clutch shots when needed.  Kasen Weaver had two three's for six points while Grady Hirst finished with five points and Brock Woost had four.

Before the game the Warriors celebrated its five seniors Zach Coffee, Chase Gee, Gavin Gregory, Jeremiah Thomas, and Kasen Weaver.

Next up:  West Branch will travel to Marlington next Friday, January 23rd for another key EBC contest.  The game will tip at approximately 6:45 PM.