Lions open season at 2-1 mark

MOSES LAKE – The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions earned their second win of the season Monday night, going on the road to take down Cascade (Leavenworth) 58-40 in the team’s second non-league matchup of the season. 

MLCA/CCS has opened the year with a 2-1 record. 

“We’re excited to get on the hardwood, versus somebody other than ourselves,” head coach Emerson Ferguson said.  

While the Lions have played in two non-league matchups so far this year, they actually began the season with a Central Washington B game against Wilson Creek, playing the Devils on the road in the season opener Dec. 3. 

“They kind of work your nerves a little bit, because everyone’s different every year,” Ferguson said. “It’s really hard to know what Wilson Creek was going to look like, and they’ve definitely improved as a team.” 

Aided by a 20-point night from junior Johnny Ferguson and 15-point performances by juniors Dennis Gulenko and James Robertson, the Lions defeated the Devils 65-24. 

“We came out fast, and that’s something that we really wanted to do. I was really happy to see that, I feel like that was the biggest key – our team speed was at a really high level, which was great,” Emerson Ferguson said.  

Four days later, on Saturday, the Lions played host to Tonasket in the team’s first non-league matchup of the year. Shooting struggles underneath the basket plagued the Lions in the game, which fell 60-46 in favor of the Tigers. 

“We missed anywhere from 12-15 shots within two feet – that can account to anywhere from 20-plus points,” Emerson Ferguson said. “Now you’ve got a different ballgame. They were a really good team; they were fast, they were tough.” 

Johnny Ferguson again led the Lions in scoring, putting up 21 points against Tonasket. 

“They were a lot like us; they like to play fast, they like to move the ball and get shots up, (play) aggressive man defense,” Emerson Ferguson said. “What I feel it came down to was missed shots – we just missed way too many opportunities right as the basket.” 

On Monday the Lions traveled to Leavenworth to take on the Kodiaks — Emerson Ferguson said the team was more focused going into the matchup against a 1A school. 

“The boys were way more focused because of that loss,” he said. “I think that the focus and attention to detail was the boys recognizing, ‘Hey, we’ve got to step it up.’ I think that was more them than anything the coaches did or said, and they came out with the energy, and they went into attack mode to start the game.” 

MLCA/CCS defeated Cascade 58-40 to get back in the win column. After Johnny Ferguson’s 17 points, Gulenko finished the game with 14 and Robertson totaled eight. 

Gulenko is a player who has made a significant step in performance compared to last season, Emerson Ferguson said – the sophomore forward had totaled double-digit points in each of the first three games of the season and collected 29 rebounds. 

“He played a huge role last year, but just wasn’t big on the stat line — this year, he’s been huge on the stat line to start the season,” he said. “He’s the guy on the top of our press, he’s extremely athletic. He’s improved drastically from last year, and it’s so evident.” 

MLCA/CCS continues its non-league slate on Tuesday with a road game against Warden, followed by a home game against Bridgeport on Wednesday. Other non-league games on the schedule include home games against Manson on Jan. 2 and Liberty Christian on Jan. 9, as well as a road game against La Salle on Jan. 21. 

“These games aren’t easy, so we want to go in, we want to battle and we want to come out with the victory,” Emerson Ferguson said. “By doing that, that allows us to gain a lot of experience. When we play these bigger schools, they’re usually going to have bigger kids and a lot of the times the competition is going to be higher. When we do that, it’s only to help us get prepared for the postseason and for league.” 

Tip-off between the Lions and Cougars is at 7 p.m. in Warden. 

    MLCA/CCS sophomore Treyson Kast (12) looks for a teammate to pass the ball to during Monday’s game against Cascade (Leavenworth).
  

    MLCA/CCS sophomore Kevin Jorgensen (34) defends against a Cascade (Leavenworth) player during Monday’s win over the Kodiaks.
  

    MLCA/CCS junior Dennis Gulenko, in blue, knocks the ball loose during Monday’s game at Cascade (Leavenworth).