Lions defeat Eagles 60-21 at home

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Christian Academy/Covenant Christian School Lions (12-0) earned a strong 60-21home victory over the Soap Lake Eagles (1-7) to continue their undefeated season. 

“I feel like the team is doing really good,” said Lions senior Antonio Serrato. “We play really good together and know how to move the ball really well and get down the court really fast.” 

The Lions were on top of things from tip-off as they gained a 13-point lead over the Eagles in the first quarter while holding the opposition scoreless. Soap Lake made a stronger showing in the second and third quarters, but MLCA/CCS outscored in each quarter and earned the victory. 

Serrato had a strong performance throughout the game, scoring five three-pointers as he filled in Johnny Ferguson’s position while he was out. Serrato said it came to him naturally as he got into the flow of the game while playing Thursday. 

“I was just kind of feeling it tonight, and so I stepped up and had a lot of them,” he said. 

While the game had a bit of a different dynamic Thursday, with starters like Johnny Ferguson out, Lions Head Coach Emerson Ferguson said players like Serrato stepped up to the occasion and allowed for the team to play their game as usual. 

“I’m really proud with the boys finding a way to put the ball in the bucket and run the offense without them,” said coach Ferguson. “Just super proud of how they came together and had an absolutely monstrous game.”  

One significant aspect of the game he said the Lions still need to work on is execution and making sure there are no periods of a matchup where they are stagnant. He wants each of the MLCA/CCS players to continue to work together strong no matter what combinations of players are on the court. 

The Lions coach said this is something that the team works on throughout each practice and that there is little concern on who can fill in when a teammate is out. This is something that Serrato said is what has led to their success this season. 

“I think one of our greatest strengths is the fact we know each other really well so we know how we’re going to think or how to pass the ball to each other,” said Serrato. 

While the Eagles took a loss on the road, Head Coach Mingo Scott said this is still just another step towards becoming a stronger team.  

“Moses Lake Christian is a super-talented team, and we’re still trying to find our way,” said Scott. “All I wanted to do was be competitive and play hard, and I think they did that tonight.” 

He said a key lesson for the Eagles after facing MLCA/CCS was how to run plays with defensive pressure on them. Going against a strong defensive team allowed Soap Lake to find ways to create space and set up passes in a variety of ways. 

As the Eagles move forward in the season, Scott said he wants to work to get the players all on the same page by the time February hits. Many of the players are either freshmen or haven’t had varsity experience, so it has been a lot about learning both the higher level of play and each other as teammates this year. 

“It’s like baking a cake and we haven’t got in the oven yet,” said the Eagles coach. “We’re going to struggle and we’re going to stay in that situation until everybody is on the same page.” 

The Lions are heading on the road Friday Jan. 16 to face Wellpinit at 7:30 p.m. The Eagles returned home Saturday to play Manson, but the results of that game were unavailable at the time of publication. Soap Lake will remain at home Tuesday to face the Wilson Creek Devils at 7:30 p.m. 

BOX SCORE:  

MLCA: 13-17-18-12: 60
SPLK: 0-7-10-4: 21 

    Senior Dennis Gulenko from MLCA/CCS works to take the ball past freshman defender Mark Sushik from Soap Lake.