Haxtun-Holyoke game comes down to the wire

    Close games are the most fun to watch, and the energy in the Haxtun gym was palpable as the basketball teams faced off Dec. 14. The excitement, however, made it all the more disappointing to Holyoke fans when the Bulldogs won 56-49.
    The Dragons took to the Haxtun court looking good and playing well as a team. In the first quarter in particular, they played with controlled confidence. By the time the buzzer sounded, they’d gained a 15-8 lead. Where the starting five meshed well and played off one another’s strengths, the chemistry seemed to be missing when substitutions started being made.
    In the second quarter, the Bulldogs slowly started gaining as the Dragons struggled to make their shots. When Haxtun missed a shot and subsequently got the rebound — several times in a row — the Bulldogs tied the game on what must have been at least the fifth attempt to put it back up. From that point on, the two teams battled fiercely for the lead. At the half, Haxtun had pulled ahead 27-19.
    The Dragons stayed in the game, holding their opponents to just five points in the third quarter. The 14 points Holyoke scored put them ahead by a single point going into the final period.

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