New Knoxville blows out Wayne Tracey in Division IV semifinal

By Daniel Labbe

March 13, 2008, 8:36PM

New Knoxville started fast in their Division IV semifinal matchup against Wayne Trace and never looked back. The Rangers will play Worthington Christian in the championship game Saturday afternoon following their 62-41 win over the Wayne Trace Raiders.

The Rangers were paced by Ryan VanderHorst's 16 points and 11 rebounds in a game in which the fourth quarter was merely a formality. Aaron Hockenberry led Wayne Trace with 14 points.

New Knoxville finished the first quarter on a 10-2 run, opening a 16-6 lead thanks to a 58% shooting clip in the quarter. The Rangers looked to run off every Wayne Trace miscue as the Raiders opened the game shooting a chilly 25%. Ryan VanderHorst scored 6 in the opening frame.

Wayne Trace closed to within 19-14 midway through the second, but turnovers and missed opportunities put a halt to their attempts at drawing closer by the break. New Knoxville went into the locker room leading 25-14.

Wayne Trace pulled to within 8 on an and-one by New Knoxville's Aaron Hockenberry, but a jumper just inside the 3-point line by Vanderhorst helped spark a 13-0 run to end the quarter with a 46-25 lead.

Brad Piehl added 13 points and 7 rebounds for New Knoxville while Austin Arnett chipped in 11.