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The Columbus Cardinals' felt like they could have been district champions last year, and realistically were just two games away from doing so. Unfortunately for the Cards, there was one team standing in their way that gave Columbus their only two district losses that prevented them from becoming champions. The Industrial Cobras won every one of their district games last season including the two victories against Columbus that clinched the district title. The Cards finally got their revenge for last year's sweep as well as put themselves in strong position to potentially become this years district champs after beating Industrial in a close game on Tuesday, Jan 3. The Cards got a solid start to the game but were forced to withstand a comeback effort by their opponents, eventually holding on to win 36-34.
The Cards started this game with high intensity on the defensive end. They held Industrial to just six points in the opening quarter, and then followed with an even better performance in the second by holding the Cobras to five points. Columbus also scored into double digits in each of the first two quarters, creating a big, 11-point lead as they went into the halftime break. Industrial began somewhat of a comeback that started with an improved defensive effort. They held the Cards to only four points immediately following halftime and scored a game-high 14 points in the fourth as the offensive attack joined their defensive efforts as they cut the lead. The Cobras drew close, but could not get over the hump as they suffered the tight loss that gave Columbus the advantage in the district standings.
The Cardinals were led in scoring by Trevor Berger who has continued to put up numbers and lead the team on offense. His impact running mate Colton Pitchford also made his presence felt with nine points in the low-scoring affair. Cristian Reyna added nine points as well to round out the top three scorers for Columbus.
The victory keeps Columbus undefeated in district play and brings their overall record to 14-4.
SUB-VARSITY RESULTS:
FR-
Columbus: 46
Industrial: 32
JV-
Columbus 46
Industrial: 32
