By BROOKE APPLE, The Delphos Herald                                                                                                        

DELPHOS — Kalida and Jefferson met at “The Stage” for the annual Wildcat boys basketball battle Saturday night.

The Kalida Wildcats were able to pull out the victory at the buzzer, winning 33-31. Trailing 23-16 starting the fourth quarter, Jefferson came out strong and eventually took the lead. Senior Michael Wiltsie (6 points) drained a three with 4:00 left on the clock to tie the game at 28. Less than two minutes later, junior Matt Antalis (9 rebounds) was fouled and made one free throw to give Jefferson its only lead of the night, 29-28. Kalida’s Matt Warnecke drained a 3 just 29 seconds later to give Kalida the lead back. Sophomore Jordan Jettinghoff was fouled with 11.8 seconds remaining on a 3-pointer, receiving three free shots. After two shots, Kalida (2-2) called time to set up a play. Jettinghoff hit 2-of-3 to tie the game at 31. Kalida’s Justin Kahle (5 markers) came down covered by Jefferson defenders but was still able to get the shot off and make it at the horn, giving Kalida the victory. Kalida came out huge after the tip, holding Jefferson scoreless the entire first period. The biggest lead of the game was eight with Kalida in front. There were only 21 shots taken by both teams in the first, only two of them going through the net for Kalida. They added four foul shots to give them an 8-0 lead after one. “We dug ourselves into too big of a hole right off the bat. Kalida would hit shots and we didn’t hit enough as we searched and searched for different combinations,” stated Jefferson coach Marc Smith. “We are all about a team and we feel that on any given night, any varsity player could contribute with different combinations.” Jefferson was the first team on the board in the second period as Craig Carder (8 points) came out early to drain a 3. Kalida used a timeout with 1:34 remaining up 15-12. Kalida would score two more points, as Jefferson was unable to score in the last minute to trail 17-12 at halftime. The third quarter saw Jefferson score four and Kalida six for a 23-16 deficit. Jefferson only turned the ball over six times (9 for Kalida) and outrebounded Kalida 35-27 (17-7 offensive), with seven from junior Matt Gerdeman. The Jeffcats canned 10-of-44 (5-of-29 3s) for 22.7% and 6-of-13 singles (46.2%). Kalida was 13-of-32, 1-of-3 treys, for 40.6% and 6-of-14 at the line (42.9%). “Our biggest fear coming into the season would be our offense and it is still a concern as we try to find a combination each game and we are still working on getting better with our offense,” added Smith. “Our defense was outstanding tonight and so far this season as we are only allowing (34) points a game. We need to give Kahle credit for the great play he made at the end of the game and that is what were looking for; someone to step up in close situations.” Jefferson (2-1) travels to Lima Central Catholic Friday. Kalida plays again Saturday, welcoming in Crestview. In JV action, Jefferson (2-0) won 57-21. Jefferson was led in scoring by Tyree DeWitt with 12; Jeremy Kahle and Mike Bockrath led Kalida with six each.