Photos by Ben Black
Rivalry Match vs. Nease
By Kennedy Rosendahl (December 5th)
The PVHS boys basketball team had a successful week. Last Tuesday, Nov. 30, the Sharks beat Bolles High School on the road with a score of 60-48. Then, on Friday night, PVHS played Nease High School at home. The rivalry between the two teams is heated, and the stands in The Tank were full. The Sharks came out on top with a close-scoring game of 52-48.
The Sharks’ first game was against Bolles. Junior, Nathan Bunkoski was the leading scorer with 18 on the board. Close behind him was senior, Ross Candelino with 17. The Sharks had an overall field goal percentage of 47 percent, and the Bolles Bulldogs only had an overall 43 percent. Candelino was 50 percent from three-point range going three for six from the arc. Senior, Luke Pirris also contributed 11 points to the Sharks win. The sharks outscored the Bulldogs in both the first and second quarters and the score at halftime was 31-14. In the third quarter, BHS started to come back, but they could not pull away from the Sharks, who matched their third quarter deficit in the fourth quarter. While the team’s three-point percentage was not as high as it was in the previous game against Pedro Menendez, the Sharks proved that they could do more than just shoot, and they still came out on top.
The rivalry game took place last Friday, Dec. 3. The Sharks defeated the Nease Panthers with a score of 52-48. Candelino was the leading scorer with 14 points. He went 100 percent from the three-point line, shooting 3/3. Behind him were Pirris and Bunkoski with 11. Senior, JT Kelly also added ten points to the win. The Sharks maintained a lead the entire first half, and at halftime the score was 31-21. The Panthers started to come back in the third quarter, outscoring the Sharks by eight points. When the fourth quarter started, the Sharks were leading 39-37. As the clock wound down, the NHS team took their first lead of the game. With one minute to go, the Sharks had tied it up 48-48. Bunkoski was then fouled and made both of his free throws putting the Sharks up two. Then, the Panthers were stopped on defense and sophomore, Sam Ritchie secured the win with a layup as time expired. The PVHS student section stormed the court to celebrate the victory over their rivals.
The student section participated in the theme “Rich-out” and really showed up to support the Sharks. The game was completely sold out and the students took up most of the seats. The so called “Tank of Terror” was so loud and they fueled the players adrenaline. Ross Candelino said, “They (the students) definitely brought a lot more energy to the team and it felt unreal in the gym.” The leading scorer also brought insight to their performance and stated, “We need to work on execution and rebounding.” Nevertheless, the Sharks earned their win against the Panthers, by working hard and playing together.
The Sharks’ next game is Tuesday, Dec. 7, against Providence at home. The theme for this game is “Holiday Hat.” Providence is also 3-0 so the Sharks need to prepare accordingly for this team.
Preseason Opener
By Kennedy Rosendahl (November 25th)
The PVHS boys basketball team started off their season with a 60-29 win last Tuesday, Nov 23, against Pedro Menendez High School. The Sharks made 51 percent of their field goals overall and controlled the game from the start. Junior, Nate Bunkosky was the leading scorer with 14 points and Senior, Ross Candelino a close second with 12. Eight Sharks’ players contributed points to the win, showing how well this team can work together.
In the first quarter, the Sharks outscored PMHS 16-7. The Sharks played great defense, and seniors Luke Pirris and Gus Jordheim each ended up with a charge within the first two minutes of the game. The first points of the game came from Pirris, who dominates the paint for the Sharks. Candelino had eight of his twelve points in the first quarter. PMHS was not hitting their shots and PVHS was controlling the offensive and defensive rebounds. In the second quarter, the Sharks did not let up and continued to put pressure on PMHS. They ran up the score to 48-14, only allowing seven points to be scored again in this quarter. PVHS moved the ball up the floor quickly and effectively. They dominated the fast breaks and PMHS couldn’t keep up with the speed of the Sharks’ game. The second half was less eventful since the Sharks had already secured their win in the first half.
The team had 11 total threes on the night, shooting 36 percent from the arc. Three-point shooting is an important part of the Sharks’ offense. Assistant coach Antwoin Conerly stated, “Shooting is definitely a strength for this team!” When facing tougher opponents, one three-pointer could be the difference between winning and losing. Each game needs to be played from tip-off and the PVHS team definitely played from tip-off against PMHS. “We expect them to play hard every second of every game,” coach Antwoin also said.
The Sharks’ next game is away against Bolles on Nov 30. Bolles is currently 2-0 so PVHS will need to come prepared for this team.
By Kennedy Rosendahl (November 22nd)
The Ponte Vedra High School boys basketball team started their season this weekend playing in their preseason tournament that was hosted by Andrew Jackson High School in Jacksonville. The Sharks played two games, one on Friday night and one on Saturday night. Although the Sharks lost both, it does not count towards their record, and it prepared them for the regular season. Their season opener is November 23rd against Menendez on the road.
The first game the PVHS team played was against Potter’s House and they lost 49-59. At the end of the first quarter, it was tied at 10-10; but after that, Potter’s House maintained control of the rest of the game. In the third quarter, the Sharks brought it back within seven points, but they couldn’t come out on top in the end. Nate Bunkosky and Ross Candelino did well against the team. Candelino led the team in points, with 17. He had three three-pointers and went 100 percent from the free throw line. Bunkosky had the second most points, with 14, and led the team in rebounds. The Sharks got out-rebounded 41 to 24. This will need to improve if the sharks want to have a successful season.
The second game the Sharks played was against Andrew Jackson and they lost 50-72. AJHS started off the game with a 12-0 run, and the sharks had to recover. At the end of the first half, the Sharks went on a run and brought the score within nine points. Unfortunately, the strong AJHS team pulled away after that. Leading the scorers was Bunkosky, who had 12 points. He went 2/6 from the three-point line and had two steals that led to transition points. Candelino had 11 points. He went 2/3 from the three-point line. The Sharks had a higher three-point percentage than AJHS, with an overall of 38 percent. AJHS only had 28 percent of their shots fall. Greg Constain also performed well in this game, with eight points and going 75 percent from the three-point line. The Sharks got out-rebounded again in this game. AJHS had 38 rebounds and PVHS only had 25.
The PVHS team was missing a few players for this preseason tournament, including a few starters. For the future, the Sharks need to rebound more effectively. This will come with more time and cooperation within the Sharks team. This PVHS team can shoot the lights out and this will be a good year for the sharks once they come together.
