The boys varsity basketball team had their home opener against the Wadsworth Grizzlies on December 9, 2016 in the James G. Tyree Gymnasium. The Bulldogs coming off a big win vs Kent prepared hard for Wadsworth who was coming off a win on a game winning shot at the buzzer.

Both teams were 1-0 going into the matchup, so that meant one team was bound to get their first loss of the season. Stow started off extremely slow letting Wadsworth get an early 11-0 lead in the first quarter. After a Bulldog timeout, they closed the gap to only be down by one. In the second quarter, Stow took the first lead of the game by senior guard, Logan Lindsay making two free throws to put them up one.

At halftime the Grizzlies led 29-28. Head coach, Dave Close, came into the Bulldog locker room and talked to the team to get them pumped up to go out and win in the second half.

It was Stow ball to start the second half, and they ran a play to get an easy layup to give them the lead. They then got a stop on defense going on a 8-0 run to give them the lead, 36-29. The Grizzlies fought back though making it interesting. At the end of the third quarter, it was still a tight game with Stow leading 45-42.

There was only eight minutes left in the game for the Bulldogs to hold their lead. The fourth quarter was a physical one. There were many points scored and also many fouls committed. Both teams were in the bonus, which means they get to shoot up to two free throws with any foul. Stow only missed five free throws the whole game making 22 out of 27.

Stow ended up pulling out the victory by a score of 71-69.  Senior guard, Nick Kollar, was Stow’s leading scorer with 14 points. Kollar made some very important shots that put the Bulldogs up when they needed it most. Fans hope the Bulldogs will carry this momentum with them throughout the rest of the season.