FIELD TWP— It was a blowout of near historic proportions here on Tuesday night as North Woods crushed a struggling Cherry squad 130-12, despite the fact that the Grizzlies’ bench played much of the game. The Grizzlies led 72-7 by the half.

Cherry’s young and shorthanded team has had a tough go this season, but hadn’t yet allowed a team to hit triple digits. But the top-ranked Grizzlies have proved they aren’t an ordinary high school basketball team, as the latest win, which improved their record to 14-0, attests.

Cade Goggleye poured in 21 points to lead scoring for North Woods, although he had plenty of help as 14 Grizzlies players put points on the board and five hit double figures. Tate Olson added 18 for the Grizzlies, followed by Chase Kleppe and Darius Goggleye, with 15 apiece. Dylan Chiabotti added an even dozen, while Trevor Morrison tallied eight points, Brendan Parson added seven, and Tanner Lokken and Blake Scofield added six apiece.

Grizzlies top Virginia

In action last Thursday, the top-ranked Class A Grizzlies faced their biggest test of the season as they hosted Class 2A powerhouse Virginia in a jam-packed auditorium. They emerged with their perfect record still intact, but just barely, as they won 58-55 in a game that proved a nail-biter right down to the final seconds.

The Grizzlies had to play a little catch-up to get there, as they spotted the Blue Devils the first eight points of the game. They slowly worked themselves back into the match, managing to knot it up at 26 apiece by the half. It was back and forth the rest of the way as the two teams traded leads more than once.

“A win over Virginia is always a big one,” said Coach Kleppe. “They are an extremely well-coached team and their size creates a serious match-up issue for a team of our size. Fortunately we were able to use our speed in bursts to attack the basket in the second half and make a few free throws to keep the margin in our favor.” 

Junior guard Cade Goggleye had a big game for the Grizzlies, notching a double-double, with ten points and 12 assists. Brendan Parson tallied 12 points to lead the Grizzlies’ scoring attack, while Tate Olson notched ten points. Travis Lokken and Chase Kleppe each tallied nine points, while Travis Morrison notched eight to round out scoring for the Grizzlies.

Jayden Bernard and Ethan Youso dominated scoring for the Blue Devils, with 17 and 16 points respectively.

“Going into the second half of the season, I think this game was a reminder that there is still work to be done and we must keep our focus as we make the run towards tournaments,” said Kleppe. “I anticipate another good battle when we see Virginia again next month.” That game will be played in Virginia and is likely to be another big draw for basketball fans. The game at North Woods was standing room only.

Meanwhile, the Grizzlies hit the road on Friday to play Eveleth-Gilbert. Game time is 7:15 p.m.