Bobcats defeat cross county rivals

SUPERIOR – The Superior Bobcats, like their Lady Bobcat colleagues, played Arlee and Alberton last week and much like their counterparts came away with mixed results.

The team from Superior lost a tough game against Arlee but were able to dispatch their cross-county rivals in Alberton. Superior dropped the game against Arlee 42 to 32. Josh Benda had a strong offensive outing for the Bobcats putting up 12 points. Aaron Kelly had six points while Wyatt Zylawy put up eight points.

Head coach Chris Toivonen said he was impressed with how the team performed against the Panthers. Superior won the game 58 to 21.

“Josh Benda really shined and did a nice job passing the ball,” Toivonen said. “He did a great job for us. Aaron Kelly did a nice job on the glass with his rebounding. Vicente Guerrero and Wyatt Zylawy also did a nice job passing the ball and on defense. That game went really well.”

On Friday the team played Arlee who is ranked fourth in the division. Toivonen said despite the loss, the team played well against tall odds.

“We played a pretty solid game,” Toivonen said. “I thought, considering how talented Arlle is, we played a good game. They had an 11 point lead in the first half and that’s what got us. The boys improved a lot in that game and I was pretty proud of their effort. We are getting better and that was really good to see. Michael Perkins also did a lot of positive things for us.”

The Superior Bobcats will next face Hot Springs on Thursday, Jan. 29 and then another Sanders County rival Thompson Falls on Friday. Toivonen said he was expecting tough competition from both Sanders County teams.

“They are both really good teams,” Toivonen said. “They have a lot of talent and it will be a good test for us. We are looking to improve on the last time we met both of those teams.”