The Eureka High School boys began the 2026 portion of their schedule with a 82-62 loss to the Yellowjackets at Fredonia. This loss, which dropped their record to 2-5 for the season, wasn’t nearly as bad as the score indicated, as it came down to one very bad quarter.
The Tornadoes and the Yellowjackets opened the game at a fast pace, ending the first quarter with Eureka holding a 20-17 lead. The Tornadoes were bolstered by the return of junior Easton Mead, who was inactive for the first six games due to an injury.
The wheels fell off during the second quarter, when the Yellowjackets started hitting shots from all over the court. With shots from beyond the arc and a bruising game in the paint, the ‘Jackets rolled the Tornadoes 33-11. Once again, the Tornadoes went cold during the quarter, and foul trouble made playing defense difficult.
After halftime, the Tornadoes and the Yellowjackets played evenly, but the local boys were unable to make up the deficit Fredonia built in the second quarter. The Tornadoes shot 38% from the field during the game, but only 25% during the second quarter. Turnovers and being out-rebounded by the bigger ‘Jackets also played a role during that quarter, with the Tornadoes getting only 5 rebounds while the Fredonia squad netted 16.
Junior Tyson Coon scored 26 points for the Tornadoes. Senior Cole Ptacek had 13 and sophomore Brody Mitchell had 10. Mead had 8 and Cooper Roberson added 5.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final EHS 20 13 15 13 62 FHS 17 33 14 16 82
Up Next
Eureka will be back in action Friday, Jan. 16, when they travel to Burlington to face the Wildcats.
