Karns City boys basketball’s defense clamps down on A-C Valley while Cole Johnston goes for 22
KARNS CITY — With the game on the line, Karns City went to its ace in the hole — and pitched a shutout.
The Gremlins took a 39-38 lead into the fourth quarter against A-C Valley in the second game of the Karns City Shootout Tournament Monday night, then held the Falcons scoreless in the final eight minutes. KC’s defensive effort sparked a 53-38 boys basketball victory.
“For us to be successful, we have to be a blue collar team and that starts with defense,” Gremlins coach Jalen Price said. “They (Falcons) shot the lights out in the third quarter, and we had to do something about it.”
A Xavier Bartoe 3-pointer gave Karns City (5-3) a 33-21 lead with 5:34 left in the third period. But A-C Valley (3-6), led by the outside shooting of Joe Rapp, put together an 11-0 run to pull within 33-32. Rapp’s third 3-pointer of the period knotted the game at 35, and Carter Snyder drained a trey for a 38-35 Falcon lead with 2:09 left in the quarter.
An Owen Kaufman layup and a Bartoe jumper gave the Gremlins their 39-38 edge entering the fourth.
“It takes so much effort to go on a run like that,” A-C Valley assistant coach Leo Marron said. “That requires a lot of energy and effort to do. In the fourth quarter ... I don’t think we had anything left.”
Rapp, who led the Falcons with 23 points, was able to get off only three field goal attempts in the final eight minutes. No other A-C Valley player scored more than five points. Noah Ithen, the Falcons’ leading rebounder with nine, fouled out in the fourth quarter.
Karns City enjoyed a 42-19 advantage on the boards.
“That’s where we lost the game,” Marron said. “The lack of rebounding killed us. We just don’t have much size to go get the ball.”
Bartoe had nine points and 13 rebounds for the Gremlins, while Kaufman had 10 boards.
“Both of those guys are guards,” Price said. “These kids know we have to win the rebound battle to win games. They’ve bought in.”
Cole Johnston led the Gremlins with 22 points, but Karns City failed to score a point in the final quarter until Josh Peters hit a layup with 4:50 left in the game and a short jumper 40 seconds later. Peters came off the bench to tally eight points and four rebounds.
He scored six of his points in the fourth quarter.
“That felt good,” Peters said of his late contribution. “I had the flu last week and missed a lot of practice. I didn’t get back until Friday.”
“He’s normally a starter, but we’re trying to work him back in slowly,” Price said. “I was on him earlier in the game when he was struggling, and he responded. I’m proud of him for that.”
Peters shrugged it off.
“I like the criticism,” he said. “That’s how you get better. Anytime I come into the game, I treat the score like it’s 0-0 and go from there.”
A-C VALLEY 38
Noah Ithen 1-3 0-2 2, Ryan Sacovsek 2-5 0-0 5, Carter Snyder 2-5 0-1 5, Joe Rapp 7-16 5-8 23, Ryan Armagost 1-3 0-0 3, Lexan Allworth 0-1 0-0 0, Seth Shirey 0-0 0-0 0, Broc Gagliano 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 13-36 5-11 38.
KARNS CITY 53
Owen Kaufman 2-5 1-3 5, Aaron Rupp 0-1 0-0 0, Bryce Galan 3-8 1-1 7, Cole Johnston 9-23 4-5 22, Keagan Schrecengost 1-3 0-0 2, Xavier Bartoe 4-11 0-0 9, Trevor Geibel 0-0 0-0 0, Josh Peters 3-4 2-3 8, Trevor Rumbaugh 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 22-54 8-12 53.
A-C Valley 12 7 19 0 — 38
Karns City 10 14 15 14 — 53
3-point goals: A-C Valley 7 (Sacovsek, Rapp 4, Armagost, Snyder), Karns City 1 (Bartoe)
Tuesday: A-C Valley vs. Redbank Valley, 6 p.m.; Union vs. Karns City, 7:30 p.m.
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Karns City's Bryce Galan (3) grabs a rebound against A-C Valley in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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A-C Valley's Joe Rapp (31) hits for 3-pointer against Karns City in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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Karns City head coach Jalen Price gets excited on the sideline in a boys basketball game against A-C Valley Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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Karns City's Bryce Galan (3) makes a breakaway layup against A-C Valley in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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Karns City's Keagan Schrecengost (21) makes a shot against A-C Valley in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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Karns City's Xavier Bartoe (23) looks to pass against A-C Valley in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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Karns City's Cole Johnston (11) goes for a layup against A-C Valley in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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Karns City's Cole Johnston (11) wins the tipoff against A-C Valley's Joe Rapp (31) in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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A-C Valley's Carter Snyder (3) drives to the basket against Karns City in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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A-C Valley's Noah Ithen (1) goes up for a rebound against Karns City's Bryce Galan (3) in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
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A-C Valley's Joe Rapp (31) looks for an open lane as he is defended by Karns City's Xavier Bartoe (23) in a boys basketball game Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, during the Karns City Shootout at Karns City High School. Ralph LoVuolo/Special to the Eagle
