The Baltic Bulldogs took third place at the Big East Conference Tournament held Thursday, January 4th through Saturday, January 6th. The Bulldogs played Beresford on Thursday, Flandreau on Friday, and then Chester on Saturday.
Baltic 58, Beresford 45
The Bulldogs had to come from behind to get a win in the opening round of the tournament against the Beresford Watchdogs. Beresford led 12-4 at the end of the first quarter. Baltic rallied in the second quarter and took a 22-19 lead into halftime. The Bulldogs extended their lead to 36-30 by the end of the third quarter, and then Baltic outscored Beresford 22-15 in the final quarter.
Jack Erickson had 20 points and eight rebounds. Mark Ditter added 13 points, three rebounds, and five assists. Kellen Artz had 12 points, 10 rebounds, and three assists. Beau Brreece had nine points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
Flandreau 58, Baltic 51
The Flandreau Fliers started the game on a 12-0 run, but the Bulldogs cut the lead to 14-11 by the end o the first quarter. Baltic tied the game 14-14 with 5:30 to go in the first half, and then took their first lead 18-16 with 2:30 to play. The lead was short lived. The Fliers had a three-pointer on their next possession and then finished the half leading 25-20. Flandreau pushed the lead to 40-32 by the end of the third quarter. The Bulldogs just couldn’t overcome the deficit in the fourth quarter.
J. Erickson had 19 points and four rebounds. Ben Erickson had nine points and four rebounds. Ditter finished with eight points, two rebounds, and two steals. Artz had five points and three rebounds, and Breece also had five points with six rebounds.
Baltic 63, Chester 33
The Bulldogs cruised to a third place finish with a 63-33 win over the Chester Flyers. Baltic only led 11-5 at the end of the first quarter, but increased the lead to 29-18 at halftime. The lead grew again in the third quarter, and the Bulldogs led 44-27 going into the fourth.
Three players finished in double figures. Ditter had 21 points and two rebounds. Blake Hookie had 13 points, 12 rebounds, and two assists. J. Erickson had 11 points, three rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Breece had eight points, two assists, and three steals. Dylan Runestad added six points.
