Chester’s Hunter Morris leaps for the layup with Quincy’s Jake Hatzell waiting for the rebound. The Volcanoes beat the Trojans in a close game Dec. 11. Photo by James Wilson

  The Chester boys’ basketball team traveled to Quincy on Dec. 11 to take on the Trojans. Quincy trailed Chester by only a couple points the majority of the game until Chester finally defeated the Trojans 76-70.

  “I thought this was a very good game,” said Quincy’s coach, Howard Hughes. “We’re both pretty equal. We had some opportunities to take control in the game that we missed.”

  The first half was close. Chester led 14-13 at the end of the first period. Both teams continued swapping points to put Chester ahead 29-27 at the half.

  Quincy took the lead toward the end of the half when Ty Morrison sank a three-pointer with less than 10 seconds remaining. Chester’s David Estacio retaliated with a three-pointer for Chester as time expired to regain the lead.

  Chester pushed its lead to 55-46 in the third quarter. Quincy wasn’t able to make many shots and Chester led in rebounds.

  The Trojans started to come back in the final period. Quincy’s offense was at its best and sank a good percentage of its attempts. Chester kept its momentum, however, to top the Trojans.

  Hunter Morris led the Volcanoes with 20 points and seven assists. Chester’s shooting game was quite accurate, at 50 percent from the floor.

  “Quincy did a really good job of defending us,” commented Chester’s coach, Joe Gilmour. “They played us tougher than any opponent we’ve had all year.”

Hamilton City tourney

  The Trojans traveled to Hamilton City on Dec. 13 for a three-day tournament. Quincy played Etna, Shasta and Hamilton, losing all three games.

  Quincy’s first game, against Etna, was the closest one it played all weekend. In an evenly matched battle, the Trojans ended up losing to the clock. Both teams passed the lead back and forth until the clock ran out with Etna ahead 59-57.

  Quincy’s games against Shasta and Hamilton were stomps. Shasta won 69-48 and Hamilton won 63-40. Two of Quincy’s starters, Mike Ashley and Gavin Henderson, were unavailable to play the tourney.

  “We are continuing to improve, which is very good,” commented Hughes. “Our bench played more over the weekend and gained valuable experience.”