Zane Trace picks up key conference win over Westfall behind 3-point shooting

KINNIKINNICK − Tuesday gave Zane Trace a glimpse into what its ceiling has been this entire season.

Everything − and everyone, for that matter − seemed to come together. The Pioneers' lineup, hampered by injury and sickness all season, finally returned to full strength with the return of Carter Langley from injury. Shots rained from every angle and found their mark without issue.

With five players scoring eight points or more, the Pioneers worked like the up-tempo, athletic lineup head coach Gary Kellough knows them to be and notched a 52-40 win over Westfall.

"It gives us a chance where we can go with four littles if a team only has one post, but now we can match up with two posts," Kellough said. "It makes a big difference for us."

Landon Robinson led all scorers with 15 points, while also being one of three Zane Trace players to end the game with at least three 3-pointers. Landen Jarrell added 11 points, while Noah Houston and Brock Jarrell each had nine. Meanwhile Langley − in his first game back for the Pioneers − put up eight points on 4 of 7 shooting.

Langley wasn't the only one with the hot hand. All of the Pioneers landed their shots with alarming frequency. Every Pioneer that scored Tuesday shot 50% or better from the field.

It started off simple. Robinson drained a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter while Brock Jarrell added on to establish an eight-point lead. Every look became an opportunity. Houston came off the bench to drill three 3-pointers before halftime. Both Jarrells found a rhythm. All the while, Robinson pieced together shot after shot.

"We're just deeper now, we're a good shooting team," Landen Jarrell said. "Everyone on our team could shoot, and we're a lot deeper now later in the year now that we've got everybody back. We've just got to keep looking for each other and looking as a team."

Zane Trace didn't just shoot well beyond the arc. It dominated. Robinson and Houston both shot 3 of 3 beyond the arc, while Brock Jarrell went 3 of 4. Zane Trace shot 60% from downtown as a team. Westfall, on the other hand, went 1 for 7 from long range.

Three-pointers weren't Westfall's priority, however. Jeremiah Layton scored 12 of his team-high 14 points in the paint while only missing one attempt. Henry Barnes cracked double figures for the first time in February after amassing 10 points and stringing together three steals.

But the Pioneers were too far ahead. Houston's second quarter surge pushed them into a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game. Langley caught fire after halftime and added in a valuable paint presence to which Westfall had no answer.

Zane Trace has been through the ringer all season. Strings of injuries and illnesses have staggered the lineup from its full strength. A string of single-digit and overtime losses through the second half of the schedule added on to the fire.

But those setbacks are all but gone now. The Pioneers are healthy. A big win over Westfall − who dealt them one of said overtime losses in late January − bolsters morale. The postseason begins next week, and the Pioneers are back to their full potential at just the right time.

"We're just ready to work hard," Jarrell said. "We talked at practice with coach, and we're leaving the past in the past. Coach always talks about looking forward and the next game. We just want to get on a little run and make some things happen."

This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: Zane Trace rides 3-point accuracy to win over Westfall