By CHRIS BERNHARDT JR.
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BROOKSVILLE – The outcome of Thursday night’s boys’ basketball game against Dunnellon didn’t help Nature Coast out in the win column. The Sharks, though, hope the experience of taking on a stout opponent in the early part of the season will outweigh a 57-47 defeat on their home floor.
“I like the way we played. I knew this would be a tough, physical game. They’re a bunch of athletes over there,” Nature Coast head coach Dave Pisarcik said. “We knew this was a game that we put on the schedule to help prepare us for a playoff run. I’m happy with the way the guys competed but at the end of the day I think they gave a little more effort.
“They were able to make some of the plays down the stretch where we didn’t. We sort of hurt ourselves at the free throw line a little bit. We missed 17-18 free throws. You can’t expect to win a game against that type of team if you don’t execute your free throws.”
The Sharks (1-2) ended up going 10 of 30 from the charity stripe, and 3 of 16 in the decisive fourth quarter, a period in which they cut their deficit to one twice before the Tigers (2-0) pulled away. By contrast, Dunnellon made 7 of 11 free throws in the fourth quarter.
Prior to the final period, the Tigers had shot just three free throws and all of them in the first quarter. The disparity in attempts at the foul line had the Dunnellon coaching staff fuming on the bench for much of the game, but Nature Coast couldn’t take advantage.
“It’s a learning experience. We’re going to take it as a learning experience. It’s the second week of the season for games,” Pisarcik said. “I know we’re good. We’re happy where we’re at. We’re going to learn from it and we’re going to get better. Hopefully we won’t make the mistake again.”
It was basically an even game throughout the first half, and a free throw the Sharks did make by Jeremy Gonzalez with 2.6 seconds left before halftime made it 22-21 in their favor at the intermission.
Dunnellon came out the locker room strong, building as much as a 37-29 advantage in the third quarter that allowed the Tigers to take some control. In the fourth, Nature Coast pulled to within 41-40 with under five minutes to play on a 3-pointer by Elijah Davila-
Cruz.
The Sharks also made it 43-42 on a Jayden Simon layup, but then the Tigers got some separation. Eli Nelson scored 10 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth, including a layup that made it 53-45 and a pair of free throws at the 1:02 mark to push the lead to 55-46. He nearly had a double-double with nine rebounds plus two steals.
Randy Jackson Jr. added eight of his 13 points in the last quarter and also pulled down six rebounds in the game. Sean Martin scored 14 points with three 3-pointers made.
A.J. Ramsaroop paced the Sharks with 14 points and three steals. Davila-Cruz and Jacob McPhail both knocked down a pair of 3-pointers, while Blake Johnson and Simon each hauled in seven rebounds. Aveion Jackson and Sirius Johnson also had three steals.
“We got the right shots from the right guys, they just didn’t go in tonight,” Pisarcik said. “Sometimes in sports that happens. But we’ll regroup, we’ll watch some film, and we’ll learn from it, and we’ll try not to do that again.”
The Sharks are trying to rebound from by their standards three straight subpar seasons where they’ve generally hovered around .500. They were 14-13 a season ago and haven’t won a district title since 2020-21. That was also their last trip to regionals.
“I love our energy, and I love the way we’re playing. We’ve got a great group of guys,” Pisarcik said. “I like where we’re at. I know the guys are wanting to compete, they’re wanting to learn, they’re wanting to get better and they’re wanting to win. That’s a good mentality to have. Hopefully we improve enough to be able to win the big one. Right
now I’m not worried about win-loss. We’re trying to learn and get better so that we can execute when the time’s right.”
“… I definitely would like to get back to hoisting the trophy. It’s been three years or so. I think this group is hungry to get that number on the banner. We’re looking forward to the rest of the season. We’re happy with where we’re at, win or lose.”
