By ROB HAMILTON

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Cardington jumped out to a big lead in the early going against Elgin and never looked back in claiming a 65-50 win over the Comets on Thursday.

The Pirates (5-5, 5-1 in league play) jumped out to a 22-9 lead after the opening eight minutes. While Elgin took the second quarter by four to close within a 34-25 margin, Cardington outscored their guests 13-10 in the third quarter and 18-15 in the fourth to pull away for the comfortable win.

Devin Pearl drained four three-pointers on his way to leading the team with 20 points, while Trey Williams added 17 points and 12 rebounds. Also, Luke McCarrell tallied nine points and Derek Goodman added eight.

Mount Gilead Indians

Mount Gilead got off to a slow start Thursday at home against Centerburg and was unable to recover in a 64-54 loss.

The Trojans jumped out to a 14-6 lead in the first quarter and maintained an eight-point advantage going into the half at 24-16. They would then outscore the Indians by one in each of the remaining two quarters to finish on top by 10 points.

Zack Hosack hit three three-pointers in leading the team with 18 points. Austin Vanderkooi added 12.

Highland Scots

After an evenly-played first half, the Highland basketball team could not keep up with visiting Fredericktown over the final 16 minutes of a 53-47 loss.

Highland trailed 8-5 after the opening eight minutes, but battled back to tie the score at 19 going into the intermission. However, they would be outscored 15-11 in the third quarter and 19-17 in the fourth as they fell by six.

Mack Anglin finished with 14 points for the Scots, while Shane Carney added 11 and Trent Mason added eight.

Rob Hamilton can be reached at 419-946-3010, ext. 1807. Connect with him on Twitter at @SportsMCS