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Posted on Tue, Mar 5, 2013 : 12:04 a.m.

Chelsea and Rudolf Steiner boys basketball suffer season ending losses in district openers

By Pete Cunningham

This file will be updated.

AnnArbor.com Washtenaw County District scoreboard:

Onsted 71, Chelsea 65
Story | Boxscore | District bracket

Reese Klebba had 24 points for Onsted, which outscored Chelsea 23-18 in the third quarter.

"The game kinda reached a slanted pace," Chelsea coach Rourke Skelton said of the third quarter, "and they had changed up their defense on us. We got caught up in the running game and couldn't compose ourselves."

Senior Luke Hollandsworth led Chelsea (3-17) with 25 points and Logan Brown added 15.

"He can do a lot of things offensively," Skelton said of Hollandsworth. "We've been talking to him about being more aggressive and putting the ball on the floor and making plays -- not settling for jumpers."

Onsted held a slim 30-27 lead at halftime. Skelton said he liked the play of his team in the first half.

"I thought we got some good looks against their defense," he said. "I thought we handled their transition well. Coming out in the second half, they amped up on their wings a bit, and we had some unforced errors."

Chelsea, which started the season with five seniors, had three by the end of the year.

"I told these guys 'sometimes, life's not fair and you can work your tail off every day and not see the result you want,' " Skelton said. "Sooner or later, you gotta believe it will pay off. You gotta keep battling."

Livingston Christian 70, Rudolf Steiner 45
Story | Boxscore | District bracket

Tied at halftime, Livingston Christian High School outscored Ann Arbor Rudolf Steiner 41-16 in the second half to advance to the Class D district semifinal at Saline Washtenaw Christian.

Luke Wenger led Livingston Christian with a game-high 35 points, followed by Caleb Jusino with 12 and Travis Hollingsworth with 10.

“They pounded the ball inside to Wenger, and had some give-and-go’s,” Rudolf Steiner coach Nick Sherwood said. “They had six inches on most of our guys, and were able to lob the ball up to their post players in excellent positions to finish.

"Our help defense was great in the second quarter, but we had some missed opportunities in the second half that really cost us."

Koji Vroom led Rudolf Steiner with 18 points -- including five 3-pointers -- and Ben Hadlock scored eight.

Rudolf Steiner fell short of its expectations, but Sherwood is looking ahead to next season.

“We are a little disappointed," Sherwood said. "Our goal was to win a district championship after making it to the finals last year, but we knew it was going to be a challenge.

“We are going to bring a lot of younger guys back, and I am already excited to get back after it again next season.”

Rudolf Steiner’s David Myckowiak scored two points, but Sherwood sees his potential, on and off the court, as being valuable for the team, next season.

“Myckowiak has really blossomed this year, and he’s going to be a good coach, someday,” Sherwood said. “He’s very coachable, brings a lot to the team and could be excellent leader for us next season.”

AnnArbor.com coverage:

Ypsilanti 66 Pioneer 43
Story | Boxscore | District bracket | Photo Gallery

Huron 55, Pinckney 41
Story | Boxscore | District bracket | Photo Gallery

Greenhills 51, Whitmore Lake 40
Story | Boxscore | District bracket

Clinton 82, Manchester 55
Story | Boxscore | District bracket

Pete Cunningham covers sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at petercunningham@cunningham@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @petcunningham.