It was a tight game. A nail-biter. An "on the edge of your seat" game.

So why were the St. Joseph Flyers so calm?

The Flyers relaxed attitude helped cut down the turnovers as they got past the Symmes Valley Vikings 69-67 Saturday night.

There was even more pressure at the end of the game when Shawn Hacker stepped to the foul line with the score tied and one second remaining on the clock. Hacker calmly sank both free throws as St. Joseph came away with the win.

"We played relaxed tonight. Matt (Hornbeck) and Danny (Stack) and Kyle (Johnson) were relaxed, and Chris (Laber) and Shawn (Hacker) had their usual game controlling the boards," Flyers coach Adam Simpson said. "I think being relaxed helped against their pressure. We only had 13 turnovers."

Hacker finished with 21 points and 19 rebounds as St. Joseph upped its record to 7-8. Laber also had 21 points to go with 15 rebounds.

Hornbeck finished with 15 points and six assists, and Stack had 12 points on four 3-pointers.

The Vikings (12-4) were led by Terry Elswick with 30 points. Kyle Gilmore had 13 points and J. D. Miller added 10.

"Elswick was unbelievable. Danny Stack was in his face and he still shot the lights out," Simpson said. "But Danny played a heck of a game. He hit some big shots, he made some nice passes and was diving on the floor going after loose balls."

Laber had 6 points in the first quarter as St. Joseph to a 16-14 lead. Gilmore had 6 for the Vikings.

Hacker got 8 points and Laber 6 in the second quarter as the Flyers extended their lead to 37-32 at the half. Elswick knocked down 10 for the Vikings.

With Elswick scoring 8 points and Gilmore 5, Symmes Valley came out and scored 21 points in the third quarter while holding St. Joseph to 13 as the Vikings rallied to take a 53-50 lead.

Hornbeck made two 3-pointers and Stack another to keep the Flyers close.

Then came the fourth quarter.

Laber pumped in 9 points and Hacker added 5 as St. Joseph outscored the Vikings 19-14 in the fourth quarter.

Elswick had 10 of the Symmes Valley points in the final quarter.

Sym. Valley14182114--67

St. Joseph16211319--69

SYMMES VALLEY (12-4):

Kyle Gilmore 2 2 3-3 13, Terry Elswick 2 7 3-3 30, T. J. Grubbs 2 0 0-0 4, Kevin Miller 4 0 0-0 8, Justin Holland 1 0 0-0 2, J. D. Miller 5 0 0-0 10, Cory Burcham 0 0 0-0 0, Seth Colegrove 0 0 0-0 0, Chad Higgins 0 0 0-0 0. Totals: 15

9

6-6

67. Fouls: 14. Fouled out: None.

IRONTON ST. JOSEPH (7-8):

Danny Stack 0 4 0-1 12, Kyle Johnson 0 0 0-0 0, Matt Hornbeck 3 2 3-4 15, Chris Laber 8 0 5-8 21, Shawn Hacker 9 0 3-3 21, Jeremy Addis 0 0 0-0 0. Totals: 20

6

11-16

69. Fouls: 11. Fouled out: None. Rebounds: 42 (Hacker 19, Laber 15). Assists: 18 (Hornbeck 6, Johnson 4, Stack 4). Steals: 4 (Stack 2, Johnson 1, Hornbeck 1). Turnovers: 13. Blocked shots: 5 (Hacker 3, Johnson 2).