Cole Mulnix comes up big for Rock Falls for sectional championship

MARENGO - Cole Mulnix came up in a big way for the Rock Falls Rockets in Friday’s sectional championship game.

So big, teammate Kuitim Heald said the Rockets’ season would be over without him.

The 6-8 junior center came off the bench and scored 10 points, all in the second half, with several blocked shots, to give the Rockets the spark they needed to lift them to a 49-43 win over Princeton in the Class 2A Marengo Sectional championship.

“He made a really big impact and we don’t win without him,” Heald said.

Mulnix deferred the credit to his teammates.

“The rest of the team played really good and we came out with the win,” he said. “We just have to keep pushing next game. One game at a time. We just got to play as a team and we’ll do good.”

Rock Falls landed its first sectional championship since 2006, the 10th in school history.

The Rockets (25-8) advance to Monday’s Sterling Supersectional to face Chicago Christ the King (25-9), which defeated Montini Catholic 44-28 in Chicago.

“We’ve been playing for times like this since the fifth grade. It’s good to get that win,” Heald said.

“The boys have been working hard since they were freshmen. They’re deserving of it,” Rock Falls coach Zach Sandrock said. “All the credit to Princeton. They’re a great team. We love to see them here. Coach (Jason) Smith and I have a great relationship and these boys have a great relationship with them.”

With the game tied at 32, Mulnix scored three straight baskets in the post in the final four minutes of the third quarter to lift the Rockets to a 38-37 lead.

Mulnix scored again in the post early in the fourth quarter and after a dunk by Princeton’s Noah LaPorte, added a putback off a missed free throw to give the Rockets a 46-41 lead with 1:45 left.

“We knew we could feed him in the inside if we got him away from Noah,” Sandrock said. “He does a great job on the inside. Got to keep him disciplined. I think the nerves came out in the first half, but in the second half he did what we asked him to do and he was a real difference maker tonight.”

Princeton seniors Jordan Reinhardt and LaPorte said Mulnix was a load.

“He’s just a huge dude and with him in the paint, it’s hard to get shots off on him,” Reinhardt said.

“He’s a tank. And he’s only a junior. He’ll have a great senior year,” LaPorte said

LaPorte sank two free throws to draw the Tigers within three with 1:13 left. Reinhardt got a good look at a step-back 3 from the right wing for the tie, but couldn’t get it to fall and the Tigers did not score again.

“That’s the guy we want shooting 10 out of 10 times. He’s the man we want for that shot,” LaPorte said of Reinhardt.

Smith was proud how his team battled to the end.

“I thought we turned the corner there and Rock Falls just came back there and punched us in the mouth again and we couldn’t respond,” he said. “They had their hands full. They knew it. Hats off to them. They executed and just made more shots than we did. We missed a lot of layups and bunnies.”

Reinhardt and LaPorte said the Tigers (21-13) gave it their best shot.

“We worked too hard and we knew we couldn’t give up when we got down. We had to try our best and we just came up a little too short,” Reinhardt said.

“Hats off to them. They got it done in the final minutes. We couldn’t get the lead that would have given us the extra momentum,” LaPorte said.

The loss marked the third straight year Princeton fell in a sectional final. After a 9-12 start, LaPorte said no one outside the team would have said they’d make it back this year.

Heald led the Rockets with 12 points with Ryken Howard adding 12, Mulnix 10 and Austin Castaneda eight.

Only three players scored for the Tigers. LaPorte, Princeton’s all-time leading scorer, scored 20 points, while Reinhardt had 17 and Luke Smith six.

The Rockets, who led 30-27 at the half, lost by eight points (60-52) to Princeton on Jan. 4 and Sandrock said the Rockets did just enough Friday to make up the difference.

“I think the boys did a better job taking care of the ball and finding the open shots,” he said. “I thought we forced a little bit too much in the game before, but tonight we worked the ball and got the best shot.”

“We had to bring the energy and step up on defense and knock down our shots and break down that 1-3-1,” Heald said.