GRAHAMSVILLE – A young Tri-Valley squad showed resilience on Friday night. Still, even a remarkable 50-point outburst from Yan Zheliazouski wasn’t enough to keep pace with the Seward Spartans, who pulled away for a 100–66 victory.

Winter temperatures outside did little to cool the intensity inside the Tri-Valley gym. The game quickly turned physical, with both teams combining for 20 fouls in a gritty, fast-paced first half.

Tri-Valley (0–1) entered the matchup aiming to rebound from a season-opening performance in which the Bears managed just 39 points. Friday’s effort showed clear offensive growth, thanks largely to the relentless play of Zheliazouski. The Tri-Valley guard carried his team from start to finish, attacking the rim with force, drawing contact, and finishing through hard fouls. He went 15-for-22 at the free-throw line-evidence of how consistently he challenged Seward’s interior defense-and crashed the boards with equal intensity. His physical, performance produced one of the most impressive individual outings in recent Tri-Valley history.

Despite the loss, head coach Tyler Irwin saw signs of progress from his young roster.

 “We’re very young, we only have one senior,” Irwin said after the game. “I expect this year to be a learning and growing season… right now we’re working out a lot of kinks. Today, scoring 66 points, is a big improvement from last game, where we put up 39. It shows that we can get baskets. Once we work on our defense and rebounding, I think we’ll be much better.”

Seward (1–2), meanwhile, countered with elite firepower led by standout sophomore point guard Grey Whitmore, widely regarded as one of Orange County’s top talents. Whitmore, who erupted for 45 points and nine three-pointers, displayed his dynamic skill set. Though undersized by traditional basketball standards, his speed and ball-handling consistently created mismatches, and his perimeter shooting forced Tri-Valley to stretch its defensive coverage throughout the night.

Zheliazouski, while delivering a career night, kept the focus on the team rather than his scoring.

 “This season we have a really young squad,” he said with quiet humility. “We’re gonna work on our chemistry and just work together as a team. We’re probably gonna excel next year, because we do have a really young squad. I did put up a decent amount of points, but in the end, we didn’t have enough rebounds and too many turnovers, so we have a lot of things to fix… I believe in our team, and I think we can accomplish a lot of things.”

Despite the final score, the Bears left the gym with renewed confidence—and the sense that the foundation for growth is firmly in place.