While a come-from-behind victory opened the basketball season for Elma’s boys in Des Moines, the weekend was capped by a loss at Shelton.

Eagles 61, Hawks 51

Trailing by nine at halftime, Elma came out with stifling defensive play to hold Mount Rainier Lutheran to three points in the third quarter as the Eagles came from behind for the victory in a non-league contest to open the season on Nov. 29.

Elma’s two-top scorers on the night, brothers A.J. and Avery Brown, were in foul trouble early in the contest and both sat for the majority of the second quarter. With the Eagles’ primary offensive punch on the bench, a few bench players stepped in and kept the score to a single-digit lead for the Hawks before halftime.

“We got some great play out of the reserves to keep it tight,” Elma coach Marvin Prince said. “We just went up and talked about a couple things we had to do and we relaxed and played a lot better defense in the second half. It just feels good to get the first one out of the way. We’ve got a long way to go but it was a good win.”

Avery Brown led all scorers with 22 points, while A.J. Brown finished with 13 points. Trace Thompson and Cody Vollan each scored 11 points for Elma.

Highclimbers 76, Eagles 44

Shooting 58 percent from the field, Class 3A Shelton trounced Elma, 76-44, in a non-league game Thursday, Dec. 1, at Shelton.

Senior guard Marshall McCullough, 9-of-10 from the field, paced the winners with 26 points. Aided by Eagle foul trouble, the Highclimbers led 43-24 at the half.

Trace Thompson topped the Eagles (1-1) with 15 points and seven rebounds. Avery Brown and Sohtye Tep added 10 points each.

Coach Prince also cited the reserve play of Levi Spalding and Isaac Horton.