The last time neighborhood and CVC Chagrin Division rivals Hawken and West Geauga met, on Dec. 17, the Hawks eked out a 65-62 victory at West Geauga. Hawken’s senior duo of Daron Hill and Greg Price made sure that there would be no similar drama in the rematch at Hawken on Jan. 10. Price was a sco rching-hot 8 of 9 from outside the arc in finishing with a game-high 26 points, and Hill, who was honored during pregame for scoring 1,000 points for his career, added 18, and together they led the way as the Hawks demolished the Wolverines this time, 69-37. The Hawks, who improved to 9-3 overall and 4-1 in the CVC Chagrin while snapping a two-game losing streak, sank 11 3s in all, effectively moved the ball to attack West G’s zone defense, scored in transition off of rebounds and turnovers, and generally just made life difficult for the Wolverines on the defensive end. Hawken jetted to a 12-0 lead, and pushed it as high as 32-7 and 35-10 in the second quarter, overwhelming the visitors from the opening tip. “I would say it was just our energy,” Hill said. “We knew we were more skilled than them, but obviously still had to work. They’re gonna want to beat us, especially on our floor, and we knew if we didn’t bring the energy that it could be a close game (again).” Hill hit a layup off a turnover for the game’s first basket, and later would add an and-one basket while Price knocked down his first 3 in the initial 12-0 run. Junior Vince Vecchio finally stopped the run with a 3-pointer off a pass from sophomore Luke Ottman for West Geauga (5-7, 2-3), but Price came right back with another triple to give Hawken a 15-3 lead after one frame. “I felt good (shooting), obviously, but I just told the guys that I really wanted to get this win,” Price said. “We had lost two straight. The (postseason) seeding just came out, and we understand that if we want to do anything like what we did last year, it’s going to take a lot more intensity, and we’re going to have to win some ball games.” @hawkenboyshoops senior Daron Hill (18 points, left) and Greg Price (26 points, eight 3s, right) both 1,000-point career scorers, talk about Hawken’s 69-37 win over @CVC_Athletics Chagrin Division rival West Geauga. @HawkenAthletics pic.twitter.com/R0j8n2chy5 — Jay Kron (@TownCenter2) January 11, 2026 Hawken made a run through the Division III tournament last season before falling to Glenville, 62-42, in a state semifinal. The Hawks were 8-1 this season before losing to Glenville, 67-62, at the Play-by-Play Classic at Euclid on Jan. 4, and then dropped a 54-53 heartbreaker at CVC Chagrin leader Harvey on Jan. 6. But Hawken was determined to leave no doubt and to get back on track this time around. Price started the second quarter with another 3, and later junior Charlie Mallett scored on a layup and then fed Hill for an uncontested slam dunk that made it 29-5. West G scored the last five points of the stanza on a 3 by senior Finn Keenan and another Vecchio bucket, but it was 35-15 in favor of the Hawks at the half. West Geauga had turned the ball over seven times in the first half, and it didn’t get much better for the Wolverines after halftime, as they lost the ball to the Hawks on seven more possessions in the third quarter. Price drilled four more 3s, and Hill and sophomore Ice Taylor each chipped in six points in the third quarter as the Hawks increased their lead to 59-27 going into the fourth quarter. “Be better,” Hawken coach Anthony Burns said regarding the game plan coming into the rematch with West G. “We came into a rough stretch of a couple games, and every team has them. You don’t want to have them, but everywhere I’ve been, I’ve seen that you have ups and downs. “This was a time to get out “up” back. On our floor, beautiful fan (turnout), it was a big night for us. Build some momentum, pick up where we left off, and try to get back on the “up” (trajectory).” Hill joined Price in scoring over 1,000 points at Hawken, and the two of them have been the leaders of a strong supporting cast in a quest to top last year’s accomplishments. “Those (two) are the true definition of what you want to call Hawken Basketball,” Burns said of Hill and Price. “Great kids, great attitudes, great leaders. It’s just a joy to see them doing what they love to do. They’ve been here since seventh grade, so it’s just kind of finishing what they started.” @hawkenboyshoops Coach Anthony Burns breaks down the Hawks’ 69-37 win over @CVC_Athletics Chagrin Division rival West Geauga pic.twitter.com/cpug5YjuHN — Jay Kron (@TownCenter2) January 11, 2026 Keenan led West Geauga with 13 points, and junior Cooper Paskowski pulled down nine rebounds. The Wolverines had a two-game winning streak snapped, and will look to get back into the winning column with a trip to Edgewood on Jan. 13. The game was the last of 11 events that comprised the Hawken Swoopfest. Starting at 10:30 a.m., the Hawks took on West Geauga at every level of boys basketball down to seventh grade, played both JV and varsity girls basketball, and mixed in swimming and diving and wrestling duals. “This is a tradition,” Burns said of Swoopfest. “Every year it’s against someone different, I think last year it was against (University). We get together with (one of) our rivals, and make it into a big thing. There’s been games going on since 10 a.m. It’s a huge thing. The community came out, donors, spotlights, everyone came out. This is a huge thing for us.” Hawken will try to build on its momentum with home games against Brush on Jan. 13 and Perry on Jan. 16. The score Hawken 69, West Geauga 37 ...read more read less