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By DAVID WOLMAN
Traveler Sports Editor

ANTHONY -- In most games this season, Arkansas City coach Ben Proctor knows that his team is going to be at a height disadvantage.

Saturday evening was no exception.

Clearwater's six-foot-five seniors Jacob Woods and Colton Rausch took advantage of mismatch after mismatch to either back Ark City's defense down low for short baskets or drain outside shots.

Rausch scored 16 points and Woods 15 to lead the Indians past the Bulldogs 56-48 in the championship game of the Chaparral Roadrunner Classic.

"We go into every game giving up at least three or four inches per person," said Proctor, whose team lost its first tournament game on the season after winning its first five. "It's a challenge and it was really exploited (on Saturday)."

Clearwater (9-2) started the game on a 12-1 run and never looked back. Luke Laha capped the run with a three-pointer from the left corner.

"They started well and we just didn't respond very well," Proctor said. "That kind of put us in a hole and we were never able to get out of it."

Laha finished with 11.

The Indians spread Ark City's defense out, making good passes around the perimeter to set up open shot after open shot in the first half.

Rausch made a short bank shot for a 27-21 halftime lead for Clearwater.

"We've struggled in the last two games, maybe all season, with positioning in relationship to the ball," Proctor said. "It's something we need to get better. Our weakness is that we were exploited by a good team."

But Ark City wasn't about to go down easily.

Jordan Fields sparked a 12-4 run to get the Bulldogs to within a single possession.

Fields flew in for a putback off a John Miller miss for Ark City's first field goal of the game with 1:38 remaining in the first quarter.

Kesitan Harris squeezed two three-pointers around a Rausch basket to start the second quarter and cut Clearwater's lead to 16-13.

"Those were big, big shots," Proctor said. "He came in and gave us the spark that we needed. We just weren't consistent enough. We missed a lot of shots that we made (on Friday)."

Ryan Rohrs got Ark City to within 23-21 with just under two minutes left in a back-and-forth second quarter on his first of three three-pointers. He finished with nine.

Fields scored nine of his game-high 18 points in the first half. Tayler Rock added seven points and six rebounds.

After sloppy play by both teams in the third quarter led to 15 combined turnovers, Clearwater saw its lead increase to double digits in the fourth.

Woods spearheaded a 10-3 run that carried over into the fourth quarter to increase Clearwater's lead to 45-32 with 4:49 remaining. Woods scored eight of his points on the run.

Only a Fields three-point play prevented the Bulldogs from trailing by more.

With Ark City seeing the game get out of its hands, emotions started to run a little high for Proctor. He lost his cool late during Clearwater's run and was issued a technical foul after arguing a non-call.

Ark City made a game of it late.

The Bulldogs turned up the intensity and used a stifling press defense to create a few late turnovers.

After a Darrell Freeman steal, John Miller connected on a basket off a nice feed from Fields to cut Clearwater's lead to eight. On the ensuing possession, the Bulldogs forced a traveling call on Rausch and Fields then converted a jumper to cut Clearwater's lead to 45-39.

Fields hit a layup to again get the Bulldogs to within six with 1:52 remaining.

"I thought our kids finished the game hard," Proctor said. "But we need to have that intensity the whole game."

Clearwater closed the game on a 9-7 run to win the tournament title.

"Clearwater is just a really solid team with lots of seniors that know what they're doing," Proctor said.

Ark City 7 14 8 19 -- 48
Clearwater 14 13 10 19 -- 56

Ark City -- Fields 18, Rohrs 9, Rock 7, Harris 6, Freeman 6, Miller 2.
Clearwater -- Rausch 16, Woods 15, Laha 11, Widler 9, Spencer 5.