The Arabians came up just short in a hard-fought Hoosier Heritage Conference clash against the Mt. Vernon Marauders. It was the home team that took control in the first quarter starting the game on a 14-2 run that forced two PHHS timeouts. But the Arabians finally found their rhythm, with Hayden Fox connecting on his first of three baskets from beyond the arc. Evan Mozingo and Ashann Singh added baskets as well, and by the end of the first quarter the Arabians had cut the lead to 5. A defensive second quarter saw both teams traded stop after stop, and the Arabians were able to execute at the end of the first half to send the game to halftime at 21-17 in favor of Mt. Vernon. Scoring continued to be tough as the third quarter got underway, but this time it was the visitors' turn to make a run, scoring 9 unanswered points, sparked by another Fox triple, a steal by Singh and strong layups from Cooper Sims and Mozingo. The game would remain a one-possession battle through nearly all of the fourth quarter. Sims continued his hard-nosed play, and finished with 11 to lead the Arabians. Pendleton Heights held the lead for most of the fourth quarter, but Luke Ertel's 21 points (8 in the fourth) proved to be too much, and the Marauders defended home court, 44-39. Sims led PHHS in scoring, and added two steals and a block. Fox scored 9 and grabbed 3 boards. Mozingo scored 7 with 4 rebounds and 3 assists, and Singh added 6 with 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and a block. Joe Estes led the Arabians in rebounding with 6 and added 4 points. The Arabians travel to Guerin Catholic on Tuesday for their next game.