YOUNGSVILLE — Rylan Benton scored a career-high 35 points and Youngsville snapped a three-game losing streak with a 73-54 victory over Erie Prep Academy on Wednesday at Youngsville High School.

A night after playing right with a talented Erie First Christian team, Youngsville (11-4, 2-3 Region 3) bounced back in a big way as several Eagles took turns taking control of the game.

“Every time the guys take the court, they are learning and growing as players,” said Youngsville coach Jesse Benton. “(Assistant coach) Troy (Weissinger) and I could not ask for more. We are very proud of the guys’ performance tonight. We played good defense, handled the ball well and were crashing the boards.”

Much like Tuesday’s loss, Youngsville was quick out of the gate, opening a lead that would grow to as many as eight in the opening eight minutes.

The teams traded runs in the second quarter, but it was Cash Moore who stepped up and kept the Eagles in control. Moore — more known for his defense and rebounding that offensive output — scored six points in the second quarter as the Eagles maintained the lead.

That’s not to say Moore wasn’t going to work on the boards as two strong offensive rebounds led directly to six points on 3-pointers by Benton.

Before the first half ended, Braydon Baker brought the home faithful to their feet with an NBA-range 3-pointer that swished through the net as the first half buzzer sounded. The Baker bomb helped the Eagles lead 35-27 at the break.

The Eagles pushed the lead to double figures for the first time in the third quarter as David Manning took his turn taking over the game.

Manning hit four 3-pointers in the third quarter alone and Youngsville led 51-43 at the end of three despite a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Erie Prep’s Xavior Wang.

Wang — Erie Prep’s leading scorer to that point — fouled out less than a minute into the final quarter and the Eagles slowly began pulling away. The game became a free throw shooting fest as the game wound down with the Eagles shooting 25 free throws in the fourth quarter alone.

Benton’s 35 points — including a 19-of-23 performance from the line — paced the Eagles. Manning was next with 17 points, Ethan Beers finished with 8 points and Baker and Moore chipped in with 6 apiece.

The victory ends a three-game losing streak for the Eagles, who next look to complete a season sweep of Union City Friday at Youngsville High School. That game will feature a halftime recognition for the 1992 District 10 winning boys basketball team that finished among the top four teams in the state that year.

ERIE PREP ACADEMY (54)

Wang 7 3-4 19, Montina 0 2-2 2, HRodriguez 5 2-3 13, Castano 5 1-2 12, ARodriguez 1 2-2 4, Lawal 2 0-0 4, Benitez 0 0-2 0, Totals 20 10-15 54

YOUNGSVILLE (73)

Benton 7 19-23 35, Beers 2 3-6 8, Baker 2 1-2 6, Manning 5 2-2 17, Moore 3 0-0 6, Rowland 0 1-2 1, Pikna 0 0-0 0, Totals 19 26-35 73.

3-point goals–Wang 2, HRodriguez, Castano, Benton 2, Beers, Baker, Manning 5.

Erie Prep 12 15 16 11 — 54

Youngsville 16 19 16 22 — 73