Falcons close regular season with 19-point win
By Nathaniel Underwood
Guided by a 32-point performance from Grayson Totzke, the Abbotsford boys basketball team finished their 2024-25 regular season campaign with a victory, defeating fellow Marawood-North squad Chequamegon 75-56 last Thursday evening.
The Falcons ended on a high note, shooting 45.2 percent from beyond the three-point line while holding their opponents to making just five of their 23 attempts from long range and shooting 33.3 percent from the field. Abbotsford also outscored the Screaming Eagles 13-2 in transition and 21-11 off of turnovers.
Totzke rarely missed in his final regular season game as a Falcon. The senior went 12-for-15 from the field, including making seven of his eight three-point attempts. The impressive performance helped Abbotsford get ahead and stay ahead in a game that they never trailed in.
AJ Brodhagen notched the first points of the evening to put the home team up 3-0 and Totzke took it from there, rattling off nine straight points for the Falcons to give them an early 12-2 lead.
The offense cooled for Abbotsford over the middle minutes of the half, allowing Chequamegon to slowly but surely work their way back into the contest. A 12-4 run had the Screaming Eagles back within a possession, but a layup from Irvin Aguilera followed by a three from Totzke following a steal closed the door on the rally.
The Falcons closed out the half by outscoring Chequamegon 20-8 over the final six minutes, which allowed them to take a 36-22 advantage into the locker room. The Screaming Eagles did not go down without a fight, however, and worked their way back into the game over the second period’s opening six minutes. Back-to-back baskets from Chequamegon’s Cooper Michalski made it a two-possession game as the Falcons watched their lead dwindle down to five points at 45-40.
Four straight points from Totzke was Abbotsford’s answer, and though the Screaming Eagles were able to stick around momentarily, a 16-0 run for the Falcons turned the contest into a blowout.
Payton Schreiber started the home team out with a threepointer and Abbotsford scored on four of their next six possessions while holding their opponents’ scoreless. Threepointers from Koren Decker and Alex Garcia closed out the sequence and the Falcons were able to cruise over the final four minutes of the game to take the eventual 19-point victory.
On top of his 32 points, Totzke grabbed five rebounds and led the team with four assists and three steals. Brodhagen added eight points, three rebounds, two assists and a teamhigh three blocks while Aguilera, Decker, and Miguel Bautista all had six points.
Schreiber collected the most rebounds for the Falcons, bringing down 10 boards while recording five points and Caleb Kulesa also had five points for the Falcons. Garcia finished with three points and Christian Fuentes and Rodrigo Perez both had two points each.
TAKING ON THE DEFENSE - Payton Schreiber fires up a close range shot against the Screaming Eagles last Thursday. He finished with five points and led the team with 10 rebounds.
STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
SCORING MACHINE - Grayson Totzke floats a shot over several Chequamegon defenders to collect two of his 32 points against the Screaming Eagles.
STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
