Falcons soar past Eagles on Senior Night

Soyk sets new standard for 3-pt. shooting

It’s only fitting that the Abbotsford Falcons senior class turned in one of their finest games of their carers on a night that celebrated their careers.

Hunter Soyk and Cade Faber put on a spectacle for the ages in a sensational win on Senior Night, dazzling the home crowd with their scorching scoring.

Soyk went off from the three point arc on Feb. 9, tying Ethan Kramas with a school record nine made threes last Tuesday as he dropped a career high 29 points on a overmatched Chequamegon Screaming Eagles squad.

Equally as impressive was fellow senior Cade Faber. The state’s leading rebounder stuffed the state sheet with gaudy numbers as he ripped off a tripledouble, pumping in 24 points - including his signature booming dunks.

Faber also finished with 19 rebounds, 10 assists and five steals as Abbotsford blew past Chequamegon for a 74-57 win. The two seniors combined to score the Falcon’s first 15 points, with Soyk setting the tone for his record tying night after he made a trio of triples in the early goings of the Marawood - North meeting.

Abbotsford built a sizable lead after the first 18 minutes of play, heading into the break with a 43-26 lead. The Falcons did their best to feed Soyk the ball, doing their best to help him set a new standard from Down Town.

Soyk took 19 attempts from three point territory, but came up just shy, ending his night with those nine three point baskets as he continues to shoot from 50 percent from the arc.

The Falcons and Eagles finished with 31 points apiece in the final frame, but that nearly 20 point lead at the break was simply too great to overcome.

Seniors Bryce Draper and Mason Car- penter also got in on the action, scoring two and three points. The Falcons also received production from Brandon Hawkey and Brandon Diedrich, who each scored seven points. Adam Diedrich added an additional two points in the Falcon’s fourth victory of the season.

Pacelli, 70-68

The Falcons carried that hot shooting momentum over into their next game, a regular season contest with the Pacelli Cardinals in Stevens Point on Saturday.

The Falcons would be without the services of Hunter Soyk, and his shooter’s touch would be sorely missed on a day when the Falcons fell by just two points for a 70-68 non-conference loss.

The Falcons nearly pulled off the upset thanks in part from Cade Faber’s single highest offensive barrage. Faber finally broke the 30 point wall, gashing the Cardinals repeatedly to the tune of a new career high of 36 points. Faber pulled down 19 boards and dished out six assists as he converted 15 of 23 field goal attempts.

Faber picked up 18 of those points in the first half, and with Soyk out of the picture, senior wing Mason Carpenter picked up the slack, scoring six points in the first half. Adam and Brandon Diedrich combined for seven points, and Brandon Hawkey had two as Abby scored 33 points in the first half.

But the Falcons had no answer for Wes Peplinski, who powered the Cardinals with a 24 point effort, 17 alone in the first half. Pacelli took a balanced approach, with 10 different player scoring at least once on Saturday. At the break, it was the ‘Cards with a 38-33 lead.

Faber continued to hunt and find his shot in the second half, pouring in another 18 points, and Brandon and Adam Diedrich made multiple buckets to help Abbotsford to 35 second half points.

The Falcons held Peplinski in check in the second half, and got him in foul trouble, but the ‘Cards did just enough to eke out their two point victory in the Falcons last regular season game.

Brandon Diedrich finished behind Faber with 11 points, and Carpenter and Adam Diedrich added nine points apiece. Brandon Hawkey was the only other Falcon to score, finishing with three points.

The Falcons end the regular season with a 4-17 record. They will now set their sights on the playoffs, with regional action beginning this week.