Falcon boys lose a nail-biter

Falcon boys fall to 3-11 in 2021-22 season

The margin between victory and defeat can be razor thin sometimes. This was a bitter lesson the Abbotsford boys varsity basketball team learned after the Falcons lost by five to the Chequamegon Screaming Eagles, 52-47, at home on Friday night.

Making the defeat particularly painful was that Abbotsford led by as many as nine points in the second half. Much of the game was a topsy-turvy affair between the two conference rivals as the two teams struggled to generate much of a flow on offense in the first half.

Even with back to back buckets from Brandon Hawkey and Adam Diedrich, it was only a 15-15 game with six minutes to go before halftime.

The Falcons executed slightly better down the stretch, and held on for a 22-19 lead going into the locker room.

Whatever was said in the locker room by Abby head coach Brent Faber seemed to work as the Falcons put on a 10-4 run in the first four minutes to give them the largest lead of the night at 32-23 with 13:56 to play, prompting a time out from Chequamegon.

The timeout did the trick, halting Abby’s momentum, and the Screaming Eagles went on the attack, clawing back to make it a single possession game with just under ten to play.

The Screaming Eagles applied pressure to Abbotsford, and forced several turnovers that gave them more scoring opportunities, and used their size down low to generate offensive rebounds or trips to the charity stripe.

Chequamegon’s Andrew Schienebeck hit some critical threes and free throws late in the second half to lead all players with 18 points.

The Screaming Eagles also caught fire from three, splashing six triples in the second half, with three coming from senior guard Collin Luhtala, who joined Schienebeck in double digits with 13 points.

Abby’s Brandon Diedrich and Esteban Gomez stepped it up in the second half, supplying much of the Falcon’s firepower. Diedrich scored eleven of his 14 team high points in the second frame.

Gomez finished with ten points, but the rest of the Falcons were held in check as Abby was out-scored 33-25 in the last stanza. The loss drops Abby to 3-11 on the season and 1-8 in league play.

Adam Diedrich finished with eight points and Brandon Hawkey collected six points. JV Castillo scored all five of his points in the first half and Blake Bargender and Evan Reis chipped in with two points apiece.

The Falcons next game will be at home against the Edgar Wildcats on Thursday. Tip-off is set for 7:15 p.m.