If you’d like to order a team photo, follow the instructions on the order form.
If you’d like to order a team photo, follow the instructions on the order form.
Carolina Christian 54 – Arborbrook 50
We saved the best for last and ended the season on a high note. You can’t ask for more than that. The Falcons were playing their best game of the year and trailed 51-50 with less than a minute left in the game and the ball in their possession. The lead had see-sawed back and forth the entire game. Both teams held fourth quarter leads but neither team could pull away. Everything we tried from the opening tip off to this point had worked. Coach designed a play and the players ran it to perfection but the shot rimmed out and the Falcon season ended when the Lions added a couple of very late free throws. It was a tremendous game played by two evenly matched teams.
Two of the Carolina Christian players had burned us in our two previous games. Coach decided to play a triangle and 2 defense and went over it with the players 10 minutes before tip off. The Falcons came out fast and played a perfect first quarter. The defense worked to perfection and took the Lions top two scorers out of the game. Josh Black injured his back midway through the first quarter but stayed on the floor. Coach was going to pull him out but Josh said he could go another 2 minutes. Josh never came out of the game even though his back pain never improved. He always went anothr 2 minutes. Josh scored 7 points in the first quarter while Nathan Spitler pulled down 5 first quarter rebounds. The Falcons lead 13-8 going into the second period. Something unexpected always happens in a basketball game and this time it came in the second quarter. Our defense was working as designed but the Lions point guard suddenly got very hot. David Grigg, # 23 scored 14 second quarter points as the Lions knocked down 3 three pointers in a row. Josh scored 8 second quarter points but the Falcons now trailed 27-21 at the break.
We had to change our defense to account for #23 and decided to go full court man to man pressure. Winning both quarters would win the game. Once again the strategy worked. The Lion lead quickly evaporated as Nathan and Josh took control of the boards and the offense. Nathan scored 6 points in the quarter on a couple of put backs and 2 free throws. Trey Barnes came alive with a 3 pointer and a free throw. Josh put in 4 more points as the Falcons took a 36-35 lead into the 4th quarter on a last second tip in by Nathan. The lead would see-saw from this point on. Neither team could pull away. It was going to come down to the last minute and it did. This time the shot would not drop and that’s basketball. The Falcons committed only 4 turnovers in the second half when every possession was pressure packed. They made 10 of 14 free throws. They played the best they could play at both ends of the floor. They did everything asked of them and more. They played with passion and courage. They played with all their heart.
For the Record: Josh Black with an injured back scored 25 points, a season high. Josh also had 10 rebounds an 1 assist. Nathan Spitler pulled down a school record 17 rebounds and scored a personal best 12 points. Nathan also had 2 steals and 1 assist. Trey Barnes made 2 three pointers and finished the game with 7 points and 5 rebounds. Mitch Moore was in foul trouble most of the second half and scored 2 points with 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals. Caleb Farmer ran the point guard position to perfection scoring 2 points with 2 rebounds, 1 steal, and 1 assist. Daniel Zangmeister, coming off a rib injury scored 2 points with 3 rebounds. Forest Landa did not score but once again played great defense and was one of the two in the triangle and 2 defense.
The season has officially ended and this will most likely be my last entry until the sports banquet. Looking back, we could not imagine how much injuries would effect this team. I do not believe we played one single game when we were completely healthy. Between back injuries, sprained ankles, injured ribs, jammed fingers, and the flu we were short players at every game and almost every practice. We thought we might lose Mitch for the entire year due to an injured finger. Most of you may not know that Mitch played the entire season with a small splint on his shooting hand. We did not know where our points would come from when the season started. Josh answered that question very quickly. Every player on both teams worked hard, pushed themselves, and got better. Their basketball IQ went up and they learned some important lessons about life. Coach and I both like to win but we don’t judge the success of a season on our win/loss record. That is actually far down the list. With a team like Central, it is the only thing on the list. We expect and demand a lot from the Arborbrook players, and they deliver. Always remember that basketball is only a tool to help shape the rest of their lives. The players on both our teams should walk tall with their heads held high because they never forgot what their true goal was. Play to the glory of God and honor yourselves, your parents, and your school. It is hard to believe the season has already ended. Thank you once again for your continued fan support. Thank you parents for getting the players back and forth to games and practices. Thank you for keeping score books, selling concessions and tickets, cleaning up, and making home games a success. Thank you for allowing us to be a small part of your son’s lives and teach them the game of basketball and a little about life.
Carolina Christian 47 – Arborbrook 40
The Falcons dropped their second game of the year to Carolina Christian and unfortunately, it was an exact replay of the first game. In both games, the Falcons held the lead throughout most of the game before falling behind late in the fourth quarter. We had not played since last Tuesday and held only a light practice when we took the floor last night. We came out slow with no energy and little enthusiasm in the first half, picked up the pace in the third quarter and then went completely to sleep in the fourth quarter. Even with all that, we should have won the game. Carolina Christian played a much more aggressive offense, driving to the basket and crashing the boards. Carolina made 12 free throws, we shot only 3. Carolina Christian outhustled us at both ends of the floor, picking up every loose ball and were constantly a step ahead of us on every breakaway. And we still should have won because we are a better team that played poorly and did not lose control until the last 2 minutes of the game.
The Falcons held an 11-7 first quarter lead behind baskets from Josh Black, Nathan Spitler, and Trey Barnes. Nathan took control of the boards early with 5 first quarter rebounds before getting into early foul trouble. Josh would score 4 more points in the second quarter and Mitch Moore would add a basket as the Falcons took a 17-16 lead into the locker room. We had not played well but somehow, we were still in the lead. I though we were fired up and ready to go but we came out just as slow with two left feet to start the third quarter. Coach inserted Kyle Boutross in the game to try and get some energy flowing. Kyle seemed to spark the team and suddenly we were moving up and down the floor. Five different players scored in the quarter and we held a 30-26 lead going into the final period. Josh Black scored 2 quick baskets and we increased our lead to 34-26 just before the roof came down. Carolina Christian went on a 15-2 run as our defense disappeared and our offense could not hang onto the ball. We were only down by four with 30 seconds left in the game and we had possession. It looked like we would cut the lead to two as Josh drove to the basket but the ball just slipped off his finger tips and skipped out of bounds. It was a good play with a little bad luck. Carolina Christian had no answer for Josh as his speed and athletic ability constantly enabled him to slide between defenders for some awesome layups. Carolina would close us out with 3 late free throws and win the game. At least part one. Sometime in sports, you get a Mulligan. We get to play them again tonight in the opening game of the tournament. The winner moves on while the loser will be finished for the season.
For the Record: Josh Black scored 20 points with 10 rebounds and 3 steals. Trey Barnes netted 2 three pointers and scored 8 points with 1 steal. Nathan Spitler scored 4 points on a rebound he put back in and 2 free throws. Nathan also pulled down 9 rebounds with 1 assist. Mitch Moore scored 4 points coming off a sprained ankle, grabbed 2 rebounds with 2 steals and 2 assists. Forest Landa scored 2 points with 2 rebounds, 4 steals, and 1 assist. Forest was the most effective defensive player on the floor for both teams. Kyle Boutross came off the bench and gave the team a lift while scoring 2 points with 3 rebounds and 1 assist. Caleb Farmer did not score but had several shots rim in and out. Caleb had 1 rebound, 1 steal, and 1 assist. Caleb Robinson stepped in for 3 rebounds.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 23
4:30pm — Girls HS vs. Carolina Christian @ Southbrook
6:00pm — Boys HS vs. Carolina Christian @ Southbrook
BOYS HIGH SCHOOL TOURNAMENT (Feb 24-27)
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24 — 4:30pm Boys HS vs. Carolina Christian @ Central Academy
If win, Boys HS team will play games on Thursday & Friday @ Central Academy (times to be determined)
GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL TOURNAMENT (March 3 & 5)
Girls HS team will be playing on March 3 & 5 @ Carolina Christian in Locust, NC. Game times and seeding to be determined.
Arborbrook 25 – Berean 16
The Falcons ended the season with a 7-6 record by recording a 25-16 victory over Berean Academy. It was a ragged game from beginning to end with Berean committing numereous fouls on almost every Falcon possession. It was difficult for the offense to get into any kind of flow and we once again missed 14 free throws. The gym was dark and the floor was different and strange. The official score keeper for Berean and the clock operator really had no idea what they were doing which caused problems with the time, the score, and the fouls. Berean played with aggressive passion but really had no chance. We did not play our best game of the year but condsidering the conditions, the season ended on a good note. The Falcons first string played most of the first quarter and built a 10-4 lead. The lead quickly grew to 18-6 in the second period when the Falcon bench was cleared. A full court press by Berean resulted in 3 quick baskets in the final 90 seconds to make it a 18-12 half time score. The Falcon starters played the first 3 minutes of the second quarter and quickly extended the lead to 23-12. There would not be much scoring the remainder of the game for either team as the play became scrambled and uneven.
For the record: Caleb Robinson played very little but still lead the team with 8 points and 3 rebounds. Ryan Brown knocked down a 3 pointer and finished with 5 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 assists. Matthew Pedemonte, Joel VanDusen, Kyle Boutross, and Richard McFall all scored 3 points. Joel pulled down 4 rebounds with 4 steals. Matthew had 1 rebound with 4 steals. Kyle grabbed 3 rebounds with 1 steal. Richard came up with 2 rebounds. Johnathan Spitler had 2 steals and Ethan Robinson grabbed 1 rebound.
Reflecting back on the season the middle school team was inconsistant to say the least. However, we need to look at where they started and where they finished. There were only 4 players that had any experience and that experience amounted to only one year. There were no players that were considered scorers. The basketball IQ was very low and half the team could not dribble or shoot. The first year players had to learn the importance of conditioning and the attitude that we would display during games and practice. The team lacked confidence in themselves and their teammates. Yet, there was talent brewing just under the surface. We could be very good or we could be very bad, we weren’t sure. We ended up being a little of both. Confidence started to grow with practices and games. Our expectations went up and we started to expect more and more of them as a team. Every single player showed tremendous improvement throughout the year. Trying to keep this team focused during games and practices was our biggest challenge and we did not always succeed. But it was a great year. This is still an inexperienced team that cannot make free throws but is fun to watch especially when they are in sync. They worked hard and learned a little about basketball and a lot about life. Thank you parents for your support and encouragemant throughout the year. The Arborbrook fan base is awesome.
