Fall Creek runs lift them past Osseo-Farichild
OSSEO - A pair of runs at the end of each half of basketball allowed No. 8 ranked Fall Creek prep boys' team to defeat rival Osseo-Fairchild Tuesday evening, Jan. 31 at Osseo-Fairchild and sweep the season series.
Both teams ran the floor and had good ball movement the first half but it O-F getting the better of the Crickets with good shooting for an early 20-17 advantage with five minutes before halftime.
That's when the first FC run took place powered by 6-5 junior Isaac Steinke. He scored 15 of his team-best 22 points in the first half. He helped the Crickets (14-2 overall and 9-1 in the Western Cloverbelt Conference) take a 34-20 halftime lead off a 17-0 run. Leo Hagberg scored points for Fall Creek but four them came on a key four-point play in the first half, his first points of the ballgame.
Fall Creek expanded their lead to as much as 18 points early in the second half but O-F came back with three-point buckets from Lucas Frase, Jack Steinke and Brody Seefeldt to cut FC's lead to nine. The Thunder (8-8 overall and 6-4 in the Western Cloverbelt) still only trailed 50-39 with five minutes remaining in the ballgame when FC's Bo Vollrath, who had been quiet in the first half due to foul trouble, became quite noisy in the second half when it came to scoring. He put down 13 of his 19 points in the half and led FC on a 14-6 run to end the ballgame. Also scoring for the Crickets were Ben Kelly with seven points, Jacob Wathkle with three, Jack Walden with five points, Jeff Ritger three, Ethan Frederick with two points and Tyson Flottmeier one point.
Besides being overwhelmed on defense, OFHS didn't help their cause committing numerous turnovers the Crickets could convert to points. Fall Creek also outrebounded the Thunder 39-21 led by Steinke with 12 boards, Vollrath 11 for double-doubles. Hagberg and Vollrath both had three assists and Walden had three of FC's 10 steals.
Frase led O-F in scoring with 14 points. Braeden Metzler finished with nine points for the Thunder, Seefeldt had seven, Jack Steinke five, Oliver four, Ethan Abram three, and Nick Jacobson scored one point.
O-F has lost three games in a row but will look to end that streak this Friday at Bloomer and/or Monday, Feb. 6 at home vs. Eleva-Strum and Tuesday, Feb. 7 at Glenwood City. The Thunder will play three games in four days when they take on Thorp at home Thursday, Feb. 9.
Fall Creek will be busy too. They are at Eau Claire Regis on Friday, Feb, 3, take part in the Just A Game Fieldhouse Classic against Pardeeville (12-5) this Saturday in Wisconsin Dells, are at Whitehall Monday, Feb. 6 before returning home to face Bloomer, their only loss in league play, on Thursday, Feb. 9.
