The No. 14 seed Eagles did it again. The Eagles upset the No. 6 seed Liberty Hawks, Feb 25. FC outlasted the Hawks, 70-68. The game was not an easy win for the Eagles; they had to fight all the way down to the last second. FC varsity boys basketball has not seen a semi final game since their valley championship back in 2012.

The game started off fast and high scoring. The Eagles kryptonite is a slow start, and they scored at ease matching Liberty each time going down the court. FC was down 17-12 headed into the second quarter, with the energy from the crowd and the team they clawed back in the game.

“Defensively, the game plan was to take away the three-point shot, ” Penberthy said. “On offense, we knew if we scored 70 points we would have a good chance winning. I thought we played well in the first half, we got into foul trouble in the second and it hurt us. We had a couple big three-point shots that gave us the lead, but it wasn’t till the final buzzer that my nerves went away.”

In the Eagles playoff run, Daniel Walker, ’17, had 31 points versus Tranquillity to ultimately help the Eagles get the victory. In the game versus Liberty, Walker scored a total of 29 points and led his team once again for the victory and kept their season alive.

“My mindset going into each game is having confidence in my abilities, ” Walker said. “I also have to trust my teammates and have confidence in them. We are the underdog being the 14th seed and we have to go in every game wanting to prove people wrong. The mindset going into the game versus Liberty with them being the higher seed was to play as a team and play fast.”

The Eagles scored 23 points in the second quarter and held the Hawks to only 11 points. Going into halftime with the lead, 35-28, the Eagles used the lead to play harder. When both teams stepped back onto the court, they were ready to go at it for one more half. The Hawks took advantage of the foul calls by driving to the basket and getting hit. FC found themselves in foul trouble in the middle of the third quarter. At one time the fouls were FC seven and Liberty one. The Eagles were up 54-51 heading into the fourth quarter.

Both teams were neck and neck throughout the last quarter of the game. Possession after possession, bucket after bucket, both teams had the heart and drive to win the game. The Eagles were up by one, 69-68; with 20 seconds left on the clock and it was the opposing team’s ball. They drove in the lane to the basket and with ten seconds left Walker grabbed the rebound. Liberty was quick to foul Walker and send him to the free throw line with 8.7 seconds left. Walker sunk the first free throw, but missed the second one. The Eagles ended up finishing the game up on top after a missed three-pointer at the buzzer, 70-68.

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The Eagles will be on the road once again. FC will try and advance to play in Selland arena. They will face the No. 10 seed in the semi final game versus Strathmore, March 1. 

For more sport shorts check out, Basketball sport short: Eagles upset Tranquillity.

This author can be reached via Twitter: @ty_breedlove and via email: Tyler Breedlove.