Foul shots are called 'free throws,' but they aren't free points. You still have to make them.

From the line neither Franklin nor Counneaut Area teams were exactly stellar in taking advantage of the unobstructed chuck at the hoop all night. Finally at the very end Franklin made just enough of the one point shots to fend off a tough opponent who traveled down from Linesville on a cold icy night.

CASH entered the fourth quarter up by eight.

Franklin coach Ryan Justice told the girls sitting on the bench between quarters that the first couple minutes of the quarter will determine who will win the game.

CASH came right out and scored to go up 10.

But Justice wasn't wrong. After that hoop Franklin made stops and managed to get the ball in a very pesky basket that seemed to thwart attempt after attempt for them all night.

Luckily for the Knights, the hoop on the other end was equally stingy for CASH.
​
Only two points from late foul shots separated the two teams as the last buzzer rattled the gymnasium windows. Franklin 43 - CASH 41.

I also photographed a few frames from the junior varsity game as well. Please see a link at the bottom to view even more photos.

I did get a kick out of photographing CASH's coach because I remember photographing her playing for Conneaut Lake many many years ago.

Thank you to our sponsors from the Buffalo Street Lanes. They are awesome!

Updated 1/29/2021 to reflect final score.

"You gotta want the ball more than they do, right now they want the ball more than you," -Union City head coach Chris Krause hollered out on to the court Thursday at Cochranton High School.

​That pretty much summed up the game Thursday night. Even a half-time buzzer beater by Lexie Moore(above)  rattled only slightly before finding the net. Cochranton just wanted  it more. When I left in the fourth quarter Cochranton almost doubled the Union City Bears total. The game ended at 66-40.

​I had fun photographing in Cochranton again and seeing George Schroeder again. He's being refereeing a very long time and he can still get up and down the court with the folks half his age. 

​Check out some of the action shots I grabbed in tonight's contest. There is a link to even more below.

See even more phots here: https://sayerrich.zenfolio.com/p506203622

Oil City never quite got on track tonight visiting the Meadville Bulldogs. The Bulldogs weren't exactly stellar either, but they managed a low scoring 48 - 36 victory at home. 

It was good seeing a couple of the Oil City kids who I haven't seen since the game I got knocked out cold. Thank you principal Scott Stahl for coming from the other side of the gym to say hello and say he was happy to see me vertical and getting around. ​Me too Scott. Me too!

See more photos here:
https://sayerrich.zenfolio.com/p213998610

My interest in community journalism and story telling is think a little more outside the box from the traditional documentation of the community. A community isn't just made up of the highlighted areas of business, politics and high school sports. A community is a much larger fabric.

I'm working out details for how Eight & 322 can maybe reach out a little further than just the standard High school varsity coverage. We're not an outlet that will concentrate on college or professional sports, so we hope to eventually have more of a dedication to all levels of our family's sports lives.

I haven't worked it all out yet, I'm still trying to figure out how I can make a living, but somehow covering junior high ball tonight to make a few action photographs seemed like the start of an idea.. Stay tuned for more, my mind is racing with ways I can maybe make this happen.

Here are just a few photographs, more can be seen by following the link below.

By the way the Orioles and the Oilers split games today. The first game ended one made foul shot away from overtime at 28-27. In the second game the Orioles held of the Oilers with a two-point 20-18 victory.

See even more photos here: ​https://sayerrich.zenfolio.com/p363545814

Franklin had a few pins and decisions tonight, but not quite enough to take down Cranberry in the non-region match-up. It ended with Oil City edging out the home squad 33-27

The match ended up a tad anti-climatic with four forfeits at the end of a tight back and forth battle.
​
​A few more spectators and the Franklin cheers were allowed in the gym. It was closer to seeming like a normal match.

See more photos and in color at the link below.

View more photos at link below:

Felt sorta like home tonight as I photographed in the House of Thrills again. Oil City traveled to take of the Meadville Lady Bulldogs and though it was a pretty rough start for the Oiler when Meadville looked to be on the verge of a blowout, the Oilers roared back to only lose by two. 

​Here are a few photos from tonight's contest.

Sponsor: Katie M. Dewalt Photography

To see even more follow this link below:
sayerrich.zenfolio.com/p317868547

​

Rocky Grove girls basketball hosted a tough Mercer High School squad Friday night. I went to this game because a very nice invitation was sent to me via social media. I didn't know what kind of game it was going to be.

I won't discuss the score here.

​As a photographer mostly I try to make the best images I can and lets just say that my first week of covering sports hasn't been an exercise of seeking the best games to report on, in fact I'd say I didn't really witness a close competition all week. But these are our kids doing the best they can and participating in life.

So kuddos!

​Here are some photos from tonight and more can be found at the link below.

https://sayerrich.zenfolio.com/p983693769