​‘It’s a three-peat’

‘It’s a three-peat’

3/3/2023

Damon Curry and his teammates gave the Franklin fans lots to cheer about Friday night as the Knights beat rival Oil City 55-39 in the District 10 3A Championship at Slippery Rock University.

“It’s a three-peat,” was the chant of the night following the Franklin victory.

Curry, who had a rather quiet first half, came out like lightning in the third quarter. He scored 12 of his game-high 20 points, including a slam dunk off a fast break that got the fans excited. He was done lighting the field house on fire - three minutes later he banked in a half-court buzzer beater that sent the Franklin fans into a tizzy..

“I put it up there. It looked pretty good. I just waited for it to drop,” Curry said after the game.

The basket secured Franklin a 42-21 lead after three and a huge boost of momentum in a contest that started out slowly.

Both the Oilers and the Knights struggled to find successful shots in the first quarter. Franklin scored first on a field goal from Curry, but Oil City’s Jake Hornbeck quickly responded. This started a back-and-forth battle of missed buckets and defensive rebounds that made the game feel more like tennis and less like basketball.

At the end of the first quarter, Franklin had a slim lead of 9-5.

The second quarter opened much the same with a quick bucket from Franklin’s Dreyden Payne that was answered by Hornbeck again.

Then the Knights seemed to find a rhythm that the Oil City defense had disrupted in the first eight minutes.

Franklin went on a 10-point run with baskets from Johnathan Leccia, Cole Buckley, Ethan Owens and Curry. It was Hornbeck who finally moved the Oil City score forward again. But the damage was done; the Oilers would not be able to recover from the 21-9 deficit.

The Knights would add five more points and the Oilers would get four more before the half ended with a score of 26-13.

The third quarter belonged to Payne and Curry. Payne played strong defense and was able to convert one of his two steals into a fast break bucket. Curry closed out the period with a nine-point run for the Knights. Oil City’s Cameron VanWormer finally pitched in two points to go along with six from Hornbeck to try to keep the Oilers in the game.

It was Oil City's senior duo who pulled together the team’s strongest quarter to finish out the game. VanWormer had nine of his 11 that quarter and Hornbeck recorded four more. But Franklin used a balanced attack to stay out of striking distance.

With 30 seconds remaining, both teams cleared their bench to give additional players a chance to experience time in the big game. Oil City senior Matt Ames made the most of the opportunity and sank a three-pointer with only two seconds remaining.

The Knights won 55-39 to earn the team’s third consecutive district championship. Oil City had to settle for second place again after losing to Fairview last year in the 4A finals.

Curry had a game-high 20 points. Wood contributed 11, including three treys. Payne had eight. Leccia had six, including two notable reverse layups. Owens and Buckley each had five.

Hornbeck worked hard for the Oilers, putting up 17 points to lead the team. VanWormer had 11, Ethen Knox had six, Ames had three and Sayyid Donald had two.

Having a Venango-only championship game was quite the feat, according to Franklin coach Jason Fulmer. He was excited about his team’s victory, but also what a Route 8 rivalry championship contest meant about the state of basketball in Venango County.

“It speaks more of what Bundy’s done and what we’ve done with Venango County basketball than anything else,” Fulmer said about his squad and his brother’s Oilers. He predicted back in the summer that the two squads would likely meet in the District 10 finals. “It’s exciting.”

For many of the players on Fulmer’s team, it is their third time standing in the victor’s line of the championship game. "It speaks volumes of the guys,” he said. “The more and more we do it… we get better at it.”

He complimented Curry’s shooting throughout the game, Payne’s play off the bench as well as the remainder of the team’s work and drive to win. It is something that helped them overcome a slow start to the season that was affected by injuries.

“I said it back then, don’t judge us in December. Judge us in January and February and now we are into March,” Fulmer added.

Curry was among those making his third appearance in a championship game, having played off the bench as a freshman and a starter the last two years. After a strong showing, the junior spent time bragging about his teammates.

“He played a hell of a game,” Curry said about Payne.

“He’s a great teammate to have,” he added about Wood, who he has played alongside since the third grade.

Payne echoed the team focus needed to win year after year. “It’s not just me,” he answered when asked about his impressive game stats. “It’s the rest of the team that helped me.”

Curry, Payne and the rest of the squad will take a few days to rest and get back to work polishing up their play for the opening round of the PIAA tournament. Getting passed the first game has been a struggle for the Knights the last two years, but Curry and his teammate seem up for the challenge.

“I’m ready to see what happens,” Payne said.