Venango County boys basketball teams to vie for D10 crowns
Rocky Grove won a battle against West Middlesex. Franklin ran over Mercyhurst Prep. Oil City jumped out and stayed there against Grove City. All three Venango County teams in the playoffs advanced to the District 10 title game.
Woo hoo!
Woo hoo!
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Where does one begin to write about this night? Seriously... Penny Weichel wrote on her Route8rivalry.com website that Oil City hasn't made it passed districts since 1972. Tonight's win propels them into the state playoffs even if they don't hoist the hardware Friday night. Franklin's Easton Fulmer became the all-time leading scorer in school history with his first bucket right around two minutes into the contest. He scored some points but the night belonged to others Tuesday as Damon Curry was unconscious in the first quarter and Luke Guth also scored nearly 20 in the game. They rolled to another lopsided victory. Rocky Grove battled and battled and came out on top against a scrappy West Middlesex thanks to solid fundamentals like sinking crucial free throws. Now they all wait to see when and where they will play Friday night with a chance to become district champions. This was a night of nights for Venango County! |
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We'll start here.
Leading up to tonight's contest, everyone was aware that the first time a ball left Easton Fulmer's hands and touched the net he would become the all-time leading scorer in Franklin's school history. It was a mark that has stood since Randy Lynch's last bucket way back in 1984.
But that wasn't the highlight of the win against Mercyhurst Prep Tuesday. Damon Curry was on fire in the first quarter. He dropped three threes in the first few minutes and just kept going.
His mom, Tammy Balcita was beginning to sweat profusely on the sidelines.
She is the team photographer and provides the local paper with photos from the games. She said that if her son scored 33 points she promised she would give him $100. She said he was a prolific scorer in youth ball, but at the high school level it seemed like a safe bet.
Damon had 20 points at the half.
When the fourth quarter rolled around he seemed in striking distance. Then coach Fulmer pulled his starters with the game well in hand. Balcita said "Coach saved me." with a big smile.
After the game Balcita mentioned it to her son, who then acted with a bit of regret. He hadn't even thought about the wager. The main focus was on winning the game.
Luke Guth also threw down 20. There are so many weapons on this team.
Franklin (22-2) advances to the D10 title game to face Seneca (19-5) on Friday.
Leading up to tonight's contest, everyone was aware that the first time a ball left Easton Fulmer's hands and touched the net he would become the all-time leading scorer in Franklin's school history. It was a mark that has stood since Randy Lynch's last bucket way back in 1984.
But that wasn't the highlight of the win against Mercyhurst Prep Tuesday. Damon Curry was on fire in the first quarter. He dropped three threes in the first few minutes and just kept going.
His mom, Tammy Balcita was beginning to sweat profusely on the sidelines.
She is the team photographer and provides the local paper with photos from the games. She said that if her son scored 33 points she promised she would give him $100. She said he was a prolific scorer in youth ball, but at the high school level it seemed like a safe bet.
Damon had 20 points at the half.
When the fourth quarter rolled around he seemed in striking distance. Then coach Fulmer pulled his starters with the game well in hand. Balcita said "Coach saved me." with a big smile.
After the game Balcita mentioned it to her son, who then acted with a bit of regret. He hadn't even thought about the wager. The main focus was on winning the game.
Luke Guth also threw down 20. There are so many weapons on this team.
Franklin (22-2) advances to the D10 title game to face Seneca (19-5) on Friday.
Then there was Rocky Grove - It was another back-and-forth battle for the Orioles when they held on to defeat West Middlesex 53-50.
The teams took turns leading the contest with the Orioles ending up on top 28-25 at the half. It took nearly three minutes in the second half for either to score, but they again resumed just trading baskets.
With 20 seconds left in the game, Rocky Grove took the lead for good when Issac Clayton, who had 18 points on the night, sunk a foul shot to make it 51-50.
Two more fouls later and the Big Red could only hope for a three-pointer and a tie with 3.4 seconds remaining. They took the shot but missed.
Rocky Grove (19-5) advances to a Friday night District 10 championship game against Kennedy Catholic High School (20-4), who defeated them twice during the regular season.
The teams took turns leading the contest with the Orioles ending up on top 28-25 at the half. It took nearly three minutes in the second half for either to score, but they again resumed just trading baskets.
With 20 seconds left in the game, Rocky Grove took the lead for good when Issac Clayton, who had 18 points on the night, sunk a foul shot to make it 51-50.
Two more fouls later and the Big Red could only hope for a three-pointer and a tie with 3.4 seconds remaining. They took the shot but missed.
Rocky Grove (19-5) advances to a Friday night District 10 championship game against Kennedy Catholic High School (20-4), who defeated them twice during the regular season.
Then there was Oil City who just plain jumped out.
That might be an understatement.
In a blink of an eye, Oil City was up by 11 and it just seemed like that was going to be the difference all game. Grove City punched a couple of times but never was able to find a glass jaw.
They ended up winning by nine 57-48 with solid performances all around - but in particular, their sole senior Judias Johnson was dominant with 22 points and handling the ball several times coming up the court.
The fact that they haven't reached a district title game in so long was not lost on the coaches who jumped with as much excitement as any of the players.
Oil City (16-8) gets ready to square off Friday against Fairview (22-2), who they have both beaten and lost to this season.
Friday is going to be one hell of a night for Venango County.
To view more photos click on the ad below!
That might be an understatement.
In a blink of an eye, Oil City was up by 11 and it just seemed like that was going to be the difference all game. Grove City punched a couple of times but never was able to find a glass jaw.
They ended up winning by nine 57-48 with solid performances all around - but in particular, their sole senior Judias Johnson was dominant with 22 points and handling the ball several times coming up the court.
The fact that they haven't reached a district title game in so long was not lost on the coaches who jumped with as much excitement as any of the players.
Oil City (16-8) gets ready to square off Friday against Fairview (22-2), who they have both beaten and lost to this season.
Friday is going to be one hell of a night for Venango County.
To view more photos click on the ad below!
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