Down Goes Ferris

Friday’s overtime heartbreaker for Ferris sends them down to fifth place in league standings

By Ryan Minnerly

The Saxon winning streak came to an abrupt halt on Friday. Ferris faced off with the Mead Panthers in an away game and lost by a mere four points in overtime, as their six game success streak came screeching to a sudden end. The Saxons built themselves a formidable lead, lost it in the second half, and battled back to force overtime. However, a combination of a streaky Mead performance that went hot at the right times, and a hostile environment for the visiting Saxons resulted in a small advantage on the scoreboard for the home team Panthers at the conclusion of the contest. Nevertheless, this minuscule lead on the scoreboard was far from insignificant. With that win, Mead remains bound to Gonzaga Prep, tied for first in the GSL. The two teams continue to battle atop the league rankings to become the sole proprietors of the number one seed. Ferris, on the other hand, fell one spot after their loss in the thriller against Mead.  They are now fifth in the league with a record of 6-3 (8-6 overall), and have six games remaining to improve their position among the rankings for the post season. The contest with Mead on Friday was a big game for both teams, and a thrill for all parties involved.

The first half was all about the Saxons. After the first quarter they had a measly lead of two points. But a big second quarter changed more than just the numbers on the scoreboard. By halftime, Ferris had created themselves a 36-19 advantage on Mead’s home floor. The score had changed, the home team intensity had noticeably changed, and the spirit of the hopeful Panther fans had fallen off the globe. Ferris had come in, dominated for a half against the team they had already beaten once, and nonetheless, they had done it in the Panther’s house. Rowdy Ferris fans that made the trip were excited and hoped for another half that was identical to the first. Certainly, these fans learned that you truly do not always get what you want. The third quarter brought a whole new attitude from Mead. The Panthers came out and went on a tear. They dropped 24 points in the third quarter alone en route to diminishing the Saxon advantage to just four points. The Ferris lead had been nearly erased as the Saxons clung dearly to a much smaller lead. The Ferris players had noticed the difference between the first half and second half Panthers. Jason Bates had this to say after the game: “It seemed like they were a lot less tense and just went out and played (in the second half). We knew they would go on runs and in the first half and early third quarter we weren’t able to put them away. The noise started playing a part too, but we did a pretty good job of staying calm.” Bates finished with just 3 points, but had some key rebounds and a steal late in the game for Ferris.

In the fourth quarter, Mead outplayed their visiting counterparts once again, this time by a smaller margin. The Panthers scored 12 points to Ferris’ 8, leaving it tied at 64 apiece. But late game heroics were not required of the home team that had been at a deficit all game. Rather, Ferris lost their advantage with a few minutes left in regulation, and had to mount a comeback late in the game. Ferris was down by just two points with less than 15 seconds left to play. The Saxons fouled, forcing Mead to shoot free throws, and on a missed attempt Ferris got the ball. Then came the thrill, thanks to junior point guard Riley Stockton. “We got the rebound off the missed free throw and the ball ended up in my hands. All I was trying to do was get to the rim and get a lay in or get fouled.” Stockton succeeded as he sunk a lay-in over a defender with 2.7 seconds left on the clock. Mead called a timeout and drew up a play for a last-second shot to win. Though they did have a decent shot at it, the shot was missed and the play unsuccessful, forcing overtime.

With less than two minutes remaining in the fifth period of the game, the two teams were knotted up at 69. However, in the final 1:40 of the overtime period, the Panthers took the advantage by power of free throws, sinking 7 of their 8 attempts and not allowing Ferris to endanger their lead. The final score was 76-72 favoring the home team Mead Panthers.

The home-court advantage really played a big role in this game. Bates commented that “The extra noise from the fans during free throws could have affected us.” The gym was much louder in the final three quarters of play, which could have rattled the visiting Saxons. Yet, they seemed to keep their cool late in regulation and were able to force overtime. Senior Connor Halliday had an idea as to why: “I would say the key to staying calm in that situation for us is we have been playing with each other for so long that we know each of us will stay composed and chip away at the lead a little bit at a time. We just weren’t able to pull it off in O.T.” The Saxons did a good job of staying calm and collected late in the game despite the circumstances – that is, their last minute loss of lead and loss of momentum, as well as the huge increase of noise by Mead’s spectators. Halliday contributed 13 points to the Saxon cause and made 3 of his 4 free throws. Saxons Riley Stockton and Chris Wilson had big days offensively for Ferris.  Stockton had a total of 20 points including his last second bucket at the end of regulation. Wilson one-upped Riley (literally), throwing down 21 points. Moreover, Chris had five three-pointers despite increased pressure from the Mead defenders. “I just tried to move as much as I could and tried to lose the defense. It boosted the team a lot. Everybody had more energy and had more confidence in the team.” Chris’ timely threes gave Ferris some major momentum, which contributed greatly to their favorable first half lead.

Despite great efforts late in the game, Ferris ended up on the wrong end of the thriller. However, the Saxons remain among the top six teams in the GSL, meaning as of right now they are in the picture for districts in the post season. Their next opponent is North Central. The Indians took the fourth place rank in the GSL after Ferris’ loss to Mead. Ferris emerged victorious in the last meeting between these two teams, but by a slim margin of 3 points. Good luck boys, go get ‘em!