Fairbanks senior Grant Rausch drives in for the layup with two Indians ready to take him on. Rausch scored four points in the team’s home win on Senior Night over Mechanicsburg.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Aleksei Pavloff)
—
The Fairbanks boys basketball team is chomping at the bit for a chance to play for an Ohio Heritage Conference (OHC) North Division title after defeating Mechanicsburg 52-20.
Fans and parents gathered at the high school to celebrate the school’s winter senior athletes ahead of the team’s divisional contests.
Although the festivities were special, the team has bigger hopes leading into the postseason.
“The season has been good,” head coach Zach Brown said. “The guys have stayed focused on our goal to winning a conference championship and they’ve continued to work hard on our days off and at practice.”
Fairbanks’ Dylan Tobe earned the team’s first layup right at the six-minute mark of the first quarter of play.
The Indians responded with a layup of their own, but the home squad took control back with another field-goal for a 4-2 edge.
Midway into the first quarter, Tobe showed his prowess getting to the arc. He connected on a three-pointer for a 7-2 spread.
With four minutes left to play in the opening quarter, Fairbanks continued to press the envelope, taking an 11-2 lead.
The margin grew to 15-2 as action moved into the ensuing period.
Tobe and Grant Rausch combined for 12 points during the quarter.
Mechanicsburg continued to struggle against the Panthers’ fast-paced offensive attack and burly defensive approach.
A barrage of shots from the three-point arc connected for the Panthers in the second quarter. Cade Feller notched two trifectas and Tobe added two in exhausting the Indians on defense.
At the halfway point, Fairbanks led 28-6.
More of the same occurred in the third quarter with the Panthers tallying an additional 12 points. Mechanicsburg held their most productive quarter in the third scoring nine points.
Bleeding into the fourth quarter and taking the FHS lead to 40-15, a running clock was instituted.
Fairbanks claimed another 12 points, compared to Mechanicsburg’s five.
In the end, the Panthers ran their overall record to 12-8 and their OHC mark to 9-5.
FHS has a one-game lead over West Liberty-Salem in the North Division.
“I’m super-happy for our seniors,” Brown said. “The way they’ve competed… the way this team plays together, it’s special.
“This group of seniors, especially with their leadership, enjoy being around each other,” said the coach. “They enjoy playing together and it’s honestly a lot of fun to be at practice every day.”
The Panthers are slated to play at Triad on Friday.
If they win, they will at least capture a share of the divisional title.
Fairbanks
Green 3-0-7, Rausch 2-0-4, Feller 0-0-0, Higinbotham 2-2-6, Ziegler 3-0-6, Tobe 5-0-13, Landon 0-2-2, Crowe 2-0-6, Tanner Ufferman 4-0-8, Tyler Ufferman 0-0-0. Three-point goals: Green, Tobe 3.
Mechanicsburg
Eyink 0-0-0, Morgan 1-0-2, Mascardni 2-0-4, Hass 1-1-4, Shultz 0-0-0, Edwards 1-1-4, Ritchie 0-0-0, Freeze 1-0-3, Meade 0-0-0, Poland 1-0-3. Three-point goals: Hass, Edwards, Freeze, Poland.