It was a rematch of last year’s district championship, but the Blair Oaks Falcons and the Father Tolton Trailblazers had a much different look Wednesday night. The result was the same, except the Trailblazers didn’t need a fourth-quarter comeback this time. Tolton nearly led wire-to-wire, locking down defensively to come away with a 56-34 victory against Blair Oaks in the semifinals of the Class 4 District 9 Tournament at Fatima High School.
In the opening few minutes of Tuesday night’s game, it looked as if the Blair Oaks Falcons had hit the snooze button on the alarm clock. When Blair Oaks coach Ryan Fick called timeout with 3:38 left in the first quarter, he had a metaphorical bucket of cold water ready to wake up his players. Following the timeout, the Falcons outscored the Pintos 41-10 the rest of the first half, dominating their way to a 59-30 victory in a Tri-County Conference matchup at Blair Oaks High School.
Blair Oaks coach Ryan Fick wasted no time in taking the blame for the Falcons’ loss Friday night. A technical foul was called on the Blair Oaks bench with :00.2 on the clock, and the Miller Career Phoenix sent Charles Nelson to the free-throw line with a chance to win the game. Nelson missed the first free throw, but the second attempt made its way through the net to give Miller Career a 59-58 victory at Blair Oaks High School.
Ryan Fick had a pretty good idea he would get to 400 career wins at some point this season. But with a large turnover from last year’s roster and a tough strength of schedule, he wasn’t sure how long it would take to get there. A six-game win streak since late December by the Blair Oaks Falcons allowed Fick to reach the milestone Friday night on his home court. “It’s nice to get to that milestone,” Fick said after Blair Oaks’ 80-64 win against the Versailles Tigers in Tri-County Conference play. “It says a lot about our program and the kids that play. I’m happy to be in a great place."
This week marks Blair Oaks Winterfest, and Blair Oaks has announced its Winterfest Court. The Greek-themed week will culminate in basketball games vs. Versailles on Friday and a dance Saturday evening at the high school.