BASKETBALL: Chelsea spoils Senior Night for Foyil

Feb. 7—FOYIL — For outgoing student-athletes, Senior Night is supposed to be a memorable occasion where they cap their home-playing career in a facility they have come to love.

However, that time for celebration was soured in more ways than one Monday night for the Foyil basketball programs.

Not only were the Panthers swept by intracounty rival Chelsea, but they also saw one of their mainstay talents escorted out of Finis Ware Memorial Gymnasium on a rolling chair after suffering a severe right-leg injury during the boys game.

The combination of those things made for a somber evening for the 10 seniors — four girls and six boys — as the girls fell 49-34 before the boys dropped an emotional 39-23 decision in the nightcap.

BOYS — CHELSEA 39, FOYIL 23

A loud 'pop' could be heard throughout the gym.

Moments later, Foyil school officials and family members gathered around senior Aidan Bland and were ready to carry him off the court. Bland fell to the floor clutching his right knee following a scramble for the ball near the left side of the basket.

The incident was as sudden as it was shocking, halting play for the next 10-15 minutes as aid was rendered in whatever way possible. After a brief discussion about the best way to transport Bland to the hospital, he was lifted onto a rolling chair and taken out the south exit of Finis Ware Memorial Gymnasium, which was dedicated in 2009.

At the time of his departure, Bland had scored six-consecutive points as part of a 9-0 run that cut the Panthers' deficit from 28-6 to 28-15 with 3:41 remaining in the third quarter. Mason Valliere furthered the spurt to 11-0 with a layup once play resumed, but it was only a matter of time before Chelsea rediscovered its offense.

The Green Dragons closed the frame with five-straight points, including two layups from Ben Hagebusch, and Joe Perry added a free throw to start the fourth to increase the spread to 34-17.

Foyil responded promptly, though, scoring the next six points with baskets from Valliere and Jaxon Ward and a pair of free throws from Dalton Ward to again make it a manageable 11-point game. However, Chelsea closed with the final five points to secure the victory and increase its winning streak to four games.

Despite missing the final 11:41, Bland was Foyil's leading scorer with eight points and two rebounds. Valliere managed six points and two rebounds, and Tyler Pitman grabbed a team-high six boards alongside two points.

The Panthers outscored the Green Dragons 15-11 in the second half, but it was their slow start to the first quarter that ultimately doomed their hopes of improving their 2023 mark to 2-9.

Hagebusch scored six of his 14 points in the first quarter as Chelsea built a 13-0 edge late into the first period, but Foyil avoided a scoreless quarter thanks to a pair of Bland free throws with 3.3 seconds remaining. Hagebusch scored once more to open the second frame, and after a Valliere layup, Perry followed with two 3-pointers and a 2-point field goal to push the lead to 23-4.

Pitman answered with a layup of his own, but Chelsea rattled off five-consecutive points via two JR Veysey free throws and another Perry 3-ball before Reggie Weygandt scored the final basket of the first half, starting a Foyil run that persisted until Bland's injury.

Hagebusch had four rebounds to go with his double-digit scoring night, and Perry added 12 points and two rebounds while Versey had seven and seven.

GIRLS — CHELSEA 49, FOYIL 34

Much like their male counterparts, a fast start sparked the Lady Green Dragons to victory.

Paced by Maddie Wommack and 13 takeaways, Chelsea dashed to a 16-2 first-quarter lead before Foyil junior Julie Parrish scored the first nine points of a 10-0 run to cut the deficit to 16-12 with 6:22 remaining in the first half.

Wommack scored three field goals during that initial spurt and went on to finish with 16 points and six rebounds in what was the Lady Green Dragons' second win in six games.

Parrish was the sole offensive threat for the Lady Panthers, scoring their first 11 points before senior Makayla Chambers added a free throw early in the second quarter. Furthermore, Parrish was the only Foyil player to score a field goal until a 3-pointer from Cybil Gilmore in the fourth period, accounting for eight of the team's 11 non-free-throw shots.

Abby Carlyle, a freshman, managed consecutive layups in the closing moments to finish with two of the field goals.

Parrish's stat line was reflective of her importance to the Lady Panther offense, recording a near double-double of 20 points and nine rebounds.

However, Foyil never got closer than four points after its 11-0 spurt as Chelsea scored 27 of the next 34 points to balloon its advantage to 43-19 by the end of the third period. The Lady Panthers won the fourth 15-6, but the effort was too little too late as their 35 turnovers were too much to overcome.

Lady Green Dragons junior Jaclyn Draeger joined Wommack in double figures with 10 points and three rebounds.