Abby boys wrap up regular season with win

The Abbotsford boys basketball team ended their regular season on a high note, claiming their second win of the season by defeating Phillips at home on Tuesday. They also traveled to Rib Lake last Friday, but couldn’t find the win on the road against their Marawood-North conference foes.

60-58

The Falcons pulled out the win in their regular season finale, coming back from a double digit deficit to defeat the Phillips Loggers 60-58.

While neither team looked particularly sharp in the opening minutes, it was the Loggers who pulled out ahead. Abbotsford spent much of the first half playing catch up. They slowly closed in on their opponents after being down by several possessions, a three-point shot from Noah Schraufnagel narrowing the gap to two with under two minutes to play. Phillips still held the lead at halftime, up 26-23, but the Falcons had managed to keep themselves within striking distance.

Turnovers hurt the Falcons at the start of the second period and the Loggers used the opportunity to pull away. A three-point shot from Drew Hauschild capped off a 14-5 run for Phillips, putting them up 40-28.

Once again, the Falcons clawed their way back into the game. Brandon and Adam Diedrich combined to give Abbotsford a run of their own and a basket from Esteban Gomez brought the Falcons back within two.

A key steal and subsequent layup down the stretch by Brandon Diedrich gave Abbotsford their first lead of the period, going up 52-51 with less than four minutes to play. Following the layup, the Falcons would never trail again, though the Loggers managed to tie the game twice in the final two minutes.

Free throws from Brandon Diedrich and Gomez and tough defense from the Falcons sealed the deal and Abbotsford emerged victorious, notching their second win of the season.

The Abbotsford boys basketball team went on the road last Friday night to take on Rib Lake. The Falcons couldn’t keep pace in the first half and ultimately lost to their Marawood-North foes 70-41.

Noah Schraufnagel gave the Falcons their first and only lead, hitting a threepoint shot on Abbotsford’s first possession. Rib Lake responded with a 10-0 run over the next four minutes, Jackson Blomberg and Andrew Wudi combining for eight of those 10 points.

While another basket from Schraufnagel and Brandon Diedrich finding his first two points of the game would keep Abbotsford within striking distance early, they could not find a defensive answer to Blomberg. The Rib Lake junior put up 18 points in the first half, largely on the back of fast break baskets and threepoint shots.

Blomberg’s offense fueled a 17-4 run for the home team over the final six minutes of the game, putting the Falcons into a 41-19 hole at halftime.

Things only got worse for the visiting Abbotsford squad following the break. Rib Lake opened the second period by scoring eight unanswered points. A basket from Schraufnagel finally stopped the bleeding and kicked off an 11-2 run for the Falcons. Capped off by a layup from Diedrich, the sequence put the Falcons slightly under their halftime deficit.

Unfortunately for the visitors, the 21-point margin would not get any smaller. Rib Lake’s offense reestablished itself and the home team’s lead grew back out past 30 points once more, eventually culminating in Abbotsford’s 70-41 defeat.

Diedrich put up a team-high 13 points in the loss while also dealing out four assists. Schraufnagel had nine points for the Falcons and Grayson Totzke and AJ Brodhagen both contributed eight points each while bringing down six and eight rebounds respectively. Evan Reis led the team with nine rebounds while scoring three points, Gatlin Faber added three of his own and Blake Bargender and Payton Schreiber rounded out the scoring for Abbotsford with two points each.

The WIAA playoffs are next up for the Falcons. After receiving the 13th seed in their regional, Abbotsford will travel to Stratford to take on the fourth-seeded Tigers. In the two team’s earlier meeting this season, the Falcons kept things close in the first half before Stratford’s offense exploded in the second half and leading to a lopsided final. The rematch is to start at 7 p.m.