(February 3rd, 2015) – DELTA: The Eagles looked to be on top of things at the end of the first quarter of their road game against the Panthers of Delta. They had a 1 point lead, 6’7” junior Tristan Bates had gotten things going early, and the confidence level of the team from the Buckeye Border Conference couldn’t have been much higher as they stood on the home court of North Western Ohio Athletic League power Delta. With a start like that, Fayette had every reason to believe they were in control of the contest.
Then the second quarter happened.
Suddenly the Eagle boys were trailing by double digits, and the Panthers never looked back, as Fayette lost 64-50. The loss was a stunning one for a team that, on any given night, can go toe to toe with almost any other squad in the area, having proved that point when they shocked a then undefeated Hicksville unit a couple weeks back.
The first quarter was a solid one for the Eagles. Bates provided 6 points from the paint, Koby Biddix, a senior for Fayette, opened the game with 5 points, and another senior, Skylar Lantz scored a couple of baskets in an effort that gave the visiting Eagles a 15-14 lead. The Panthers weren’t about to just take such a challenge on their home court without a response, however. With 5 three-point makes, Delta pulled ahead to a commanding 35-21 advantage as the two squads jogged to their respective locker rooms.
After scoring just 6 points in the second quarter, Fayette followed that performance up with another 6 points in the third. Meanwhile, Delta tacked another 14 points on to their total, giving them a 22 point lead heading into the fourth and final quarter, 49-27. In a furious and desperate scramble, the Eagles rambled off 23 points, including threes form Alec Bost, Garett Reinking, and Biddix. While the Panthers only managed 15 points in that same span, the point differential wasn’t enough to allow Fayette to come back, as they lost by a 14 point margin.
Biddix led the Fayette scoring effort, producing 15 points on his own. Lantz added 10 points to the Eagle cause, while Bates put up 8 points as well. Jared Seiler came on strong in the fourth quarter, ballooning his points total to 7 in the loss.