Falcons Bow Out in Regional Final

SMCC missed a golden opportunity to advance into the state quarterfinals on Wednesday night as they lost to the 23-2 Pirates of Napoleon 45-43. Jon Pederson's three-point attempt at the buzzer fell short and brought the Falcon's season to an end.

Napoleon opened the game by nailing a trio of three-pointers and led after one quarter 13-8. The Falcons struggled from the line early on by missing five freethrows in the period.

The game continued at a slow pace in the second quarter as the teams struggled to score. The Pirates led 18-14 at the half.

In the third quarter the pace of the game picked up immensely with both teams scoring regularly and Napoleon leading 31-29.

Entering the fourth quarter SMCC seemed to have the momentum when they tied the game at 31-31. The Pirates went on to score the next seven points to take a 38-31 lead with 3:11 to play. The Falcons frantically picked up the defense led by the senior Pederson to get back into the game.

The Falcons were able to close the gap late by hitting some timely shots and Napoleon struggling at the charity stripe (11-21).

The Falcons were led by Edmond Shinavarre's 13 points and Keenan Wetzel's 11. Pederson led the defense with several steals and pass deflections while chipping in 7 points. The Falcon's finished the season at 13-11.

Napoleon had a balanced scoring attack that featured six three-pointers by four different players. Senior guard C.J. Adams led the Pirates with 13 points.

Napoleon advances to the quarterfinals at Richland Gull Lake and will play Bridgeman which defeated Fennsville this evening 45-44.