FERNDALE, Wash. — The first week of the season ended in a remarkable rally Monday night, December 9th, at Arlington. The Ferndale High School Golden Eagles boys basketball team erased a 9-point deficit with a 33-point explosion in the fourth quarter and won, 71-54.
After a season-opening loss at home to Snohomish (56-53, Dec. 3) and a road loss at Shorecrest (62-52, Dec. 7), Ferndale scored its first win—and showed its staying power with 2 straight outstanding fourth quarters on the road:
- They gave up zero field goals and outscored Shorecrest 20-7;
- Then they outpointed Arlington by 26 down the stretch—with a junior, 3 sophomores, and a freshman on the floor.
Here are some of the highlights of the first week of games:
SNOHOMISH 56, FHS 53 (Dec. 3)
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Click for more informationAfter building an early 12-point lead, the Golden Eagles struggled to hang on with 27 empty possessions and just 4-for-21 shooting from the three-point arc. They shot 55% on 2-pointers, and had a final possession with 5 seconds remaining for a chance to tie and force overtime—but a half-court throw fell short.
FHS led 15-10 and 29-20 after the first 2 quarters, but fell behind 39-42 after 3. Each team scored 14 in the fourth. Guillory led the scoring with 21, Carlson hit 8 (all in the first half), and Monks 7.
SHORECREST 62, FHS 52 (Dec. 6)
Again, Ferndale started hot with a quick lead, then it dissolved into a 15-14 Shorecrest lead after 1 quarter that expanded to 20 by halftime, 42-22. That lead crept up to 23 entering the last quarter, 55-32, before the Golden Eagles’ strong finish.
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Click for more informationGuillory led FHS scoring with 27 on 7 FG and 13 FT, and Monks added 9 points. They each had 7 in the last-quarter surge. The team’s downfall started halfway through the first quarter when they then went 8 minutes without a field goal, and they made just 1 on 23 3-point attempts.
For the second straight game Ferndale came away with 27 empty possessions (trips up the floor without getting off a shot).
FHS 71, Arlington 54 (Dec. 9)
In the 33-7 fourth-quarter flurry, sophomore point guard Jazen Guillory scored 13 of his 25 points, including 9 of 12 free throws. Freshman guard Isaiah Carlson hit 13 of his 15 points in the second half.
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Click for more informationAnd 12 fourth-quarter points came on 4 of the team’s 9 3-point field goals—2 by sophomore guard Jesse Sapp (who made 4 in the game for 12 points), and 1 each by sophomore guard Mark Schlichting and junior forward Andrew Monks (who made 3 3-point field goals and 11 points).
Ferndale jumped to a 12-3 lead, but then trailed at the half by 6, 30-24, and by 9 at the end of 3 periods, 47-38. Strong defense and aggressive offense fueled the last-quarter outburst, getting them to the free-throw line for 11 of 16 to seal the deal.
The Golden Eagles now have yielded just 2 field goals in the fourth quarter of their last 2 games.
NEXT UP: The Golden Eagles play at Everett on Friday, December 13th before returning home against a Canadian school, Tamanwanis, on Monday, the 16th and vs. Nooksack on the 17th.