Little Falls defeats Herkimer as high school basketball fans return to gym
LITTLE FALLS – Playing in front of a full crowd for the first time since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic more than 21 months ago, the Little Falls Mounties welcomed spectators back with a 67-47 boys' basketball victory over Herkimer’s Magicians Tuesday.
“There was a lot of emotions having fans for the first time,” Little Falls coach Bryan Shepardson said. “It was exciting for the kids.”
The Mounties (1-0) shook off a jittery start and held the lead for most of the game. More than four minutes ran off the clock before Brayton Langdon hit a free throw for the first Little Falls point. The Mounties took the lead on their next possession when John Shepardson hit a three-point shot, and a 12-0 run put Little Falls ahead to stay.
Little Falls led 13-7 at the end of the first quarter but started slowly again in the second, a scenario that would repeat in the third and fourth quarters, as well. Herkimer (0-1) pulled back within one possession at 17-15 following a steal and a basket by Kyle Carney, but Little Falls went on a 14-5 run and took a 31-21 lead to the locker room at halftime.
“They battled,” Bryan Shepardson said. “They kept coming back.”
The Magicians got to 35-30 in the third quarter before Little Falls went on a 16-2 run that started with seven straight points by Rikki Smith. Trailing 53-36 at the start of the fourth quarter, Herkimer cut its deficit to eight points with three minutes to go; Little Falls then scored the final 12 points of the game.
“I like the way we fought back tonight,” Herkimer coach Mark Blask said. “This was just a great way to open the season.”
The schools scheduled the nonleague game as their season opener with Little Falls moving up to Division I of the Center State Conference as a Class B team this winter. Herkimer remains in Division II team as a Class C school.
The teams met once during the abbreviated spring season with Herkimer winning 68-42 at Little Falls April 2. The Magicians had won the teams’ last five meetings since a Feb. 2, 2018, win by the Mounties.
Newcomers Logan and Coltan Frederick made a positive first impression on Little Falls fans. Logan Frederick, a senior, led Little Falls with 19 points and added five steals and five assists. Coltan Frederick, a sophomore, packed his stat sheet with nine points, 17 rebounds, seven assists, four blocked shots and three steals. John Shepardson finished with 14 points while Langdon had 11 points and eight rebounds.
Carney led Herkimer with 16 points, while Brett Coonradt scored 14.
The junior varsity game warmed the crowd up with Little Falls winning 50-49 in overtime on a three-pointer by Jackson Hummel with two seconds remaining in the extra period.
Both teams play again Friday when Little Falls travels to Frankfort-Schuyler and Herkimer plays its home opener in its remodeled high school gym against Oriskany. The Magicians played home games at the elementary school in the spring while work was being completed at the high school.
Elsewhere Tuesday, Central Valley Academy defeated Mt. Markham 78-50 and Dolgeville was a 44-14 winner at Poland.
LITTLE FALLS 67, HERKIMER 47
HERKIMER (0-1) – Kyle Carney 4 6-10 16; Dante Mollel 1 3-4 5; Nicholas Caruso 1 1-2 3; Brett Coonradt 6 2-6 14; Isaiah Brown 2 0-0 5; James Collins 1 2-2 4; Zachary Petucci 0 0-0 0; Isaiah Walrath 0 0-2 0; Lamanna 0 0-0 0. Totals: 15 14-26 47.
LITTLE FALLS (1-0) – Gavin Trumbull 0 0-0 0; Xavier Dunn 1 0-2 2; Logan Frederick 9 0-3 19; Coltan Frederick 4 1-5 9; Jack Morotti 1 0-0 3; John Shepardson 5 2-3 14; Rikki Smith 3 0-0 7; Andrew Richardson 0 0-0 0; AJ Blowers 0 0-0 0; Brayton Langdon 4 3-6 11; Tanner Jaquay 1 0-2 2; Maximilian Volo 0 0-0 0. Totals: 28 6-21 67.
Herkimer 7 14 15 11 – 47
Little Falls 13 18 22 14 – 67
Three-pointers – Herkimer 3 (Carney 2, Brown 1); Little Falls 5 (Shepardson 2, L.Frederick 1, Morotti 1, Smith 1). JV – Little Falls 50, Herkimer 49, overtime.
Central Valley Academy 78
Mt. Markham 50
Jaylon O’Neal had 23 points, five steals and five assists for Central Valley Academy in the Thunder’s 78-50 win over Mt. Markham’s Mustangs.
The Thunder (1-0) led 37-27 at halftime in Ilion and outscored the Mustangs (0-1) 26-8 in the third quarter when Adam Hall scored 13 of his 15 points, and Central Valley Academy hit three of its eight three-point shots.
Sophomore Deacon Judd had 12 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots in his first varsity game for the Thunder. O’Neal scored 15 of his points before halftime.
Will Lunny led Mt. Markham with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Ethan Siega scored 10 points.
The Mustangs play at West Canada Valley on Thursday, while Central Valley Academy is off until a Dec. 7 contest against Clinton.
CENTRAL VALLEY ACADEMY 78, MT. MARKHAM 50
MT. MARKHAM (0-1) – Kevin Gates 2 0-0 6; Ryan Denton 0 0-0 0; Jordan Dietz 0 3-4 3; Griffin Doyle 0 0-0 0; Derrick Edmondson III 1 1-2 4; Charles Hilts III 0 0-0 0; Benjamin Lohmann 0 0-0 0; William Lunny Jr 5 2-3 13; Bryce Lynch 1 0-0 2; Jacob Senko 3 0-0 7; Ethan Siega 2 5-8 10; Shaun Jones 2 1-3 5. Totals: 16 12-20 50.
CENTRAL VALLEY ACADEMY (1-0) – Tye Dixon 1 0-0 2; Cole Brewer 1 0-1 2; Adam Hall 6 1-1 15; TJ Luke 1 0-0 3; Ray Watson 2 0-0 5; Jaylon O’Neal 10 1-1 23; CJ Judd 2 0-0 5; Deacon Judd 6 0-1 12; Kadin Brower 2 0-0 4; Miles Perry 1 0-0 2; Rotavion Smith 0 0-0 0; Carson Wormuth 2 0-0 5; Vicente Vazquez 0 0-0 0. Totals: 34 2-4 78.
Mt. Markham 15 12 8 15 – 50
Central Valley Academy 19 18 26 15 – 78
Three-pointers – Mt. Markham 6 (Gates 2, Edmondson 1, Lunny 1, Senko 1, Siega 1); Central Valley Academy 8 (Hall 2, O’Neal 2, CJ Judd 1, Luke 1, Watson 1, Wormuth 1).
More: Area's high school basketball season tips off with tournament in Richfield Springs
More: High school boys basketball scores and top performers from the area, winter 2021-22
Jon Rathbun is a sportswriter for the Times Telegram. Email Jon at sports@timestelegram.com.
This article originally appeared on Times Telegram: Little Falls defeats Herkimer as high school basketball fans return
