LocalSportsJournal.com

FRUITPORT — The Pentwater Falcons got a front row seat for the Bradley Richards show on Monday night.

Richards, the Fruitport Calvary Christian standout, scored 29 points and led the Eagles to a 55-46 decision over the Falcons.

Pentwater (3-1) didn’t help itself by shooting just 27 percent from the field, and nine percent from 3-point land.

After the two teams ended the first quarter in a 12-12 tie, Calvary put some separation between them when it outscored the Falcons, 11-8 in the second and moved into a 23-20 edge after 16 minutes. 

“We started off strong coming out of the gate and taking a six-point lead, but they bounced back quickly and tied us at the end of the first quarter,” said Pentwater coach Ashley Lubera. “Outside shooting and off balanced shots got the best of several Falcons tonight in the next three quarters as so many shots did not fall. Despite the missed shots, we managed to keep in the game.” 

Pentwater even closed an 11-point lead to just two. But, in the end the Falcons fell short once they started fouling and put FCC at the line. 

Calvary Christian outscored the Falcons, 17-13 in the third quarter and Pentwater’s deficit reached seven points, 40-33. Calvary prevailed with a 15-13 fourth stanza. 

Besides 29 points, Richards also had 13 rebounds and four assists. Quinn Swanson had 13 points and four assists. Sam Zelenka had seven points, eight rebounds and 10 assists. Nolan Ghezzi had 11 rebounds.

“I told the boys we’d rather win ugly than lose pretty and this was a testament to our guys gritting it out down the stretch in a very physical game. This is a tough place to play, give Pentwater credit” said Calvary coach Brad Richards.   “I thought when it came to winning time, our guys really focused, but we’ll work on playing a solid 32 minutes going forward.” 

Mikey Carlson scored eight points in the last quarter and finished the night with 23 points to lead Pentwater. He also gathered in 16 rebounds. Trey Johnson chipped in with 13 points. 

Pentwater returns to West Michigan D League action hosting Bear Lake on Wednesday night.

Next up for Fruitport Calvary Christian (5-0) is Mason County Central.