Pioneers edge Phil-mont Christian
Despite both teams already being locked into their respective playoff seeds, both Phil-Mont Christian and Christopher Dock wanted to end the regular season on a high note.
And thanks to the scoring of sophomore Jared Armstrong, it was the Pioneers who were able to leave the season finale on a high note, as they pulled out a 51-48 win over the Falcons in a Bicentennial Constitution League meeting at Christopher Dock High School on Monday night.
Armstrong scored 13 of his 21 points in the first half while helping Dock (15-7, 11-3) to recover from a slow start, one which saw the Pioneers score only two points in the opening four minutes while trailing 7-2 to the visiting Falcons (12-10, 8-7).
“It was a tough win,” Dock coach Matt Dolan said. “Phil-Mont is a good team and they have a great player in (wach) Dolton and another in (Micah) Baldez and we came out not as strong as we would’ve liked and they hit some big shots and kept it close.”
After leading 10-9 following one quarter of play, Armstrong and junior Landon Leinbach, along with the play of junior Najee Miller off the bench, helped Dock to build a five-point advantage going into the half, leading 25-20.
The two teams remained close in the third quarter un- til Dock went on a 7-0 run, which was capped off by a three-pointer by Tarrell Willis, who put the Pioneers up 38-31 with two minutes to play in the period.
In the fourth, with the issue still in doubt, Phil-Mont managed to keep the game close, but the Falcons were never able to get over the hump and regain the lead from Dock. Dolton did manage to bring the Falcons to within one point, but Dock ended things at the free throw line.
A three-point attempt in the final second by Micah Baldez rimmed in and out as time ran out on Phil-Mont.
“We’re continuing to try and get better and I was just looking forward to us getting good team defense and execution,” Phil-Mont coach Glenn Dolton said. “We wanted to get the shots we want and I thought defensively, for the most part, both teams played pretty well and it was an even game. I liked how we showed fight down there and got that final spot, especially after having a tough time with this team last time.”
In the losing effort, the Falcons were led by Dolton, who knocked down four threepointers en route to a 24-point night. Micah and Noah Baldez each added seven points.
While Armstrong led the way for Dock, Willis’ performance off the bench helped spark the Pioneers late in the game, as the sophomore finished with seven points. Miller added eight, while also leading the team in rebounding.
“Armstrong is a first team All-League guy for us,” Dolan said. “He played really well. They took him out of the game a little bit in the beginning, but he refocused, made some big shots and some great passes and helped our team win.”