Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Farmington Boys Win Airedale Classic
CARDS TAKE DOWN NEMESIS IN TITLE GAME
ALMA — Farmington finally defeated its nemesis.
Using the 1-2 scoring punch of Matt Thomas and Matt Wilson, the Cardinals beat Alma 69-63 in the championship game of the Airedale Classic on Dec. 30. It exacted revenge for a three-point loss against the Airedales less than two weeks earlier.
“We’ve played these guys close the last three or four years, but we’ve never seem to get over the hump, until this one,” said Farmington 10th year coach Beau Thompson. “They beat us in the finals of this (tourney) the last three or four years. They’re 6A and we’re 5A and we feel like it’s a big game for us because they are coming back down to our league next year.
“We’ve played with them the last three or four years — I guess we’ve kind of used them as a litmus test — and this was a big win for us, but I still think we need to be a little tougher with the basketball.”
By “tougher with the basketball,” Thompson means his players need to do a better job of finishing through traffic, he said.
Farmington (9-4 overall) trailed by as many as seven points (14-7) until FHS senior Jarrod Osnes sank a three-pointer with 2:34 remaining in the first quarter. The Cards trailed by 10 points (31-21) in the second quarter before Thomas hit a 15-foot jumper that sparked a 15-0 run through the end of the second and beginning of the third quarters.
“We finally got into a man (defense) with about five minutes left in the half and that kind of stopped their momentum a little to where we could get back into it,” Thompson said. “I knew we couldn’t live and die like that. For us to survive against a team like (Alma), we’ve got to be very active and get a lot of tips on the ball because they shoot the ball so well.”
Indeed, sharp shooting allowed the host team to put together a run of its own as the Airedales regained a short-lived (50-49) lead on a bucket by Will Cluck midway through the third quarter. Both teams traded buckets before Farmington began pulling away down the stretch thanks to the inspired play of junior forward Cade Fenton.
“I thought the difference between winning and losing in this game was about a four-minute stretch at the end of the third and early fourth when Fenton just took the game over,” Thompson said. “He didn’t score many points, but he got about three straight offensive rebounds and got every loose ball. He really got our team back in the game.
“The kid didn’t start because he was late for a walk-through. He could have tucked his ol’ head, but he didn’t. And I’m very proud of him.”
Thompson was proud of his entire team. The Cardinals received 28 points apiece from Thomas and Wilson, but Thompson said it’s when others are contributing offensively that makes the difference.
“We’re a young team,” Thompson said. “We only play two seniors and we play a couple of sophomores off of the bench. Our two guards do the majority of our scoring in Wilson and Thomas. They’re dynamic scorers, but the nights where we’re really good is when we get six or seven points from somebody else like an Osnes and a Fenton.”
Farmington’s four losses have came against Huntsville (twice), Alma and Springdale in overtime. Still, the Cardinals have their work cut out for them to make the postseason by finishing in the top four of the 5A-West conference.
“Our conference is really strong,” Thompson said. “If we can get into the playoffs, it would be as big as any conference or regional title that we’ve ever won, just making the Top 4. That’s how hard it is. It’s ridiculous.”