Bellefonte loses heartbreaker in D6 title game, falls to CM

By Kenny Varner Jr.
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Updated: February 28, 2022

WINGATE – In a back-and-forth contest against a familiar foe in Central Mountain, the Bellefonte boys left it all on the court Monday night, falling to the Wildcats in nail biting fashion 53-52.

It wouldn’t be without its controversy as the game would be decided by a a Central Mountain free throw in the final seconds.

Leading the way for Bellefonte was Blair Eckley-Jones with 18.

Teammate Ty Kroell followed up with a 13-point effort.

Gannon Brungard rounded out the double digit scorers with 10.

Central Mountain was led by the shooting of Ashton Probst who netted 18.

Hayden Pardoe followed with 13.

The game started close and never relinquished the drama for the entire contest.

Heading into the final stanza, the Wildcats were holding onto a slim 43-40 advantage.

They increased it five when Probst hit the first bucket of the period.

Led by a bucket by Kroell, the Red Raiders went on a 5-0 run, giving them the lead.

Probst tied things when he hit 1-2 from the foul line.

Bellefonte would take control, leading by one going into the final seconds on buckets by Eckley-Jones and DJ McCaslin.

But a foul with little time, led to the team, falling by one to end its season in a questionable fashion.

Central Mountain’s Jack Hanna stepped to the line for a one-on-one and he missed the shot with Bellefonte getting the rebound and seeming securing the win.

However, a referee call of in the lane violation by Bellefonte waved off the rebound and sent Hanna back to the line where he hit both shots, snatching the victory away from the Red Raiders.

In a high scoring first quarter affair as Central Mountain would be able to lead 19-18.

Despite a strong defensive effort by Bellefonte, they still found themselves tied 27-27 going into the half.

When the final buzzer sounded to end the contest, the Red Raiders knew that they left everything they had on the court and could only settle for a moral victory.