By DAN BARILE
Eagle Times Correspondent
LANGDON, NH — It’s been 30 years since Fall Mountain’s last state championship in boys basketball, and on Friday, Jan. 5, the Wildcats honored the members of the 1994 title team during halftime of their game against Hillsboro-Deering.
Just like the ’93-’94 Wildcats did in the state championship game against Inter-Lakes, the ’23-’24 Wildcats posted 67 points on Friday night to earn a 23-point victory over the Hillcats.
“I think our players valued what was happening here tonight. It was a pretty special event at The Den,” Fall Mountain Head Coach Nate Haskell said.
The members of the current team put on quite a display for the alums in the opening frame as they raced out to a double-digit lead. Following a timeout by Hillsboro-Deering with 2:45 remaining, Fall Mountain employed a full-court press which quickly produced a steal and a layup by Patrick Connors. Charlie Dussault added a couple of strong finishes at the hoop as Fall Mountain concluded the quarter with a 24-10 advantage.
Hillsboro-Deering adjusted to Fall Mountain’s full-court press in the second quarter and caught fire from behind the arc. The Hillcats drained five 3s during the period to cut the lead to 36-27 as they entered the half.
Following a ceremony that culminated in raucous support from the student section for former Fall Mountain basketball player and current Social Studies Teacher Josh Beer, the second half got under way. Fall Mountain extended its lead to 14 before Hillsboro-Deering began to claw back. As the quarter ended, the difference was back to where it started with the Wildcats ahead, 46-37.
As Fall Mountain entered the fourth quarter with the lead, Haskell reminded his team to keep playing hard.
“[I told them] don’t get complacent. We have to understand, as a fairly young team, that valuing every possession at both ends is crucial to not making compounding mistakes.”
Despite a valiant effort by the Hillcats during the first three quarters, it was all Wildcats in the final frame. Fall Mountain went on a 17-2 run to create a 24-point cushion before both teams unloaded their benches with less than two minutes to play.
Four members of the Wildcats scored double figures, including Luke St. Pierre (16), Ledger Willett (15), Josh Town (10) and Tyson Patch (10). Connors followed with 8 points and Dussault added 6 for Fall Mountain.
“Having Coach Pickering [Fall Mountain’s Head Coach in ‘93-94] come in and address the guys before the game today really meant a lot. We came out with a little more fire than usual,” Haskell said.
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