Bulldogs Headed To Class 1A Boys State Tournament With Win

Tuesday evening, the Bulldogs pulled out a 62-58 win over Mounds Meridian to claim the Charleston Super-Sectional and a berth in the Class 1A State Boys Basketball Tournament.

And, they made it as exciting as they possibly could, going overtime for the four-point victory.

What transpired up to the final quarter and overtime, was a dominant St. Anthony team. The first half was mostly in the Bulldogs side of the court. St. Anthony's Brock Fearday and Ryan Schmidt were the scoring punch in that opening quarter with nine and six points respectively. Fearday knocked in a three-pointer and three regular baskets while Schmidt sandwiched his three-pointer in between a free throw and a regular basket.

Mounds Meridian's Antonio Flenoid Jr. picked up his third foul and sat out the second quarter.

The Bulldogs took advantage of that and the lead went to 35-20 at halftime and it looked like they were going to put this game in the win column easily.

Schmidt took over with three baskets and three of three at the line in the second quarter for 10 points while B. Fearday added six. Schmidt connected on a three that started his run and was fouled, putting in the free throw. He then hit two more free throws and finished three of six from the field.

The Bulldogs came out in the third quarter and continued punching away. They knocked the Bobcats down to move into a 17-point lead and the game looked like it was going up under the win column easily.

But, Mounds Meridian didn't put together a 26-8 record during the regular season without facing adversity. The Bobcats came roaring back with a 14-6 third quarter run. Colin Monan took over the scoring duties as he hit two three-pointers and a regular basket for eight while three other players contributed. The Bobcats had cut the 17 point lead down to seven heading into the final quarter.

St. Anthony went cold from the field, hitting only four baskets on 11 shots. They misfired on four three-pointers.

Mounds fans went crazy in the final quarter as the Bobcats continued their comeback bid, outscoring St. Anthony 17-10 to knot the score at 51-51, sending the contest into overtime.

The Bobcats took the lead up to three with 3:01 on the clock. St. Anthony's Brock Fearday stepped up to hit a very difficult three-pointer with a Mounds Meridian player in his face to tie the score. Sam Link got a steal and found Schmidt for a layup to get St. Anthony back.

The Bobcats' Monan continued his run at the basket, scoring seven points while Javionne Ranson hit a bucket and was three of four at the line. Flenold, Jr. added a basket and a free throw.

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs hit four of nine in the final period as Schmidt put in five and B. Fearday hit that crucial three-pointer. 

Moving into the overtime session tied at 51-51, the Bulldogs got tough. Will Fearday, who had scored only one basket through the first three quarters in five attempts, stepped up big time. Fearday nailed a three-pointer and would put in three of four from the line. Also Keenan Griffith, who had taken only two shots through three quarters and was 0-of-2 at the line, put in a three-pointer. B. Fearday added two free throws and the Bulldogs will be walking into the State Farm Center in Champaign Thursday.

The big guns on the day were B. Fearday with 22 points and Schmidt tallied 21. Fearday connected on nine field goals, two of those from three-point range, and was two of two at the line. Schmidt hit seven field goals, two of those three-pointers and was five of seven at the line.

B. Fearday pulled down a whopping 17 rebounds, two on the offense and 15 defensive and had two blocked shots. Griffith finished with five assists while Link had three. Link and Schmidt had a steal each.

St. Anthony shot 44.2 percent from the field, 31.6 percent from three-point range and 62.5 percent at the line.

Meridian was led by Fleniod with 19 points while Colin Monan added 15 and Ranson 12. Meridian finished with a 26-9 record.

St. Anthony advances to the Class 1A State Tournament with a 32-4 record. The Bulldogs will face Chicago Hope Academy at 9:30 a.m. Thursday at the State Tournament. The second game features Peoria Christian against Lanark Eastland at 11:15 a.m.

If the Bulldogs win, they will play Saturday at 1 p.m. for the State championship. If they lose, they will play a 9:30 a.m. contest for third place Friday.

Class 1A Charleston Super-Sectional

Overitme

MOUNDS MERIDIAN (58)

Johnson 1-1 -- 4, Easley 3-0 -- 6, Monan 6-3 -- 15, Flenoid 9-1 -- 19, Russell 0-0 -- 0, Ranson 4-3 -- 12, Johnson 1-0 -- 2, Woodson 0-0 -- 0, Swansey 0-0 -- 0, Reed 0-0 -- 0. TOTALS 24 FG, 5 FT.

ST. ANTHONY (62)

Griffith 1-0 -- 3, W. Fearday 2-3 -- 8, Link 4-0 -- 8, Schmidt 7-5 -- 21, B. Fearday 9-2 -- 22, Waldhoff 0-0 -- 0. TOTALS 23 FG, 10 FT.

Mounds Meridian                  11      9    14    17      7    --    58

St. Anthony                           17    18      6    10    11    --    62

3-point FG -- Mounds Meridian 5 (Monan 3, Johnson 1, ranson 1), St. Anthony 6 (Schmidt 2, B. Fearday 2, Griffith 1, W. Fearday 1).