The Mynderse Academy boys basketball team had a difficult road to Friday night’s Section V Class B2 title game at Northstar-Christian High School. As the 6th seed coming out of the Finger Lakes East they would first travel over 2 hours to face #3 seed Wellsville. After dispatching with the Tigers they would next go on the road to #2 C.G. Finney where they would explode for 94 points and a berth in the title game against #1 Northstar-Christian in the Knight’s tiny gymnasium in southwest Rochester.
Mynderse senior Jared King would carry the hot Mynderse shooting into the title game knocking down three first quarter three pointers to give the visiting Blue Devils a 21-18 lead after 1 quarter. Northstar would storm back to take an 8 point lead at halftime outscoring Mynderse 21-10 in the 2nd quarter behind 15 first half points from the Knight’s junior standout Turner Harris.
In the 3rd quarter, with Jared King in foul trouble, Mynderse used a combination of slashing drives from senior Nick Jones who scored 7 in the penultimate quarter, and junior Troy Kabat who knocked down three trifectas to pull within three points, 54-51, heading into the final quarter.
.@NCA1972 with a 54-51 lead heading into the fourth quarter against Mynderse in the sectional championship game pic.twitter.com/QOjVQUJgHM
— AJ Feldman (@AJFeldmanTV) March 12, 2021
The lead would change hands four times in the fourth quarter as Kabat added his 5th three-pointer of the game and Nick Jones continued to find ways to score the basketball while NS-Christian’s Harris continued to scorch the Devils’ defense for a game-high 32 points while the Knights’ leading scorer Ryan Garwood would struggle to find his shooting touch finishing with just 12 points, 13 below his season average.
60-60!!! Stay strong, Mynderse! #SFCSDPROUD #MAPROUD #BLUEDEVILNATION pic.twitter.com/ern1Q8ljkJ
— Seneca Falls CSD (@SenecaFallsCSD) March 13, 2021
With Mynderse trailing by 1 point inside the final minute, junior forward Michael Bogart would spin on the block and bury a turnaround jumper that could have been the game winner for the Blue Devils. But, with just 2 seconds remaining, Turner Harris’ bid to take the lead back on an off-balance 8 foot jumper would miss the mark and when it appeared Mynderse would celebrate their school’s 10th sectional title one of the three referees assigned to the game would blow his whistle on one of the most questionable foul call you will ever see….
After the foul call, the fifth on Jared King, Harris would sink two huge free throws (he was 9 of 10 from the charity stripe on the night) to secure the victory after Mynderse senior Jake Smith’s three-quarter court desperation heave would bounce off the rim. Northstar-Christian players and coaches stormed the court to celebrate their schools’s 4th sectional title in the past 6 years.
For Mynderse, Nick Jones led with 17 points, Troy Kabat finished with 15 and Jared King scored 14. Mike Bogart would finish with 9 points, senior Sam Lorenzetti scored 6 and Dylan Larizza rounded out the Mynderse scoring with 2 points. Mynderse would finish 5 of 9 from the charity stripe on the evening while the Knight’s were an almost perfect 16 of 17 from the free throw line.
Final score is 68-69. Great season by the Mynderse Academy Boys Varsity Basketball! You did it with pride and class! #sfcsdproud #maproud pic.twitter.com/NANLXR6xzO
— Faith Lewis (@MAPrincipalSF) March 13, 2021
It’s over from North Gates. The 6-seeded Mynderse Academy Blue Devils(9-6) fall in a heartbreaker against the 1-seeded Northstar Christian Knights(13-1) by a final score of 69-68 in the Class B2 Finals on Friday evening. Great season Mynderse! @SenecaFallsCSD pic.twitter.com/iIvUCzOixt
— FL Times Sports (@FLTimesSports) March 13, 2021
