The Falcons Start 1-0 at home with a blowout win by coming off a close victory against Freedom and beating them by only 1 point. The Falcons looked to spark a winning streak with their upcoming cupcake schedule at home before conference play. Their first opponent [Lightridge Bolts] looked to upset the Falcons, which was not the case. 

Briar started off hot in the first quarter, Junior Eamon Welsh and Senior Brycen Bohmer scoring most if not all the points. Out rebounding and hustling the Bolts, it looked like an early blowout from the beginning. Lightridge fought back in the second half with the addition of Briar’s sloppy play. They [Lightridge] brought it back to a six-point deficit after going down fourteen in the first. The Falcon’s turnovers and missed shots drained all their momentum from the beginning of the game. Fans became a little nervous as they were expecting a lopsided score. As the second half began, the fans’ doubts came at ease as the Falcons picked up the pace and scored uncontrollably. By midway through the fourth, Briar took a commanding 20 point lead. The game ended in a 74-38 Briar victory; everyone had their way with the bench players, even coming in and contributing to the score. With another big performance from Eamon Welsh, he has proven to be a valuable centerpiece for this Falcon team and will be for the next couple of years. 

Luke Romano, who was one of the many fans at the game, said, “Not going to lie, I got a little nervous at the beginning. They were neck and neck with us for most of the first half, but the second half was a whole different story, total domination by us [Briar]. It was fun doing all those chants teasing them [Lightridge].” One parent even saying “having fans made it a hundred times better. Last year, no fans were cheering and chanting to get any momentum. [It] made the games really boring. If it were last year, I don’t think we [Briar] would have kept the lead. The student section made a big difference which will help for the rest of the year.” 

The Falcons showed what they could do with a home crowd behind them. They now look to bring the same energy for the rest of the season.