KNOXVILLE — The Falcons winged their way to new heights on Monday.
Volunteer’s boys basketball team overran host Halls 95-71 in the TSSAA Class 3A sectional round to earn the program’s first berth in the state tournament.
“It’s unbelievable,” Falcons coach Zach Crawford said. “I never could have dreamed it any better than this, especially this being my first year.
“This is a testament to all of the guys’ hard work and all the time they put in. It was awesome to be a part of it.”
Joltin Harrison and Andrew Knittel did the heavy lifting for the boys from Church Hill, combining for 50 points. Harrison hit four 3-pointers and finished with 26 points and Knittel cashed in for 24.
Bradin Minton made his presence felt with 19 points, including a trio of treys.
“All three of them clicked at the same time, and I believe it was the first time all season they did that,” Crawford said. “There’s no substitution for making shots. It makes basketball look real easy.
“They came in with a goal, and we wanted to go to Murfreesboro and make school history.”
Tucker McLain added 12 points for the Falcons (24-11), who had to hit the road after falling to Unicoi County in the Region 1-3A final.
The Falcons didn’t seem to have a problem with the road atmosphere. They led 48-30 at halftime and pushed their advantage to 33 points, 77-44, entering the final quarter of play.
Chandler Gamble scored 18 points and Caleb Shaffer added 17, knocking down three 3-pointers, for Halls (20-13).
