Winter Wins

Varsity Cheer
The girls continue to work on all their skills that they have learned over the course of this season, especially tumbling, and there is great excitement when girls are able to land a new trick! Practicing cheers and routines continue and the team is finalizing the senior-night routine that will debut this coming Monday. Coach Morahan states, “As a first-time coach, it still never ceases to amaze me how dedicated and determined all of these girls are!”

Middle School Girls Basketball
vs. Freedom Christian Academy (Home) Wednesday - January 20
The O’Neal School 31
Freedom Christian 9

In their only game of the week, our Lady Falcons continued their winning streak in a pivotal conference matchup against the Freedom Christian Academy Lady Patriots.  Behind the dynamic duo of Ava Vonderkall and Kennedy Moore, the Lady Falcons sprinted to a 20-4 halftime lead.  The “1-2” punch of Ava and Kennedy was especially effective on the offensive end as both chipped in 10 points each in the first half and provided suffocating pressure on the defensive end that led to numerous transition opportunities.  Additionally, Charlie McGill provided a huge defensive spark off the bench in the 1st quarter as she keyed several fast-break opportunities with her aggressive perimeter defense.  After a steady 3rd quarter, the Lady Falcons finished the way they started as they cranked the defensive intensity up and sprinted away with a 31-9 victory.  Kennedy Moore finished the game with 15 points and Ava was right behind with 14.  Justice McNeil also chipped in two points with a very impressive fast-break finish against two defenders.  All Lady Falcons saw playing time in this game and contributed to the victory.  The win was the Lady Falcons’ 5th in a row and propels them into next week’s rematch with Thales Academy (Tuesday/away) who handed the Lady Falcons their only loss this season in a narrowly decided 27-24 early season contest.  The Lady Falcons will also play Fayetteville Christian Academy at home on Thursday in a very important conference matchup that will likely decide the regular season conference title.

Varsity Girls Basketball:
The Falcons have worked hard on the court and in the performance room this week. Staying flexible and focused on improving each day, the Falcons have continued moving forward despite a few re-scheduled games with opponents. We are proud of the girls for their dedication to the process and how they are embracing the idea of “controlling the controllables” in these uncertain times. We continue to be grateful to everyone who makes it possible for us to safely play and practice. 

The Falcons return to game action this evening as they host Tri-TAC conference opponent Salem Baptist for a 5:30pm tip off. The Falcons will have a quick turnaround as they host Lee Christian on Monday 1/25 as they also celebrate senior night for the senior Kayla Jenkins.

Middle School Boys Basketball A Team
Our Boy Falcons had a short week as there was no practice on Monday. Scrimmages resumed with Middle School B team on Tuesday. The boys had a home game with Freedom Christian Academy on Wednesday. They exhibited good team effort and heart throughout the game. But unfortunately, they came up short. 
On Thursday, the boys worked on passing and ball control and prepared for their next home game on 1/28/2021 with Fayetteville Christian Academy. 

Middle School Boys Basketball B Team
This week the boys scrimmaged the Middle School A team on Tuesday, demonstrating tremendous progress and competing throughout the game.  The team showed a fearlessness that wasn’t present at the beginning of the season, and it was great to see them rise to the challenge presented.  The scrimmage lasted the length of an entire game, although official scores were not kept.  With the cancellation of the Sandhills Classical Christian game, the rest of the week was spent in preparation for next week’s contest against a very talented Ascend Leadership Academy.  The focus of the week was on finishing and rebounding.

Upcoming Games:  

1/25: 4:30, Away against Ascend Leadership Academy

JV Boys Basketball
This week, the boys continued to display intensity and growth while continuing to build on our baseline offensive and defensive schemes.  Despite back-to-back game cancelations, these young men continue to become closer as a team and improve on their team and individual skills.  This will all be put to the test as we face Salem Baptist Christian Academy.  This is a rematch of the intense & some might say controversial late game loss against a tough team early in the season.  In addition to building on our team skills, both the JV and Varsity Basketball teams were able to deviate from the norm and enjoy an absolute brutal, back alley, illegal dog fight type of a dodgeball tournament.  Dreams came to fruition for some, and for others, the shattering of hopes and dreams of playing dodgeball at the collegiate level may have come to an end.  Mouths were bloodied, egos destroyed, faces smashed, and possibly a torn rotator cuff or two.  Regardless, the men fought on and they fought well.  The morale is high and competitive spirit is even higher in preparation for today’s “Revenge” game against a tough and respectable opponent.  As we close in our last few weeks of the season, we still have business to accomplish and plan to do so.  
 
Upcoming Games:  
 
1/22: 4:00, Home-Salem Baptist Academy
1/25: 4:00, Home-Lee Christian
1/29: 4:00, Away- Burlington Christian Academy

Varsity Boys Basketball
The Falcons have not played this week and the game for Friday evening has been pushed back a week. We have had a tremendous week of practice and anxious to get back on the floor. Next week will be a busy one with an away game at Cary Christian Academy on Tuesday, and home games vs Thales Academy (Apex) on Wednesday, and Trinity Academy of Raleigh on Friday. 

Middle School and Varsity Swim
The O'Neal swim team battled the Marlins of Moore and Capadano High School swim team in a home meet yesterday. Both teams won overall. Lady Falcons are undefeated for the regular season and Men won 7 and tied 1. Both teams are preparing to compete at the Tri-Tac Conference meet at the Triangle Aquatics Center on Friday January 29th. Nathan Brianas made a state qualifying time in the 100 Breaststroke.