By: Cole Houck
Contributor
The Firebirds are back! As excitement builds for the Southeastern Conference Championship series between the Frederick Flying Cows and the Raleigh Firebirds, each city’s mayor is stepping up to make this rivalry even more entertaining! Mayor Michael O’Connor of Frederick, Maryland, and Mayor Janet Cowell of Raleigh, North Carolina, will each be submitting videos to announce a friendly bet in conjunction with this best-of-three game series. Details of the friendly bet will be revealed in their respective videos, but both mayors are committed to celebrating the community spirit and camaraderie that sports bring to our cities. Who will emerge victorious, and what will be at stake for the losing mayor? Stay tuned for the videos and the thrilling games ahead!
Starting this Friday at 7 PM, the Flying Cows and Firebirds will clash at the Emery Gymnasium on the campus of St. Augustine’s University at 1315 Oakwood Ave, Raleigh, NC. As the two teams take the court, both mayors will showcase their team spirit while engaging in a little lighthearted competition. The Flying Cows will be the toughest competition faced by the Firebirds as they finished the regular season with a record of 21-3. The Firebirds went up to Frederick, Maryland on May 23rd and played a tough game, losing 127-113. Everywhere you look in the organization, the mindset is the same. The Firebirds will take care of business against the Flying Cows, and play the winner of the Capital Seahawks and Albany Patroons in the fourth round.
Although the Firebirds made it to the next round, it wasn’t without its hardships. The first game was played on Thursday, May 29, with an alarming final result of 99-117 in favor of the Tampa Bay Titans. In a best-of-three series, this put the Firebirds back against the wall. When the time came, however, the Firebirds delivered. Game 2, in a win-or-go-home situation, the Firebirds took care of business and beat Tampa Bay 130-110. They had a well-balanced attack that night, with five players scoring 16 or more points, including all-star forward Julian Gamble leading the way with 28 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists. Monster defensive performances from Mason Harrell and Shaq Dance with three blocks each helped lead to a statement victory.
Game 3 was set to play the next day, and was a nail-biter the entire way. Shaq Dance hit a half-court shot as time expired in the first half to take a 55-52 lead. He finished with season highs 33 points and 13 rebounds, completely taking over in the second half. Contributions from guard Daequan Antoine chipped in an efficient 30 points, Julian Gamble giving 22 points, 12 rebounds while 5 ‘8 guard DJ Thomas had a solid two-way game scoring 15 points to go along with 4 steals off the bench. This combined for one of the best games of the season, and a Firebirds victory of 120-113.
Join us in supporting the Raleigh Firebirds as they use this momentum and vie for championship glory!For more information regarding the team of future playoff endeavors, go to raleighfirebirds.net or contact Team Owner Wade Harris at [email protected] or 919-830-0305.
Photos By: Steve Worthy
