The Enid High School boys basketball team got off to a fast start Tuesday against rival Ponca City, but it needed a stop on the last possession to hold on for a 44-43 victory.

Enid’s girls fell to Ponca City 47-39 in a bizarre game that featured 70 free-throw attempts and lasted nearly two hours.

After falling behind by as many as 15 early in the second quarter of the boys game, the Wildcats rallied to take their first lead of the game with 30 seconds left on a Joel Frees 3-pointer.

But Enid’s leading scorer, Chris Fitzpatrick, took the ball on the next possession to give the Plainsmen a 44-43 lead with 16 seconds left.

After nearly losing the ball on its last possession, Ponca City took a timeout with one second left to draw up the final play. Chase Mongold caught the inbounds pass beyond the 3-point arc and fired a shot, and Fitzpatrick seemingly came out of nowhere to block it, preserving Enid’s one-point win.

“We knew what play they were going to run,” said Fitzpatrick. “I was guarding Mongold and saw him wide open and knew I had to get to him.”

“(Fitzpatrick) is a talented kid,” said Enid head coach T.J. Scholz. “The last two years he has been playing varsity he’s taken an offensive role, but in the offseason I told him to start making sure he’s taking care of the defensive end.”

Fitzpatrick’s play on both sides of the ball may earn him a college scholarship. He finished with 23 points in front of a couple scouts from Northwestern Oklahoma State University.

Enid opened by hitting six 3-pointers in the first quarter, racing to an early 22-7 lead. Ponca City responded with an 8-0 run and continued to close the gap until the final quarter.

The Wildcats tied the game 35-35 with 5:32 remaining, then Dillon Walker responded with a clutch 3-pointer — his only bucket of the game.

The Plainsmen remained in the lead until Frees hit the 3-pointer in the last minute to give Ponca City its first lead of the game.

It was the fourth straight win for the Plainsmen, who raised their record to 7-2 overall.



PONCA CITY 47, ENID 39 (G)

Enid took 35 foul shots and hit only 13 of them, with many of those misses coming down the stretch in the fourth quarter.

The Pacers were able to knock down five 3-pointers. Courtney Chelf, who finished with a team-high 15 points, hit two 3-point buckets.

Ponca City turned the ball over six times in the first quarter, but the Lady Cats took command with an 8-0 run just before halftime. Enid pulled to within seven with just more than a minute left in the game.

The Pacers (4-5) and Plainsmen will be back in action Thursday at the Skiatook Tournament.

Both teams will face Owasso in the first round — the girls at 10 a.m. and the boys at 11:30 a.m.



Varsity Boys

ENID 44, PONCA CITY 43



PONCA CITY 6 11 12 14 - 43

ENID 18 8 9 9 - 44



Ponca City—Mongold 13, Stephenson 12, Rich 6, B. Wilson 4, Frees 3, Hibler 3, Underwood 2.

Enid—Chris Fitzpatrick 23, Gibson Rose 6, Clint Gamble 6, Alex Patterson 6, Dillon Walker 3.



Varsity Girls

PONCA CITY 47, ENID 39



PONCA CITY 10 12 11 14 - 47

ENID 8 8 7 16 - 39



Ponca City—Havens 17, Vetters 13, Berwaldt 9, Grider 5, Kremeier 2, Prado 1.

Enid—Courtney Chelf 15, Haley Rasp 7, Rani Melvin 6, Tyresha Washington 5, Bayli Jones 3, Regan Crowl 2, Jayci Wehrenberg 1.



JV Boys

PONCA CITY 45, ENID 38



PONCA CITY 9 6 6 24 - 45

ENID 4 10 16 8 - 38



JV Girls

PONCA CITY 39, ENID 29



PONCA CITY 12 9 6 12 - 39

ENID 5 5 5 8 - 29



Ponca City—Grider 21, Eden 5, Dunn 3, Powell 4, Roubedeaux 2, Cotham 2, Vaughan 2.

Enid—DeClerk 10, Nave 5, Hammer 3, Mueller 2, Douglass 2, Carter 1.