Their quest was denied in the regular season, but the Catamounts accomplished their goal in last week’s Tri-Eight tournament. They played their way into the final after wins over Lee County and Cary and then beat Middle Creek 59-53 in Friday’s championship game.

“We wanted to make history for our school,” said Panther Creek guard Earnest Ross, who scored 18 points in the championship game. “We all had to come together and put forth the effort.”

And that was key for the Catamounts against Middle Creek, which is 23-0 against everyone else on its schedule and 1-2 against Panther Creek. Ross, averaging nearly 23 points per game, has been the focal point for Panther Creek all season. But he and his teammates won the tournament with a unified effort.

Panther Creek forwards Aaron Toney and Marques Oliver were sensational in the post Friday. Toney scored a team-high 19 points and grabbed six rebounds and Oliver notched 17 and 11.

Panther Creek baffled the Mustangs all night defensively with a 1-3-1 zone. Middle Creek shot 47 percent from the floor for the game, but that was a testament to their strong first quarter, when they made 7-of-8 attempts. Over the final three quarters, they shot 38 percent from the field. The Catamounts took away Middle Creek’s ability to get to the basket, which took away their chances to get to the free-throw line (the Mustangs attempted only five free throws all night).

“Effortwise, they were 10 times better than us,” said Mustangs coach David Kushner. “We talked when we got here about the fact they had the chance to win a championship for the first time in school history in any sport. That was going to drive them a lot more than the regular season game did last Friday [which Middle Creek won 68-63].”

After falling down 6-0, the Mustangs closed the first quarter on a 19-4 run. Nelson Kirksey (20 points) hit three 3-pointers on the run that gave Middle Creek a 19-10 lead at the end of the first quarter, but neither he nor his teammates were able to recapture that magic the remainder of the game.

“Even in the first quarter when we had a big lead, I didn’t think we were playing well,” Kushner said. “We made a couple shots in a row, that’s all that was. Our energy was terrible. Everything we talked about doing defensively, it seemed like people forgot.”

Panther Creek trimmed the deficit to one, 21-20, with 3:18 left in the first half, and Middle Creek took a 27-25 lead into halftime.

Panther Creek pulled away in the third quarter, closing it with an 11-2 run. Toney’s putback at the buzzer gave the Catamounts a 40-35 lead. It was also during that run the Catamounts displayed their dominance on the glass. They scored seven second-chance points on the run (17 for the game) and grabbed four offensive rebounds (16 for the game; Middle Creek had six).

Garrius Adams’ 3-pointer cut the Panther Creek lead to 40-38, but the Catamounts responded with an 8-0 run, highlighted by Ross’ baseline drive and two-handed slam.

Middle Creek made it a one-possession game after Kip Kelley’s 3-pointer with 3:47 to play, but Panther Creek closed out the game at the free-throw line. They shot 13-for-21 over the final three minutes to hang on for the six-point win and the championship.

The win should serve as a big boost for the Catamounts heading into the NCHSAA tournament. They were to face Wilmington Laney on Tuesday.

“We’ve got to enjoy it and then regroup, get focused and attack the state tournament with the same type of hunger we did the conference,” said Panther Creek coach L.J. Hepp.

Middle Creek, meanwhile, has to regroup quickly. They were to face Sanderson, whom they beat twice in the regular season by a total of five points, in the first round of the tournament on Tuesday.

“Obviously, it’s not what we wanted,” Kushner said. “Like I told them, if we give this effort again, they’ll never get to play together again. If that doesn’t drive you, I don’t know what will.”