The Ironwood Ridge Nighthawks' season came to an end in the first round of the state tournament after they fell to 19th seed, Mountain Pointe High School, with a score of 53-47. The Nighthawks clenched the 14th seed in the state playoffs after an impressive 17-1 regular season record, but fell short in their post-season play, losing to in sectional play to #3 seed, Red Mountain High School, and again on Thursday night at home to end their hopes of a state championship run.
The Nighthawks didn't go down without a fight, pulling ahead after a hard-fought third quarter, and nearly closing the deficit in the fourth before Mountain Pointe pulled away.
The team will look to rebuild next year, but will do so without several of this year's star seniors, including Andrew Dohm, Mitch Fisher, Alec Sonderman, Kyle Petty, and Travis Jefferies. The team is looking forward to up-and-coming freshman, Jacoeb Hampton, who has been the team's leading scorer since Christmas time. Coach Brian Peabody said Hampton has been a huge part of why the Nighthawks made it as far as they did this year.
Mountain Pointe's win will propel them into the second round of the playoffs, where they will face Red Mountain. The state championship game takes place on Feb. 25 at 4 p.m. at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale.
