Ogemaw point guard Michael Noffsinger dishes to a teammate during the Falcons' 73-47 victory over Gladwin.
Linda Eyer
The Falcons' Gio Roberto soars in for two points as the Falcons' lead continued to balloon in the third quarter of Wednesday's win.

HOUGHTON LAKE - Feb. 27, 2008 - Ogemaw Heights continued its run through district tournament play like a team on a mission Wednesday, rolling past Gladwin 73-47.

Pete VanOosten's shock-and-awe first quarter -- five 3-pointers -- along with nine points from Cody and Kevin O'Neil lifted the Falcons to a 24-8 first quarter lead, which they extended to 43-17 at the half.

"We shot the ball well and got off to a good start," said Ogemaw coach Jon VanOosten. "I'm glad to see Pete shooting well again. He'd been a bit off for awhile there and had been 'aiming' the ball, but he's been shooting the way he's capable the last few games.

"It was nice to see Cody getting back in the swing of things, too. He's been sick a lot of the winter and just the past couple of weeks has been feeling better. He put in a lot of extra time with his shooting, and it's starting to pay off."

It was the fourth meeting of the season between the Falcons and Flying G's. After ripping Gladwin in their first meeting, Ogemaw lost at Gladwin during a Christmas tournament and won a 71-69 thriller in late January.

"The biggest thing (coming in to Wednesday's game) was the kids were really disappointed with how they played those last two games (against Gladwin)," Jon VanOosten said. "They felt they were better than that and came in wanting to show they were better than that."

Pete VanOosten finished with 32 points and Kyle Dantzer added 10. The win set up a showdown with Standish-Sterling on Friday for the district title -- nothing new for the Falcons (18-4) and Panthers (13-7), who have had a knack for facing one another in nearly every boys' sport with a lot on the line the past couple of seasons.

"It's an old-school rivalry," Jon VanOosten said. "You have two good groups of seniors going in. Everyone knows what to expect from one another. For us, we really need our big guys to play well, because we know Pete's not going to get the open looks he's gotten the past couple games.

"Either way, the kids have had a great year. It's been a great ride; we'll see how long we can keep it going."