DEXTER — Perryville battled to the final buzzer, but a hot-shooting Fredericktown squad proved difficult to slow down.
The Blackcats connected on a barrage of three-pointers and gradually pulled away to defeat the Pirates 72-52 in a Class 4, District 1 first-round tournament game March 3 at Dexter High School.
The loss ended Perryville’s season with a 9-17 record, while Fredericktown improved to 15-12 and advanced to the district semifinals.
Fredericktown set the tone early behind strong perimeter shooting. The Blackcats held a 14-12 lead after the first quarter and extended the margin to 35-27 by halftime before continuing to pull away in the second half.
Fredericktown outscored Perryville 17-13 in the third quarter and added 20 more points in the final period to secure the victory.
The difference came from beyond the arc.
Fredericktown knocked down 13 three-pointers during the game, several of them heavily contested, giving the Blackcats the offensive momentum throughout the night.
“They shot the ball really well,” Perryville coach Eli Sample said. “We did a pretty good job contesting a lot of those shots, but they made some tough ones and kind of got on a roll.”
Junior David Slinkard led Fredericktown with a game-high 30 points, including seven three-pointers, while Tucker Reutzel added 13 points and Andrew Robbins chipped in 12.
Perryville countered with balanced scoring from its senior group.
Senior forward Josh Paisley led the Pirates with 16 points, followed by senior point guard Karston Schilli with 14. Waylon Huber and Cole Rodewald added nine points each as Perryville continued to compete despite the Blackcats’ shooting surge.
Sample said Fredericktown’s perimeter attack made it difficult to close the gap. “When you let a team hit that many threes, it makes it really difficult to compete,” he said. “They had a couple guys who can really shoot it, and they moved the ball well.”
Even as the deficit grew, Perryville continued to battle until the final minutes.
Sample said he was proud of the way his players competed, particularly the team’s seniors, who played their final game in a Perryville uniform. “
They were upset, obviously, but they competed to the very end and left it all out there,” he said. “That’s something I was proud of. They never folded.”
For the Pirates, the loss marked the end of a season that included several close games and valuable experience for a group that relied heavily on its senior leadership.
While the final result wasn’t what Perryville hoped for, Sample said the effort and commitment shown by the players throughout the season were something he appreciated.
“I had five seniors who have played a lot of basketball here,” he said. “I’m thankful for everything they put into the program.”
