Freshmen providing small lift for Falcons

With Air Force drowning in a sea of errors and being pounded by waves of New Mexico scoring, a pair of freshmen provided some buoys onto which the Falcons could grab hold.

During Saturday's 78-53 loss at The Pit, guard Jon Atkins and center Sammy Schafer set career highs by playing 21 and 15 minutes, respectively. And each had moments that displayed why coaches are excited about their futures.

"We've been excited about them prior to Saturday night," coach Jeff Reynolds said.

"They're making progress."

Reynolds said he expects Atkins and Schafer to see some more quality time tonight when Air Force plays host to Utah in a Mountain West Conference game. The Falcons (9-6, 0-2) will be looking to snap a three-game slide.

Prior to Saturday's game, Atkins had played only 21 minutes in 8 of 14 games, as his performance in practice had been "sporadic," Reynolds said.

"I thought I'd be able to come in a little ahead of the curve," said Atkins, who played last season for the academy's prep school. "And I had some humble pie with that."

But Atkins has been better in practice of late, and with junior guard Avery Merriex nursing a knee injury, Atkins entered Saturday's game with 16:58 left in the first half. He finished with six points, two rebounds, two assists and two turnovers. And he showed a flash of his defensive ability by darting into a passing lane, stealing the ball and driving for a layup.

Schafer was one of the surprises of the preseason but was hampered by the flu early in the season. Then, after playing 10 minutes against Dartmouth in late December, he suffered a concussion in practice.

He returned to action in the first half against New Mexico and started the second. He scored four points, grabbed three rebounds and showed some athleticism by dribbling into the lane, going behind his back and hitting a short runner.

Two other freshmen - forwards Taylor Stewart and Trevor Noonan - also have shown promise. Stewart, who averages 17.6 minutes, scored in double figures in the first three games but hasn't since, and Noonan's minutes have fluctuated.

But Reynolds said that's to be expected.

"They're freshmen, and even myself and our coaches have a tendency to forget that they're freshmen," he said. "When you get into conference play, everything's geared up.

You've been scouted, you've scouted the opponent, and it's a little tougher and the game's a little faster and they've just got to make that adjustment. And the only way they can do that is to play."

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Contact the Writer: 636-0365 or jake.schaller@gazette.com  

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