FOXBURG - In the first 11 minutes of the game, the A-C Valley boys basketball team was just going through the motions.

The Falcons spent the rest of the night going through Rocky Grove's defense.

With five minutes remaining in the first half, A-C Valley trailed Rocky Grove 18-7 before posting an 18-6 run to take the lead at intermission.

The Falcons never trailed again and managed a 63-52 District 9 Class A first-round win Wednesday night.

A-C Valley (15-10) will travel to Coudersport for a district quarterfinal playoff game at 7 p.m. Friday.

For Falcons coach Jim Marron, the seconds just before halftime were crucial to the game's outcome.

His team appeared to be headed to the locker room down 24-21 before John Piecenski and Sean Foust both came up with steals and two-point baskets, all within the final 10 seconds of the half, to give the Falcons a slim 25-24 advantage at the break.

"That was the turning point," Marron said. "To think you're going into the half down by a few points and to end up leading, that's big."

"We just got careless with the ball at the end of the half," said Rocky Grove coach Roy Sanner. "Anytime you have a lead like we did and you let it slip away, that's always a turning point in the game."

A-C Valley junior guard Ted Marron spearheaded his team's efforts to stay ahead in the second half, scoring 15 of his team-high 18 points in the final two quarters.

"Ted's probably the best pure shooter on the team," said Coach Marron. "We had to take him out in the first quarter because we were having trouble rebounding and he's not that strong getting (rebounds).

"In the second half, we kept running a double screen that he was able to get open on."

Ted Marron was supported by teammates Andy Smith and Sean Foust, who each ended with 17 points. Foust also contributed five steals and four assists.

The Orioles (12-13) stayed close for much of the second half, trailing just 53-50 with two minutes remaining. But the Falcons' foul shooting kept Rocky Grove at bay down the stretch.

Travis Barker paced Rocky Grove with 15 points while Matt Hannold added 11.

The two teams met earlier this season, with A-C Valley winning 57-56.

"I was expecting nothing but a close game, and that's exactly what it was until they had to start fouling at the end," Coach Marron said.

The game marked the end of Sanner's coaching career. He coached the Orioles for 25 years and tallied 321 wins.

ROCKY GROVE 52

Matt Wood 4 0-0 8, Matt Hannold 5 1-6 11, Trevor Johnson 1 2-2 4, Ben Geib 2 2-4 6, Aron Green 1 0-0 2, Josh Beightol 3 0-0 6, Travis Barker 6 1-1 15. Totals: 22 6-11 52.

A-C VALLEY 63

Andy Smith 5 6-6 17, John Piecenski 2 3-6 8, Sean Foust 5 6-8 17, Kyle McCall 0 1-1 1, John Kaufman 1 0-0 2, Ted Marron 5 4-7 18, Shawn Courson 0 0-0 0. Totals: 18 20-28 63.

3-point goals:

Barker 2; Marron 4, Piecenski, Foust, Smith.

Friday:

A-C Valley @ Coudersport, District 9 Class A Quarterfinal, 7 p.m.