Fayette squared off against Class 3 Belle on Friday afternoon in the early game of the Mid-Missouri Invitational, sponsored by Ramey, at Harrisburg High School. Fayette battled hard but fell by a final score of 62-41.

Belle raced out of the gates to a 14-4 lead. The Falcons closed the quarter on a 7-4 run, using a balanced scoring attack with five players contributing to the team’s 11 points. Belle held an 18-11 advantage after one quarter.

Fayette struggled to score in the second, only putting up four points against 13 for Belle.

“We keep hitting stretches where our turnovers and poor offensive execution really hurt us,” said Fayette coach Brandon Friebe. “We’re going to struggle until we fix these things.”

The Falcons reset at halftime and competed hard in the third, almost playing to a draw, but they trailed 49-31 after three quarters. In the end, Belle earned the 62-41 win.

“Going forward, we need to fix turnovers and wasted possessions,” Coach Friebe said. “We have an opportunity to start doing this at North Calloway on Monday and then at home on Tuesday against New Bloomfield, our Pink Out Night.”

Senior guard Kaleb Friebe led the way for the Falcons with 13 points, 12 of which came in the second half. Junior Charles Alexander added eight.

Fayette opens Central State 8 action on Tuesday with a home game against Class 3 New Bloomfield. It will be the first contest for both teams competing in the new conference, which is in inaugural season.

On Monday, the Falcons fell at North Callaway 61-54 after leading for three quarters. Senior Kaleb Friebe paced the Falcons with 16 points, followed by Kevin De La Torre with 12.

Fayette, 0-9 so far this season, has its next best chance at picking up its first win on Friday when the Falcons travel to Linn to face a struggling Class 3 team. The Wildcats are 1-13 so far this season. One of their early losses was to Belle 52-36.