After a year without summer competition, the Salisbury High School boys basketball team competed in its first major local tournament this summer at the Bash at the Beach last weekend at Cedar Beach in Allentown.

The Falcons went 1-2, including winning their game over nonconference opponent Panther Valley. They fell to Colonial League foes in defending league champion and district runner-up Notre Dame (Green Pond), and Saucon Valley.

Just like with every summer, head coach Jason Weaver and his staff were never really at full strength due to other commitments, including vacations and other sports, and even some injuries. But being able to win at least one game is always the goal.

“The guys we had played really hard and played well together,” said Weaver. “We played good in the three games and I really saw some good things out of the team that makes the experience positive and we can continue to move forward this summer and get even better.”

In Salisbury’s opening game on Friday evening they were matched up with the Crusaders, winners over Pleasant Valley out of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference in a game on Thursday. Notre Dame got the better of Salisbury Friday, but the Falcons quickly bounced back.

In dramatic fashion, Salisbury beat Panther Valley in the final seconds in their second game. Jackson Lopez, who scored a team-high 12 points in the victory, played an all-around game for Salisbury. Trailing by two points with 25 seconds remaining, Lopez grabbed a rebound from a missed shot and put it back while drawing the foul. His three-point play was the key to the 33-32 win.

“Jackson had a good weekend for us,” Weaver said. “But especially that game he came up big. He was our offensive guy, knocking down shots, but he also played solid defensively.”

In the Falcons’ third game of the tournament and second on Saturday, Salisbury was on the other end of a close game, dropping a two-point contest, 42-40, to Saucon Valley to end the tournament for the Falcons.

Weaver was proud of the way his team played and also proud of the state of his program in the present and past, as former players reached out to help coach this summer in any way they could.

“We had Dylan Belletierre, Brad Vangeli and Tommy Sylvester all come back and help us this weekend,” said Weaver. “I was grateful for them and their knowledge they were able to bring.”

Salisbury continues play in the Lehigh Valley summer league this week.