For Gladiator fans, I don't think you could have scripted a better ending to tonight's regular season. I have just learned that the Lady Gladiators swept the Bison in Greenville tonight, winning both games relatively easily. For the varsity team, that leaves them in a dogfight for the number one spot in Region 1-B, but now I would assume they are battling only Altavista for that position. Certainly tonight's loss knocks the Lady Bison down into the three spot. As for the Riverheads JVs, I understand there is a JV tournament being held and with Riverheads' 12-4 season record, I would assume they will be right in the thick of that event.
But since I was at Buffalo Gap for the two boys games, I can tell you that Riverheads showed up to play and took home a pair of exciting victories over the Bison, spoiling Senior Night in the process. First of all, the JVs had to rally from behind and didn't take the lead until midway through the third quarter, but once they did, they ran away with a 48-32 win. Riverheads finishes at 12-7 by my count, but to the best of my knowledge, neither they nor Buffalo Gap will qualify for the upcoming four-team JV boys tournament. But still congrats to Coach Snead and the job he has done in his first season with the Big Red.
As for the all-important varsity game, it was a ripsnorter, or a slobberknocker as our esteemed Coach Casto might call it, with the Gladiators coming out on top 51-48. However, according to the 11:00 TV sports report, the news is even worse for the Bison, because had they won, they would be looking at a Shenandoah District co-championship with Wilson, since Stuarts Draft stunned the Hornets tonight with a surprising road victory of their own. Therefore Wilson still takes the 'Doah with a 10-2 record, whereas tonight's Riverheads win knocks the Bison down to 9-3. Of course, as we have learned in football, when the regional playoffs start, the various qualifying teams will compete in three different classifications. But we will cross those bridges when we get to them.
So how did the Gladiators knock off the Bison on their own floor tonight? Of course the politically correct thing is to say it was a team victory, but anyone who watched this one would have to give the game ball to RHS' Levi Byer. Remember just last night when I was telling you about his specialty of drawing charges, even when the opponent outweighs him by 200 pounds?
Well tonight if he drew even one charge on anybody, I don't remember it but he was still most definitely a key cog in this win. First of all, he and his teammates obviously wore the same shooting shoes as they wore at Waynesboro last night. Ordinarily the job of outside assassin belongs to Ryan Farris and Bennett Dunlap, and each of them had one tonight. But guess who stepped out behind the arc and drained two of them himself? None other than Mr. Byer and in case you think he has made a habit of it, they were only his second and third triples of the season.
But his major contribution tonight was on defense. He drew the assignment of guarding BG's top Bison Mr. Bennett Bowers and to say that Byer frustrated the daylights out of him would be an understatement. Byer stuck with him like a glove and other than one brief period in the fourth quarter, which I will get to shortly, the big story for Bowers was his foul trouble, as he had three by halftime, and fittingly got his fourth by pushing off while trying to get into his preferred offensive rhythm. If you appreciate good defense it was fun to watch.
The Gladiators also got major contributions from two other seniors.....steady point guard Ryan Farris who has been averaging over 20 per game recently finished with 15 to Byers' 14....and Tye Morris gave the Big Red a third double figure scorer with 10 with his final five points among the most crucial in the game. Dunlap had a good floor game but not his usual point production, as he and fellow junior Carter Mooneyham scored five each. A third junior, Adan Slack, rounded out the Big Red scoring with a nice give-and-go bucket scored down the stretch when the Big Red was holding off a Bison charge.
Speaking of the Bison, they only held the lead tonight on three occasions, and each time it was only by a single point, as they led 5-4, 43-42 and 46-45. Other than that, Riverheads controlled the tempo and the score the entire evening.
Byers' two triples were a major part of the Big Red's 15-9 first quarter advantage, and also during the first half, Farris, M'ham and Morris each hit from behind the arc. Bowers, despite his foul trouble and mounting frustration, managed to keep the Gap in the game as the teams went to the locker room with RHS in front 27-22.
BG scored the first two buckets of the third quarter to cut the lead to a single point but Riverheads responded, and when Dunlap drained his triple, the fifth Gladiator to do so, it gave RHS its biggest lead of the night at 42-34. The Bison canned a free throw to close the third out at 42-35.
Just as they had done in their victory at Riverheads earlier this year, the Gap turned up the pressure and it immediately paid dividends as they opened the fourth quarter on an 8-0 spurt to take the aforementioned 43-42 lead. I believe it was a Bowers triple that gave them that lead and at that point, it most definitely looked as if Big Mo had swung over to the home team and that the Bison would pull out the win.
But Morris drilled what was arguably the biggest hoop of the night for Riverheads, a triple from the right wing that stopped the Bison run and put The Pride back on top 45-43. But with the Bison faithful roaring their approval, Bowers was able to shake loose once more and put his team on top one final time.
That set the stage for Morris' second most important hoop of the night. The Gladiators were trying to run some time off the clock when he saw an opening too good to pass up. So he drove the lane and laid it in to put RHS ahead for good. With the clock ticking down to the final seconds, the Gladiators made a gutsy move that paid off when they threw the home run ball to Mooneyham. He was fouled going in for the lay-up, sank the pressure free throws with no nerves whatsoever, and the Big Red allowed the Bison a harmless bucket at the final horn.
The most satisfying thing about this win was that RHS maintained its poise and won this game the same way they have lost several others this season. That is of course a sign of maturity and hopefully they can carry that newfound confidence into the post-season. Speaking of which, this was RHS' third win in a row and fourth out of their last five games, so it most definitely solidified a Region 1-B spot for them. I am not quite confident enough to say that they nailed down the number four seed and will therefore host a first-round game, but that was kind of the feeling going into tonight. For those of you who are interested, you can simply Google "Region 1-B standings" and learn all you need to know.
As for the Bison and their standing, the word in the stands was that they had the number one seed locked up even before tonight, so I will assume that to be the case. If so, they will receive a first-round bye which may very well open up the possibilities one night next week for Riverheads vs. Buffalo Gap Round Three. But let's not count our chickens or Bison or any other form of wildlife just yet. We first need to sit back and let some of the other teams in the region finish their seasons so the point totals can be sorted out.
But all things considered, it was a HUGE night to be a Gladiator, so congratulations to all four victorious teams.
But since I was at Buffalo Gap for the two boys games, I can tell you that Riverheads showed up to play and took home a pair of exciting victories over the Bison, spoiling Senior Night in the process. First of all, the JVs had to rally from behind and didn't take the lead until midway through the third quarter, but once they did, they ran away with a 48-32 win. Riverheads finishes at 12-7 by my count, but to the best of my knowledge, neither they nor Buffalo Gap will qualify for the upcoming four-team JV boys tournament. But still congrats to Coach Snead and the job he has done in his first season with the Big Red.
As for the all-important varsity game, it was a ripsnorter, or a slobberknocker as our esteemed Coach Casto might call it, with the Gladiators coming out on top 51-48. However, according to the 11:00 TV sports report, the news is even worse for the Bison, because had they won, they would be looking at a Shenandoah District co-championship with Wilson, since Stuarts Draft stunned the Hornets tonight with a surprising road victory of their own. Therefore Wilson still takes the 'Doah with a 10-2 record, whereas tonight's Riverheads win knocks the Bison down to 9-3. Of course, as we have learned in football, when the regional playoffs start, the various qualifying teams will compete in three different classifications. But we will cross those bridges when we get to them.
So how did the Gladiators knock off the Bison on their own floor tonight? Of course the politically correct thing is to say it was a team victory, but anyone who watched this one would have to give the game ball to RHS' Levi Byer. Remember just last night when I was telling you about his specialty of drawing charges, even when the opponent outweighs him by 200 pounds?
Well tonight if he drew even one charge on anybody, I don't remember it but he was still most definitely a key cog in this win. First of all, he and his teammates obviously wore the same shooting shoes as they wore at Waynesboro last night. Ordinarily the job of outside assassin belongs to Ryan Farris and Bennett Dunlap, and each of them had one tonight. But guess who stepped out behind the arc and drained two of them himself? None other than Mr. Byer and in case you think he has made a habit of it, they were only his second and third triples of the season.
But his major contribution tonight was on defense. He drew the assignment of guarding BG's top Bison Mr. Bennett Bowers and to say that Byer frustrated the daylights out of him would be an understatement. Byer stuck with him like a glove and other than one brief period in the fourth quarter, which I will get to shortly, the big story for Bowers was his foul trouble, as he had three by halftime, and fittingly got his fourth by pushing off while trying to get into his preferred offensive rhythm. If you appreciate good defense it was fun to watch.
The Gladiators also got major contributions from two other seniors.....steady point guard Ryan Farris who has been averaging over 20 per game recently finished with 15 to Byers' 14....and Tye Morris gave the Big Red a third double figure scorer with 10 with his final five points among the most crucial in the game. Dunlap had a good floor game but not his usual point production, as he and fellow junior Carter Mooneyham scored five each. A third junior, Adan Slack, rounded out the Big Red scoring with a nice give-and-go bucket scored down the stretch when the Big Red was holding off a Bison charge.
Speaking of the Bison, they only held the lead tonight on three occasions, and each time it was only by a single point, as they led 5-4, 43-42 and 46-45. Other than that, Riverheads controlled the tempo and the score the entire evening.
Byers' two triples were a major part of the Big Red's 15-9 first quarter advantage, and also during the first half, Farris, M'ham and Morris each hit from behind the arc. Bowers, despite his foul trouble and mounting frustration, managed to keep the Gap in the game as the teams went to the locker room with RHS in front 27-22.
BG scored the first two buckets of the third quarter to cut the lead to a single point but Riverheads responded, and when Dunlap drained his triple, the fifth Gladiator to do so, it gave RHS its biggest lead of the night at 42-34. The Bison canned a free throw to close the third out at 42-35.
Just as they had done in their victory at Riverheads earlier this year, the Gap turned up the pressure and it immediately paid dividends as they opened the fourth quarter on an 8-0 spurt to take the aforementioned 43-42 lead. I believe it was a Bowers triple that gave them that lead and at that point, it most definitely looked as if Big Mo had swung over to the home team and that the Bison would pull out the win.
But Morris drilled what was arguably the biggest hoop of the night for Riverheads, a triple from the right wing that stopped the Bison run and put The Pride back on top 45-43. But with the Bison faithful roaring their approval, Bowers was able to shake loose once more and put his team on top one final time.
That set the stage for Morris' second most important hoop of the night. The Gladiators were trying to run some time off the clock when he saw an opening too good to pass up. So he drove the lane and laid it in to put RHS ahead for good. With the clock ticking down to the final seconds, the Gladiators made a gutsy move that paid off when they threw the home run ball to Mooneyham. He was fouled going in for the lay-up, sank the pressure free throws with no nerves whatsoever, and the Big Red allowed the Bison a harmless bucket at the final horn.
The most satisfying thing about this win was that RHS maintained its poise and won this game the same way they have lost several others this season. That is of course a sign of maturity and hopefully they can carry that newfound confidence into the post-season. Speaking of which, this was RHS' third win in a row and fourth out of their last five games, so it most definitely solidified a Region 1-B spot for them. I am not quite confident enough to say that they nailed down the number four seed and will therefore host a first-round game, but that was kind of the feeling going into tonight. For those of you who are interested, you can simply Google "Region 1-B standings" and learn all you need to know.
As for the Bison and their standing, the word in the stands was that they had the number one seed locked up even before tonight, so I will assume that to be the case. If so, they will receive a first-round bye which may very well open up the possibilities one night next week for Riverheads vs. Buffalo Gap Round Three. But let's not count our chickens or Bison or any other form of wildlife just yet. We first need to sit back and let some of the other teams in the region finish their seasons so the point totals can be sorted out.
But all things considered, it was a HUGE night to be a Gladiator, so congratulations to all four victorious teams.
