The visiting Generals jumped in front early and led almost the entire game tonight as they hustled their way to a somewhat surprising 62-53 win over the Gladiators. Riverheads was coming off that monumental win over Stuarts Draft on Friday, and should have been on a roll, but one of the local papers has already come right out and said that they came out "flat" tonight, and I would say that explanation is as good as any. We have all seen our favorites do that at any level in any sport.
Shooting accuracy however played a big role as the same paper reports that SJ shot 60% to RHS' 33. With that big a discrepancy, of course you will come out on top. So whatever the reason, the Generals moved to 7-6 on the year while Riverheads drops to 5-6. It is possible also that the Generals will overtake Riverheads for the number two slot in the Conference 44 standings behind Altavista.
SJ was leading 7-2 when Riverheads made the first of two or three attempts to get back in the game. They went on an 8-2 run to take their first lead at 10-9 and stretched it to a 14-11 advantage after one period. The Gladiators then hit the first bucket of the second quarter to take their largest lead of the game, but at that point, the wheels simply fell off the home-team bus. RHS only managed two more points the rest of the quarter as Stonewall moved ahead 25-18 at the break.
The Gladiators then scored the first five points of the second half and suddenly it was 25-23. At that point, it very much looked as if the Big Red had found their intensity and would come back for the win. But instead Stonewall went on a 9-0 spurt to take a double-digit lead. Things only got worse as the score ballooned to 48-31 with just seconds left in the third quarter.
Brett Hostetler then gave the Gladiator fans their biggest thrill of the night as he banked in a desperation triple from just beyond the half-court line as the third quarter horn sounded. Despite still being down by 14, RHS had one more rally in them that made things rather interesting.
Freshman Elijah Dunlap started the fourth quarter off with six quick points on an old-fashioned and a corner triple and in no time the lead was down to 8 with plenty of time still left on the clock. The teams then traded points and twice during the quarter, the Gladiators came racing down the floor on what appeared to be a sure-fire fast break, trailing by 8 with a chance to cut further into the lead. But each time the Generals made a defensive stop and kept them from getting any closer.
Drew Bond came alive in the final stages of the game and led the RHS scoring for the second game in a row with 13 points, but it was just a case of too little too late as this game belonged to the hustling Generals. Hostetler was the only other Gladiator in double digits with 12. I didn't hear any final scoring for Stonewall, but from my perspective the best games came from Brendan Hoover, Dylan Davis, and Andrew Dotson. Sorry if I short-sheeted anyone.
The Gladiators really don't have any choice but to put this one quickly in the rear-view mirror, since they have a road game at Luray Tuesday night. The best attitude they can have going into that one is that it will start out 0-0 and that they can control what happens from that point.
The Riverheads JVs picked up a much needed win in a rather odd 58-40 game. They were cruising along with about a 35-point lead when all of a sudden the Junior Generals started hitting every three that they threw up. They were much too far behind to even dream of catching up but at least they made the score more respectable. Eighth-grader Adam Painter was a one-man wrecking crew for Riverheads as he poured in 29 points to lead the Big Red attack. He is definitely one to watch for the future in Greenville.
Shooting accuracy however played a big role as the same paper reports that SJ shot 60% to RHS' 33. With that big a discrepancy, of course you will come out on top. So whatever the reason, the Generals moved to 7-6 on the year while Riverheads drops to 5-6. It is possible also that the Generals will overtake Riverheads for the number two slot in the Conference 44 standings behind Altavista.
SJ was leading 7-2 when Riverheads made the first of two or three attempts to get back in the game. They went on an 8-2 run to take their first lead at 10-9 and stretched it to a 14-11 advantage after one period. The Gladiators then hit the first bucket of the second quarter to take their largest lead of the game, but at that point, the wheels simply fell off the home-team bus. RHS only managed two more points the rest of the quarter as Stonewall moved ahead 25-18 at the break.
The Gladiators then scored the first five points of the second half and suddenly it was 25-23. At that point, it very much looked as if the Big Red had found their intensity and would come back for the win. But instead Stonewall went on a 9-0 spurt to take a double-digit lead. Things only got worse as the score ballooned to 48-31 with just seconds left in the third quarter.
Brett Hostetler then gave the Gladiator fans their biggest thrill of the night as he banked in a desperation triple from just beyond the half-court line as the third quarter horn sounded. Despite still being down by 14, RHS had one more rally in them that made things rather interesting.
Freshman Elijah Dunlap started the fourth quarter off with six quick points on an old-fashioned and a corner triple and in no time the lead was down to 8 with plenty of time still left on the clock. The teams then traded points and twice during the quarter, the Gladiators came racing down the floor on what appeared to be a sure-fire fast break, trailing by 8 with a chance to cut further into the lead. But each time the Generals made a defensive stop and kept them from getting any closer.
Drew Bond came alive in the final stages of the game and led the RHS scoring for the second game in a row with 13 points, but it was just a case of too little too late as this game belonged to the hustling Generals. Hostetler was the only other Gladiator in double digits with 12. I didn't hear any final scoring for Stonewall, but from my perspective the best games came from Brendan Hoover, Dylan Davis, and Andrew Dotson. Sorry if I short-sheeted anyone.
The Gladiators really don't have any choice but to put this one quickly in the rear-view mirror, since they have a road game at Luray Tuesday night. The best attitude they can have going into that one is that it will start out 0-0 and that they can control what happens from that point.
The Riverheads JVs picked up a much needed win in a rather odd 58-40 game. They were cruising along with about a 35-point lead when all of a sudden the Junior Generals started hitting every three that they threw up. They were much too far behind to even dream of catching up but at least they made the score more respectable. Eighth-grader Adam Painter was a one-man wrecking crew for Riverheads as he poured in 29 points to lead the Big Red attack. He is definitely one to watch for the future in Greenville.
