Generals Hold off Jags

The Washington-Lee Generals entered last night’s match against the Falls Church Jaguars with a must win mentality.  The Jaguars were fresh off a big win over the Wakefield Warriors, which moved them into fifth place in the National District standings. Head coach Bobby Dobson knew that with his team pretty much a lock for fourth, that they would be facing the Jags in next week’s opening round of the National District tournament, and that the only question was where the game would be held.

“We really needed this one,” Dobson said.  “The District is so wide open, anyone can beat anyone.  Home court advantage is huge for us.”

The Washington-Lee Generals echoed their coach’s sentiment with their play on the court.  They came out intent on taking control of the game early.   Their offensive execution was excellent.  They unselfishly shared the ball, and multiple players were able to knock down open shots.   Defensively they were superb, forcing their opponent into difficult shots and not allowing second shot opportunities.  As a result, they were able to jump out to 17-8 lead after the first quarter of play.

However, the Jaguars, motivated by emotions of honoring seven seniors in their final home game, came roaring back.  They began to dictate the tempo of the game with their scrappy half court defense, and caught fire behind the arc, nailing four triples in the period.  The Generals watched their comfortable lead evaporate to one at the break.

Washington-Lee came out in the third much as they did at the tip, firing on all cylinders.  They Generals put together another strong quarter lead by their backcourt balance, and outscored the Jags 19 to eight to re-establish a 12-point lead.  Jack Beckman finished with a game high 18-points, while fellow guards Andrew Karpinski and Antoine Ingram scored 16 and 15, respectively. Their ability to score easy buckets in transition helped the Generals open up an insurmountable 58-40 lead..

But again Falls Church used aggressive defense, this time in the full court press, to rush the Generals into poor decisions with the ball.  A 9-0 run by the Jags in under a minute got them right back in contention.  But the Washington-Lee guards would respond, finally dissecting the press and getting a few easy baskets to coast to the 69-55 victory.  Ingram, Karpinski and Beckman would combine to score all 19 fourth quarter points for the Generals.

“We knew Falls Church would make runs,” Beckman said.  “But it was vital for us to keep the momentum of the game.  Once we were able to break their press and get easy baskets, we were able to surprise them with a press of our own.”

The victory, in tandem with Edison’s 77-57 win over Wakefield, guarantees the Generals fourth place in the district.  If they beat Wakefield on Thursday, they will host Falls Church in the first round of the playoffs.  If not, it would be possible that they would host the Warriors in a rematch for a spot in the semi-finals, and a birth in the regional tournament.  Either way, Beckman and the Generals are focused on the task at hand.

“We want to work on keeping the lead by putting the pressure on our opponents the entire game,” Beckman said.  “These wins late in the year are big for our confidence, and give us good momentum for the playoffs.”

This year’s second installment of the Arlington rivalry between Wakefield and the host Washington-Lee Generals will take place Thursday at 7:30 p.m..