Woodson Can't Overcome Slow Start

Two top 10 teams in the Northern Region. Two efficient offenses and tenacious defenses. Two of the region’s best players, both heading to Division I programs next season. It had all the feeling of a regional semifinal.

But it was just the first round. That’s what happens when the Concorde and Patriot districts meet in the opening round of the regional tournament.

Herndon scored the first 12 points against Woodson Monday night, and while the Cavaliers stormed back and kept the game close, the Hornets never trailed, advancing to the Northern Region quarterfinals with a 66-61 win.

“I told [Woodson coach] Doug [Craig] before the game that I thought it was going to be a tough one, because they’re a really good team,” Herndon coach Chris Whelan said. “These guys all know that it’s one and done, you lose and you go home. I would hate to be in that other locker room right now.”

A high-scoring second quarter resulted in Herndon taking a 32-28 lead to the locker room at halftime. The teams went back-and-forth in a chippy third quarter, but Woodson held the ball down by two with 1:14 remaining. John Schoof drew a foul on freshman DeAndre Thomas, and the two exchanged words. While Thomas was restrained by his teammates, it was Schoof who was whistled for a technical. Beltran went down to the other end and sank both free throws.

Herndon was awarded the ball after Schoof’s technical. On the ensuing possession, Beltran drove the lane, made a layup and drew a foul. His free throw gave Herndon a 46-39 lead. Instead of having the ball trailing by two, the Cavaliers found themselves behind by seven.

They never had the ball with a chance to tie the rest of the game.

“They’re 22-2 for a reason,” Craig said. “We had some chances, especially in the fourth quarter. We missed some shots around the basket. Against a really good team on the road you can’t do stuff like that.”

After a hot third quarter, Woodson went cold in the fourth. In addition to the missed shots around the basket Craig mentioned, the Cavs struggled from the line. Schoof made 8-of-9 free throws, but the rest of the team went just 1-for-9.

“We’ve been playing playoff games for three or four weeks now,” Craig said, referencing the difficulty of playing in the Patriot District.

Other than Schoof, the one Cavalier who shot the ball well was Brandon Stepka, who single-handedly kept his team in it by hitting 5-of-6 threes and finishing the night with 16 points.

Schoof led the Cavaliers with 17 points. The senior fouled out in his final high school game with 1:23 remaining. One of those fouls came on the technical.

After the game, Craig looked back on four years with his seniors.

“Our kids work very hard, generally speaking they play the right way. We’ve been to the regional tournament every year these seniors have been in the program. We’ve played in two or three district championship games. We’ve lost some big games, but you’ve got to be pretty good to keep getting to the big game year after year.”

Herndon will face rival South Lakes in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. The Hornets beat the Seahawks 82-56 in a regular-season meeting back in December.

“They’re going to give us a good fight,” Austin Hamilton said. “I think if we do what we do and limit their scorers, I think we can come out with a win.”