WHEELING, W.Va. — Trailing by ten points at the end of the first quarter, Wheeling Central Catholic outscored Class AAAA No. 4 Washington, 66-43 the rest of the way to finish off an undefeated regular season, 73-60.
The Class AA No. 1 Maroon Knights trailed by a basket at halftime, 37-35 while allowing the Patriots to connect on ten three-pointers. After halftime, Central yielded just three shots from behind the arc.
“We adjusted a little bit and started switching some of their action to make sure we got somebody out there with a hand,” said Wheeling Central Catholic head coach Mel Stephens. “I didn’t feel like they would shoot it as well in the second half for whatever reason. Maybe they got a little tired. Maybe our defense was a little better. They made some shots and they made it tough for us.”
The Patriots closed out the first quarter on an 8-0 run to take a 17-7 lead. Central erased that deficit with a lengthy scoring run in the second quarter. The Knights closed the third quarter on a 16-2 burst and they held on to a double-digit lead for most of the minutes in the fourth quarter.
WCCHS seniors Eli Sancomb and Max Olejasz combined for 53 points. Sancomb, a Liberty University signee, scored 30 points while Olejasz added 23.
“When the chips were really down, put the ball in Eli’s hands and he makes good plays. Whether he scores, he hade some great passes to Max. Max does a really good job of sneaking behind that defense and he is able to get to the rim and finish.”
Staked to a sizable lead early in the fourth quarter, Central controlled the pace of play in the fourth quarter, yielding just ten points to the Patriots in the final stanza.
“We’re getting better at that. Earlier in the year, we were in such a hurry and wanted to score so bad that we didn’t really understand time and score real well. The last couple weeks we are starting to get a feel for what it takes and what you basically have to do to finish games out, especially with a lead.”
The Knights (19-0) enter a lengthy break before their regional matchup on March 12. The defending state champions are seeded first in the Region I tournament. Central will host the winner of the Tyler Consolidated/Oak Glen game, which will be played on March 6.
“It is a good win for us. We finish the regular season undefeated. That is a huge accomplishment for these guys considering the type of schedule that we play. Now we get a little bit of time off and we’ll get ready for tournament time.”
Kris Doleman led Washington (16-3) with 19 points. Avorie Brown added 12 points and Cam Shedrick scored 11. The Patriots will play at Wheeling Park Saturday afternoon to complete a two-game road trip.