Gallery by Tina Laney
The first seven weeks of the regular season, Woodrow Wilson struggled to a 2-10 record that included an eight-game losing streak.
The last two weeks have been a completely different story for the Flying Eagles.
Friday night, Woodrow ran its current win-streak to five games with a 54-40 win over regional rival George Washington.
The win avenged a 52-41 loss at the hands of the Patriots three weeks ago in Charleston.
“This is a huge win. The last time we played them, we did not play well at all. We didn’t play a full 32 minutes,” Woodrow Wilson head coach Brian Nabors said. “I thought maybe we played 12 out of those 32 minutes. I was glad we were able to come back tonight, focus and lock in on the task at hand. I applaud the focus that they had going into the game. They really wanted to win this game because they knew we didn’t play our best basketball last time.”
A stickback from Josie Cross gave Woodrow the early lead before all-stater Finley Lohan buried a 3-ball for the visitors.
Cross restored the Beckley lead off an assist from Adriana Law, before Law scored on the second stickback of the game for the Flying Eagles.
Offensive rebounds by Beckley would haunt the Patriots all night.
A steal by Cross led to a 3-pointer from Abby Dillon and George Washington head coach Jamie LaMaster wanted a timeout.
The Patriots responded with back-to-back 3-pointers to tie the game, but Woodrow closed the quarter on a 6-0 run for a 15-9 lead.
The run included another stickback from Law which was Beckley’s third offensive rebound of the possession.
“I think we shot the ball decent tonight, especially from outside the 3-point area. However, our inability to out-rebound people is giving teams second and third opportunities,” LaMaster said. “It has been an issue all year and it continues to show itself. We address it in practice, but it continues to show up. I am at a loss right now from that standpoint.”
A triple from Sarah Hopkins and a strong move in the lane by Olivia Ziolkowski gave the home team an 11-point advantage early in the second period.
George Washington was able to stay in the game early by dropping bombs from behind the arc. The Patriots made seven of their 17 attempts in the first half to trail by just four points at halftime.
“I told them after the game, imagine if we would have taken away some of the 3-pointers on the open looks. Some of the shots they hit were just good shots though,” Nabors said. “I thought Lataja (Creasey) did a good job making it tough on Lohan and Abby did a good job on (Kierstyn) Fore. They just hit some tough shots.”
The barrage from behind the arc has been a strength for the Patriots all year according to their coach.
“That is the way we are structured. Lets be honest, we don’t have a true back-to-the-basket post player,” LaMaster said. “I have kids that get in there and work hard, but not a true post player. We go to this four-out set and a lot of things are designed for the 3-ball.”
Creasey opened the second half with a steal and a coast-to-coast scoring drive. Lohan answered with a step-back 3 to cut the lead to three points.
Law made sure that George Washington would get no closer.
After converting on an offensive rebound from Cross, Law riddled the Patriots by driving the lane for easy scores.
“Adriana is a talented player that is very skilled. That is what we expect her to do. We expect her to be aggressive with the ball,” Nabors said. “Sometimes she relies on the 3-point shot. We don’t mind her shooting it, but she is so good with the basketball, we want her attacking and making plays. She is also a really good passer. If she can draw the defenders, she can dump it down or kick it outside to one of the shooters.”
With the Patriots hanging by a thread, Woodrow closed the third quarter on a 7-0 run to lead 45-33 with just eight minutes to play.
“We didn’t play our best basketball, but we saw flashes of our best basketball as far as the defense is concerned. I thought we executed well offensively,” Nabors said. “By going inside-out, we were able to get some back doors. We moved to the ball and we cut down on our turnovers. There were a lot of things I saw where we showed a lot of grit.”
Creasey pushed the lead to 15 when she banked in a 3-ball and the Flying Eagles surrendered just seven points in the final period to secure the win.
“If we can score like that, but we aren’t getting stops and boxing out, we are just losing by not as much. We are playing a ton of freshman and sophomores and it shows,” LaMaster said. “We continue to address the things we see on tape, but at times we are just getting out-worked and you can’t get out-worked.”
Law finished with 16, while Cross scored 13 and Ziolkowski had 12. Lohan led the Patriots with 16 and Siya Smith had 15.
Nabors talked about the turnaround his team has had the last two weeks.
“Before the game, I always tell them the worst thing we can do is not play together and not play hard. They took it upon themselves to understand that they need each other to be successful. They have bought into that,” Nabors said. “They can see the success in pulling for each other, encouraging one another, loving one another and working hard. Now, we can’t take it for granted. We have to keep pushing and trying to get better to see how far we can get.”
Woodrow Wilson will look to continue its hot streak when it travels to Oak Hill Monday.
GW: 9 14 10 7 – 40
WW: 15 12 18 9 – 54
George Washington
Finley Lohan 16, Kierstyn Fore 6, Siya Smith 15, Tylie Barton 3. Totals: 13 3-4 40.
Woodrow Wilson
Lataja Creasey 7, Olivia Ziolkowski 12, Josie Cross 13, Abby Dillon 3, Sarah Hopkins 3, Adriana Law 16. Totals: 23 4-8 54.
3-pointers – GW: 11 (Lohan 4, Fore 2, Smith 4, Barton); WW: 4 (Creasey, Ziolkowski, Dillon, Hopkins).
