Brock Netter, Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
ATHENS — Washington almost relaxed too early.
Almost.
But the Blue Lions are moving on and have a chance to play for, and capture, their first district championship since 2002.
Despite nearly blowing a 13-point fourth-quarter lead, the Blue Lions had enough in the tank down the stretch and hit enough free throws to outlast Meigs by a 59-56 final on Sunday in a Division IV district semifinal.
“I thought our energy was great all night, and we rebounded the ball really well, which affected them in transition,” Washington coach Shannon Bartruff said. “I thought we did a great job of guarding [Meigs’ Carson] Davis, even though he had 26 on the night and made a lot of tough buckets. I’m proud of the effort we gave for four quarters and our season continues on.”
It was a battle of the big men between Meigs’ Carson Davis and Washington’s Noah Haithcock, and Davis had the early advantage.
He scored early, followed by a pair of buckets from Owen Tracy to give the Marauders a 9-7 lead.
Haithcock responded on the other end with a triple, but Colben Beucler got three points the hard way before Davis ended the frame with a jumper to put the Marauders up 12-11.
The second quarter, however, belonged to Haithcock.
He caught a crazy hot hand and splashed in three triples in four trips down the floor, putting the Blue Lions ahead 23-16.
“We saw how they were playing our ball screens, and my shot was feeling really good in the second quarter,” Haithcock said. “After that first one, I just kept shooting and they kept falling. We had a lot of good looks throughout the quarter and coach put us all in positions to have open shots to score.”
Keeping his foot on the gas, he scored again and that was followed by Jeston Everhart connecting on a pair of buckets inside the paint to push the lead into double digits.
However, Tracy scored to beat the buzzer and cut the deficit to 34-25 at the break.
Both teams traded buckets to open the third, but Davis and Gunnar Cleland scored on consecutive possessions to cut Washington’s lead to 36-31.
PHOTOS: Images from Washington’s district semifinal win over Meigs
Haithcock, Sam Pfeifer, Jackson Everhart and Bryson Heath all scored to end the third, providing an answer and putting the Blue Lions ahead 48-39 going into the fourth.
“We were off for two weeks, so practices have been a little different. We switched locations a couple times just to mix things up and get a little perspective of the Convo,” Bartruff said. “Our depth has been a huge strength and we even played some kids tonight that hadn’t seen the floor very much all season. But those kids did such a great job of performing on the big stage and making the most of their minutes.”
Haithcock and Jaxson Hughes opened the final frame with buckets, extending the lead to 52-39. However, Meigs wasn’t done fighting just yet.
Davis, Tracy and Ethan Grimm all scored to help Meigs fight back and cut the deficit to 54-51. But Washington got an open layup from Aden Osborne to go back up two possessions, and it was too much for Meigs to overcome down the stretch.
“Our seniors did a great job. Bryson Heath had some big buckets and showcased some great leadership in the huddles,” Bartruff said. “There were some thighs we definitely could have executed better to not give Meigs a chance to climb back and potentially take the game into overtime. We can’t be tentative, we have to make those plays moving forward.”
Haithcock finished with 20 points, 13 rebounds and five assists for Washington, while Osborne added nine points, alongside eight points from Everhart.
For Meigs, Davis finished with 26 points and six rebounds while Tracy added 14 points to the mix.
Washington returns to action at 8:15 p.m., Thursday in a Division IV district final against Unioto, who defeated Logan Elm to advance.
That game will happen at Ohio University’s Convocation Center.
“Unioto is a really good team. They have excellent depth and really good guard play that can handle, as well as shoot the ball,” Bartruff said. “Their defensive pressure is really good as well, so it’s going to be a great challenge. We’ll prepare our kids, put them in the best position to be successful and we’re excited for the opportunity to bring a district title back.”
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