4-for-4: GM Hoops Teams All Winners

It was a wild, hectic and ultimately successful night at George Mason High School Monday as all four of the school’s basketball teams competed, and won, and bettered their positions for the post-season Bull Run District playoffs.

Because of inclement weather last week, the schedules for the boys and girls teams were adjusted dramatically, crunching four games into the high school Monday night.

By the end of this week, when the regular season shakes itself out, the varsity and JV squads for boys and girls could all be in the playoffs and three of them could be hosting playoff games.

On Monday, the boys played Word of Life Academy. The varsity was the first on the floor, taking on the Ambassadors at 6 p.m. in the main gym while the girls JV team battled Madison County in the school’s second, auxiliary gym at the same time.

The JV Lady Mustangs maintained second place in the Bull Run District with the critical district win. The girls are now 13-2 overall and 6-1 in the district with two games remaining on their schedule. With two more wins, the team would finish in first place and host a playoff game.

The varsity girls, who came on the main floor at 7:30 to play Madison County, struggled mightily in the first half, however not as mightily as the visiting Mountaineers. The Lady ‘Stangs went to the locker room at halftime clinging to a marginal 11-8 lead, having made only three field goals in the first half. But Mason came out poised and shrugged off the lackadaisical first half to put away the Mountaineers handedly, 32-23.

The same team had no struggles whatsoever facing Rappahannock Tuesday night. Mason stormed out with a near-flawless first half that resulted in a 29 point halftime lead. Behind senior Becky Roa’s 18 points, Mason defeated the Panthers 61-20 for their fourth-straight win.

The win moves the girls’ record to 14-7 (6-3 in Bull Run play) and puts them in position to finish second place in the district. They play their final game of the season tonight against Clarke County at 7:30 p.m.

“After all that’s happened this year, I am extremely happy to be saying that,” said coach Dan Wilkie about the girls team’s possibility to finish second. Wilkie’s squad has been riddled with injuries, the latest coming when starting guard Julie Dorsey likely tore her ACL last week and is likely out for the year.

The Mustangs have already been hampered by the loss of Maggie O’Toole for the majority of the year. When both were healthy, Dorsey and O’Toole accounted for one-third of the team’s offense.

The Mustangs are still led by senior guard Becky Roa, but the loss of Dorsey puts a burden on low-post play in the playoffs. The team will lean on their size in forwards Alex Pender, Alison Van Pelt and Lena Griffin.

The same is the case for the boys varsity team, which is also hurting at guard going into the playoffs. Senior Jack Lawlor did not play Monday night as the Mustangs dominated Word of Life, 80-57. Colin Molano, again filling in, had 13 assists and only three turnovers for the Mustangs. Lawlor is slated to play in Tuesday’s playoff game.

The team was again led by Evan Hamme’s 23 points. His 418 points this season give him the second-highest single season total by any Mustang in the last decade.

Pete Hamill and Will Straub each contributed 10 in the win.

On Saturday, February 7, the Mustangs lost a crucial road battle to Clarke County, the Bull Run District’s second-place team, 75-50. Mason rallied late and trimmed the Eagles’ consistent double-digit lead, but the rally fell well short and the Eagles pulled away.

The Mustangs (9-11, 4-5 in the Bull Run) will host a playoff game next Tuesday against either Madison County or Rappahannock. The Panthers have not won a game in the District this year, but they still scare coach Bill Broderick. “I don’t know, Rapp is just a tough matchup for us,” he said. “Any team we play will be tough.”

Mason will play at either 7 or 7:30 p.m. Tuesday night. They will play at a later time if the JV girls host the District Championship.

Like the girls, the boys will lean on their size, using Hamme and forwards Hamill, Straub, Nate McFarland, Deuce Greenfield and Josiah Larson.

Broderick and most of his players filled the auxiliary gym—along with scores of fans—for the most exciting game of the night, the JV boys’ 52-47 nail biter victory over Word of Life. The visiting Ambassadors shot the ball well in the first half, mostly from the outside, and had all the momentum going into halftime thanks to one Ambassador’s buzzer beater from beyond halfcourt.

The second half was a gritty battle, with the lead changing hands numerous times. With the score tied with under four minutes to play, Mason utilized a full-court press to force numerous steals and stifled the Ambassadors, holding them to only two free-throws and no field goals in the final three minutes. The Mustangs got a balanced attack from Ryan Larcamp (11 points), Adam Chandler (9), Paul Mene (9), Byron Mendenhall (8) and Mike Schwengel (6).

The JV boys are 13-5 overall, but 7-2 in the District and clinging to second-place, which would put them in the playoffs.