Warriors fall in State Championship

The Brookwood Warriors season came to an end in the GIAA Class 3A state championship on Friday night as they fell to St. Andrew’s 54-43. It was a struggle early on for the Warriors as there seemed to be a lid on the basket. Walker Jackson got into foul trouble early and had to take a seat while St. Andrew’s pounded the paint and went up 11-4. Brookwood found some momentum off a turnover that followed a Roscoe Jones three and at the end of the first the score was 11-10 Lions. “We didn”t come out well,” said Brookwood head coach Nate VanDuyne. “It was close, but we were not playing well. We didn’t achieve any of our objectives defensively.” St. Andrew’s opened the second frame with a 7-0 run, but Jones again gave Brookwood life with a big three. Two things kept Brookwood in the game in this first half. First, the fact that St. Andrew’s couldn’t hit a shot from outside. They went 0-7 from beyond the arc in the first quarter and didn’t hit their first three until a minute left in the half.  The second was Jones. The sophomore had an unreal first half, scoring 15 of the Warriors’ first 17 points. Trouble struck again, however, after Jackson picked up his third foul with 2:39 left in the half. Despite being down their best player, Brookwood began to find success, driving to the basket and drawing a bevy of fouls. The Warriors entered halftime down 28-21. Brookwood came storming out of halftime, scoring at a great clip. After a put-back by Jones off a missed free-throw, the Warriors took a 39-36 lead.  “Offensively, we made a few adjustments,” VanDuyne said about the Warriors excellent third quarter. “Defensively, we just did it better. Honestly, the following was fantastic. I mean the students showed up, the Brookwood community showed up. That was a really cool thing.” Suddenly, however, the three ball opened up for the Lions, which ultimately spelled the end for the Warriors.