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DALTON, Mass. — Despite being down by double digits early, the Wahconah Regional High School boys basketball team rallied to beat West Bridgewater 83-67, with three Wahconah players scoring 21 points or more.
Both Calvert Brody and Pat McLaughlin finished with 22 points to lead the Warriors, with Brody sinking 14 free-throws; Jesse Chapman was the team's third-leading scorer for the game with 21. Nathan Razza scored 22 to lead West Bridgewater.
Wahconah struggled to start the game, giving up 10 points to East Bridgewater without scoring a single basket. After a timeout by coach Dustin Belcher, Wahconah rallied back and cut the lead down to just three, with a 17-20 score at the end of the first quarter.
Belcher credited West Bridgewater for their solid play during the game and throughout the season, noting the team had to make adjustments to make up for the slow start. He said Bridgewater's previous win against Frontier was an impressive victory.
"We're in the round of 16 now, which means there is no more freebee's," he said.
Wahconah continued its comeback in the second quarter, with the team tying the game at 26-26 with just under four minutes left before halftime, taking the lead shortly after. Wahconah scored 18 points in the quarter and defended well, holding West Bridgewater to just 10 points.
Heading into the second half with a 35-30 lead, the Warriors continued their strong play, once again holding West Bridgewater to 10 points while scoring 24. Calvert scored ten of his 22 points in the third quarter, bringing the score to 59-40 going into the fourth quarter.
Wahconah scored 24 points in the fourth quarter, with the team's lead going as high as 22 points at one point. The Warriors were able to hold on and win despite a late 27-point rally from West Bridgewater in the quarter, where the lead dropped to just ten points with three minutes left.
No. 4 Wahconah moves on to face Manchester Essex in the Elite Eight. The Hornets (18-4) defeated fifth-seeded Cathedral on Tuesday night.
