High school basketball
Patrick HiteStaunton News Leader
FISHERSVILLE — A 10-0 run that started minutes into the game Friday night helped spark Staunton to an 83-62 win over Wilson Memorial in a battle of two teams who entered the game unbeaten in Shenandoah District play.
Staunton forced eight turnovers in the first quarter — and scored 16 points off of those Wilson miscues — in building a 30-12 lead. The 10-0 run was started by a Joaqin Bell 3-pointer —part of his 11 first-quarter points —and ended on a three-point play by Durrell Hamilton, who hit the layup and free throw with 3:55 left in the quarter to put Staunton in front 15-3.
Turning defense into offense is a recipe for success for any team, especially one that likes to run like Staunton.
"We're a fast team," Staunton senior Manny Chapman said. "We have a lot of young guys but they're all getting after it on the defensive end. We just want to keep moving and playing transition."
Hamilton led three Staunton players in double digits with 19 points. Bell finished with 14 and Ky'Ree Scott had 13 in the win, which improved the Storm to 6-6 overall and 3-0 in district play.
"We felt like we were a better team than 5-6," said Chapman. "We just wanted to come out and prove that."
Chapman said they also wanted to show the rest of the district just what the Storm could do. They certainly did that, dismantling a good Wilson team that was on a three-game winning streak. Staunton began the second quarter on an 11-2 run that ended any hope of the Hornets climbing back into the highly anticipated contest.
Both Hamilton and Bell hit 3s in that run, two of the 13 triples that Staunton hit on the night. The Storm led 49-17 at halftime.
"We had a great start," said Staunton coach Terrell Mickens. "But that's not been our problem. Our problem has been keeping it up and I challenged them to keep that same energy the whole time. I thought we did a great job tonight."
The lead grew to as large as 38 points in the third quarter before Wilson finally found some offense to begin cutting into the lead late. Wilson dropped to 7-5 on the season. Mason McWhorter led Wilson with 14 points. Grant Wright added 10 for the Hornets.
"We take it a game at a time," Mickens said. "I always tell them that the next one is the most important one. This one was the next one. We can't worry about what everybody else thinks. We just have to go out and do our own thing."
Other Shenandoah District scores
Gio Armendariz Cruz scored 11 first-quarter points and finished with a game-high 27 to help Fort Defiance beat Buffalo Gap 97-64 in boys basketball. Sam Garber scored 14 points in the win, Fort's fourth straight that improved them to 6-6 on the season.
Kasey Fitzgerald led Buffalo Gap with 19 points while Blake Robertson and Logan Hewitt both finished with 12 points. Gap fell to 6-8 on the season.
Waynesboro picked up its second win of the season and its first district win with a 45-41 victory over Riverheads Friday in boys basketball. It was the fourth loss in a row for Riverheads.
In girls basketball, Buffalo Gap beat Fort Defiance 52-46 behind Hannah Coffman's 14 points and 17 rebounds. Bailey Talley had 12 and Kayleigh Hemp had 10 for the Bison, who are now 12-2 overall and 4-0 in the Shenandoah District.
Trinity Hedrick and Mia Alexander both had 10 points for Fort, which fell to 4-9 overall and 1-3 in district play.
Wilson Memorial stopped Staunton 48-37 to move to 6-6 this season. CC Robinson had 25 points and seven rebounds for the Hornets. Aaliyah Taylor and Sabrina Reeves both had eight for Wilson, which led 26-13 at halftime.
"I was pleased with our first half," Wilson coach Jackie Bryan said. "We let them back in the game in the third quarter but CC's strong finish in the fourth helped us seal the win."
Avian Fields led Staunton with 16 points while Sam Swift finished with 15 for the Storm. Staunton is now 7-6 overall after dropping its fourth-straight game.
Waynesboro won its second game in a row by beating Riverheads 54-42. The Little Giants are now 2-3 in district play. Kaitlyn Hull had a strong night with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Shyla Williams had nine points and 11 rebounds in the win and Aaliyah Diggs had eight points, six assists and four rebounds.
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—Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) atphite@newsleader.comand follow himon Twitter@Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to usatnewsleader.com
