VHSL CLASS 1 BOYS BASKETBALL: Patrick Henry had no answer for Fort Chiswell shooting barrage (copy)
Fort Chiswell guard Owen Jackson (2) fights Patrick Henry forward Jay Barfield (41) for a rebound.
Fort Chiswell's Landon Eversole (10) shoots over Patrick Henry's Jeb Stewart (3) and Aidan Monahan (25) during Friday's VHSL Class 1 state semifinal game in Pulaski.
Fort Chiswell's Landon Eversole (10) reacts to winning Friday's Class 1 state semifinal game in Pulaski. The Pioneers defeated Patrick Henry by hitting 15 3-pointers for 45 of their 87 points. They head to Richmond to play for the state championship next Friday.
Fort Chiswell head coach Derrick Jackson heads to the locker room after his team won Friday's Class 1 state semifinal game.
Fort Chiswell fans pack the Pulaski County high school gym during Friday's Class 1 state semifinal game.
Fort Chiswell guard Owen Jackson (2) reacts after hitting 2 of his 31 points at the end of the first half of Friday's Class 1 state semifinal game in Pulaski.
PULASKI, Va. – Long after Friday’s VHSL Class 1 boys state semifinal loss, Patrick Henry basketball fans waited to salute the coach and six seniors who help author the best era in program history.
“It’s been a special run,” PH head coach Fred Selfe said. “We wanted to do something that had never been done in school history, and I think we checked all the boxes with 69 wins over the past three years.”
For the second straight season, the Rebels came up one victory short of the state finals as the Fort Chiswell Pioneers stormed to an 87-56 decision before a capacity crowd at Pulaski County High School.
PH lost to eventual state champion George Wythe, 82-54, in last year’s semifinal at Pulaski County as the Maroons hit 13-pointers.
Fort Chiswell connected for 15 3-pointers on 27 attempts against the PH zone on Friday, with most of those makes coming from the corner.
“It’s hard to handle that kind of shooting,” Selfe said. “We stick to our system, and Fort Chiswell just exploited their openings.”
Behind 10 3-pointers and 24 points from 6-4 sophomore scoring machine Owen Jackson, the Pioneers crafted a 51-25 halftime advantage and cruised from there.
The storyline entering the night involved the star clash between PH senior Cade Caywood and Jackson.
The 6-foot-4 and 235-pound Caywood delivered 15 points and eight rebounds, while the 6-4 and 150-pound Jackson finished with 31 points on a mix of textbook jumpers, transition finishes and acrobatic drives.
“When we start to get hot, we just let it fly and we all shot it well tonight,” Jackson said.
With junior Eli Eversole and senior Seth Petrunyak playing physical defense against Caywood, the Rebels (24-4) never looked comfortable on offense.
“I don’t know if it’s this gym, but we can’t seem to get the cap off the rim here,” Selfe said. “Fort Chiswell didn’t do anything different on defense. We just couldn’t get anything to go down. It was one of those unfortunate nights.”
Six-foot junior guard Jeb Stewart paced PH with 17 points. Six-foot junior guard Kolby Hicks added 10 points, while 6-2 senior Aidan Monahan collected eight points, nine rebounds and four steals.
“Fort Chiswell shoots great and does a lot of good stuff,” Caywood said. “We struggled with the ball pressure, but we’re just a bunch of kids at the end of the day trying to have fun. I will have great memories from the past three years that I will treasure for the rest of my life.”
Six-foot sophomore guard Ty Crockett set the torrid tone for the Pioneers with six 3-pointers
“We knew that (PH) didn’t close out on the zone and we took advantage of it,” Crockett said. “I felt good after my first shot went down.”
Four of those makes for Crockett came in the first quarter as FC opened a 23-11 lead. The Pioneers kept applying pressure in the second half and led 68-43 entering the fourth quarter.
“We wanted to play a fast pace and make (Patrick Henry) run since they only go six-deep,” Fort Chiswell coach Derrick Jackson said.
When is the last time PH has endured such a shooting barrage?
“George Wythe did the same thing to us here last year in the same game,” Caywood said.
Senior guard Landon Eversole added four 3-pointers and 16 points for FC, while fearless point Kenton Sutphin added 11.
“We have an awesome group,” Coach Jackson said. “I’ve watched these guys since the second grade and it’s been fun watching them grow as athletes.”
Fort Chiswell (24-5) will face Luray (23-6) in Friday’s state finals at Virginia Commonwealth University.
The most recent visit to the state semifinals for Fort Chiswell came in 2012, while the last championship game berth was back in 1975.
“We’re a small community and it means a lot to have the fan support we have,” Coach Jackson said. “We played a tough schedule and that helped get us ready for this point in the season.
“The guys have really bought into their roles, and the season just gets better every day.”
Selfe stopped to reflect before meeting his adoring fans after the emotional setback. Many of those supporters arrived over two hours before the opening tip.
“We went 50-8 the last two years,” Selfe said. “From where this program was to where it is now, I feel like I gave everything I could.
“I remember the days when people would watch our girls team play and then leave before the second game. The outpouring of support and love we had tonight shows just how much these boys changed the culture of Patrick Henry basketball.”
PATRICK HENRY (56) - Street 1 0-0 3, Stewart 6 4-7 17, Hicks 3 2-2 10, Monahan 3 2-4 8, Barfield 0 3-4 3, Caywood 5 5-6 15, Cannon 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 16-23 56.
FORT CHISWELL (87) - Sutphin 3 4-4 11, Jackson 12 4-7 31, Armbrister 3 0-0 7, Crockett 6 0-0 18, Cirba 2 0-0 4, Brown 0 0-0 0, L. Eversole 6 0-0 16, Petrunyak 0 0-0 0, Ayers 0 0-0 0, Sark 0 0-0 0, McPherson 0 0-0 0, E. Eversole 0 0-2 0. Totals 32 8-13 87.
Patrick Henry 11 14 18 13-56
Fort Chiswell 23 28 17 19-87
3-point goals – PH 4 (Hicks 2, Street, Stewart), FC 15 (Crockett 6, L. Eversole 4, Jackson 3, Suphin, Armbrister). Total fouls – PH 14, FC 20. Fouled out – none
agregory@bristolnews.com | Twitter: @Greg_BHCSports | (276) 645-2544
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Fort Chiswell celebrates its win over Patrick Henry-Glade Spring in the VHSL Class 1 state semifinals Friday at Pulaski County High School in Dublin.
