Waynesboro trounces Brookville, now must face Leemen to return to states

Waynesboro overcame a sluggish start to clobber Brookville 60-36 in the first round of the Region III, Division 3 tournament, setting up a highly-anticipated battle for a state berth with archrival R.E. Lee tonight.

The visiting Bees jumped out to an unexpected 12-8 lead in the first quarter, but a Stowe Graham 3-pointer followed by a Shy Washington steal and ensuing layup in the final minute put the Little Giants ahead 13-12 and kick-started an 11-0 run that would carry over into the second quarter.

“They went out to a little press and it kind of snowballed on us,” Brookville head coach Scott Jester said. “All of a sudden, one turnover turns into three turnovers and two points turns into six points.”

By the time the Bees scored again, it was 3:05 into the second and it was also their only points of the quarter – a trey from freshman Ben Hogg.

The Giants closed the first half on a 10-0 spurt and led by 14 at the break, 29-15.

Shy Washington came up big in the third, scoring eight of his 12 points and coming up with numerous Brookville turnovers. A Skylar Phillips 3 was the final play of the quarter, as Waynesboro doubled up the score, 52-26, heading into the final frame.

“We wanted to come out and end the game in the third quarter, so we did a pretty good job of that,” Waynesboro head coach C. Jay DeWitt said.

DeWitt pulled his starters in the fourth, as the Giants cruised the rest of the way.

Graves ended up with a team-high 17 points for Waynesboro, while Washington and Phillips also joined the double-digits club with 12 and 11, respectively.

Brookville’s Hogg led all scorers with 20 points. Despite the early exit, Jester is optimistic about the future of a team that currently has five juniors, four sophomores and a freshman who scored more points than any player on the Bees’ senior-laden opponent.

“It was a major goal for us at the beginning of the season to make it to regionals,” Jester said. “We’re very young, so we’re looking at this as the first step up the mountain. So next year, we’re going to build on it and hopefully win a couple games in regionals.”

As for the Giants, they will now meet R.E. Lee for the fourth time this season and hope to snap a two-game skid to the Leemen. The winner will clinch a spot in the Group AA, Division 3 state tournament, while the season will end for the loser.

The matchup will be played at Brookville High School and tips off at 8 p.m.

“We’re looking forward to the matchup tomorrow night,” DeWitt said after Tuesday’s game. “We got what we wanted and now it’s a matter of taking care of business.”