WILLIAMSON, WV - In a night that saw emotions running high and past glories remembered, the Williamson Wolfpack boys basketball team saved both their worst and best performances of the season for this season’s final regular season game at the Williamson Fieldhouse. In what proved to be an offensive showcase for both teams, the visiting Tolsia Rebels got a 55 to 41 victory over the ‘Pack. But the margin of victory in no way told the story of this game’s back and forth flurry’s of offense.

With both teams being reminiscent of heavyweight fighters giving each other their best punches only to find their opponent still standing, both teams posted their best offensive periods of the season. And much like a heavyweight fight, the game ended with time on the clock as the clock malfunctioned with a reading of 7.8 seconds remaining and the officials declared the game over.

The evening started out with the school honoring it’s senior winter sport senior athletes and the parents of all their winter sport athletes.

Also, members of the 1988 and 1989 Back to Back West Virginia Class AA State Champion Wolfpack teams were milling in and reminiscing with long-time Wolfpack fans and each other about the twentieth and twenty-first anniversaries of those championship victories.

Then the game got under way in a big way with the current version of the Wolfpack jumping out to a quick 6 - 0 lead over their Wayne County opponents led fittingly by seniors Alex Anderson, Michael Davidson and Jace Branch who all started on this senior night. Anderson and Davidson each hit with quick jumpers to help put the ‘Pack up early.

But then Tolsia’s Austin Richardson got hot and hit three consecutive three pointers and four total three-pointers in the quarter to lead the Rebels to a 16 to 9 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter proved ultimately to be the deciding quarter in this contest when Williamson experienced it’s worst offensive quarter of the season by not scoring a single point in the frame. Tolsia capitalized on the Wolfpack power outage by netting 16 points in the period with Derek Robertson, Virgil Salmons, Jon Jon Salmons and Dustin Cyrus each scoring four points in the frame. That sent the Rebels into halftime leading 32 to 9.

Most probably expected nothing more from the ‘Pack after that atrocious scoring lapse. But at halftime, members of the ‘88 and ‘89 Wolfpack State Championship teams were honored. And whether it was the motivation of seeing those championship members there, a stirring halftime speech by Coach Curt Fletcher or simply Wolfpack pride taking over, the Wolfpack came out and made a statement about themselves by having their most productive offensive half of the season.

The Pack outscored the Rebels 15 to 7 in the third period cutting the Rebel lead from 21 to 15 points. Led by Chris Hatcher, Alex Anderson and Bobby Hurley, the Pack proved unstoppable by the Rebel defense in the period.

Then in the fourth period, Williamson outscored the Rebels 17 to 16, cutting the lead at one point to 5 points. But the story of the fourth quarter was the fact that Tolsia scored all 16 of it’s fourth quarter points from the charity stripe, hitting on 16 or 24 opportunities. That made the difference as Tolsia used their foul shots to stretch the lead and sail to a 55 to 41 win.

Coach Fletcher was pleased with his team’s performance overall. “The second quarter we just didn’t get it done. But we told them at halftime to come out and show what they could do. And we were very impressed with our second half. “ the veteran coach said. “We hope we’re peaking just in time for sectionals.”

The Wolfpack begin sectional play tournament play Friday night against Gilbert at the Williamson Fieldhouse. Williamson High is the host school for this year’s Region 4, Class 2 tournament.

Scoring by quarters:

Tolsia 16 16 7 16 - 55

Williamson 9 0 15 17 - 41

Scoring by team:

Tolsia: Austin Richardson 16, Virgi Salmons 12. Derek Robertson 8, Jon Jon Salmons 7, Dustin Cyrus 4, Jacob Copley 3, Brandon Maynard 3.

Williamson: Chris Hatcher 13, Alex Anderson 7, Bobby Hurley 7, Michael Davidson 5, Nick Lee 4, Nick Turner 3, Chuckie White 2.