The Virginia Peninsula Community College men’s basketball team lost a heartbreaker to Sandhills Community College in the Region 10 tournament final Feb. 23. Despite the 87-85 overtime loss, the Gators (14-9) advanced to next weekend’s Mid-Atlantic District tournament at Sandhills. The winner of that four-team event advances to the NJCAA national tournament in Herkimer, N.Y., on March 12-15.
Sunday’s game at Patrick & Henry Community College in Martinsville was the third time the third-seeded Gators and top-seeded Flyers met this season with each winning on the other’s home court.
The Gators were up by six with a little more than a minute to go in regulation but couldn’t hang on. After the Flyers hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 76 with nine seconds left, the Gators had a chance for the win, but missed an open look.
In the overtime, the Gators had a lead with less than a minute but again couldn’t close it out. The Gators had a chance to win it but missed a last-second 3-pointer.
“A tough one,” Gators coach Chris Moore said. “It was a hard-fought game. We did everything we were supposed to to put ourselves in position to win. We just have to close it out.”
The Gators advanced to the final with a semifinal win Feb. 22 over second-seeded Patrick & Henry. Keshaun Johnson (Nansemond River High School/Suffolk) had 28 points and 15 rebounds against the Patriots to avenge two regular-season losses.
“We got good minutes from everybody,” Moore said of Saturday’s win.
In the Mid-Atlantic District tournament, the Gators will play Owens Community College (14-15) from Ohio on Saturday, and Sandhills (26-5) will face Pennsylvania Highlands Community College (16-15). The winners advance to Sunday’s championship game.
Despite not coming away with a region championship, Moore was pleased with his team’s performance.
“We played well. We stayed together,” he said. “I thought we played really, really hard. The guys really wanted it. It hurt of course.”
Last year, the Gators’ first in the NJCAA, they lost in the first round of the Region 10 tournament, not even making the semifinals.
“We made it to the championship (this year), which was much better so we’re making progress,” he said. “We not only made it to the championship, but we’ve got a chance to play in March.”
Baseball
The only games for the Gators last week were a doubleheader at Bryant & Stratton on Feb. 17. Unfortunately, the Gators lost both, 3-2 and 23-3.
In the opener, the Bobcats scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning on a bases-loaded hit by pitch. Jayden Alvarez (Woodside High School/Newport News) had two hits to lead the Gators’ offense. Garrett Hudson (Robinson/Tampa, Fla.) drove in a run in the top of the first on a bases-loaded walk for a short-lived lead. The Bobcats scored single runs in the first and fifth for a 2-1 lead. Brendan Walker (Lancaster High School) tied the game for the Gators with an RBI single in the top of the sixth. Zack Easton (Hermitage/Richmond) started on the mound for the Gators, going eight innings and giving up two runs (one earned), five hits and striking out 10. He was not involved in the decision.
The second game was shortened to five innings because of the mercy rule. The Gators led 3-0 after their first at-bat. Kaden Hunley (Middlesex) and Marco Fernandez (Spanish River HS/Boca Raton, Florida) had run-scoring singles, and the other run scored on an error. The Bobcats responded with three runs in the first, then put away the game with 12 in the second and seven in the third.
The Gators return to action Tuesday at War Memorial Stadium against The Apprentice School. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.