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tively. On the defensive end, Godfrey Freeman and Anthony Porter paced the Rappahannock team with five rebounds each. Freeman sunk 10 points as well, while Porter tallied an additional eight.

Coach Leake called that game an example of how the team has matured and gained poise through the season's experience. With the game tied with one minute to go on someone else's home court, “it would have been easy for the guys to fold up their tent and come back to Rappahannock. Instead, the guys used the example of their earlier losses and didn’t make those mistakes.” The result, he said, speaks for itself: a three-point victory at Stonewall.

Looking for the next game

With the Panthers in a tie for second place with Page County in the district standings. Coach Leake sees the team's February schedule as the key to the rest of the season.

“Our goal is the home court advantage in the district playoffs," but the coach said that his strategy for the team is to concentrate solely on the next game to be played. That’s next Tuesday, Feb. 2. at home against Manassas Park. On Friday, Feb. 5, the Panthers again play host to Brentsville in another district match. "Those games will set the tone of our play for the rest of the season."

In February, the Panthers play each of the district’s top three teams one more time. That task also falls to Page County, now tied with Rappahannock for second place behind district-leading Central.

The difference, the coach noted, is that the Panthers have beaten two of those teams once before, while Page County has lost against them. And he’s not taking the competition lightly. "We've got some good teams in the Bull Run District," Coach Leake said. Central is ranked third in the state in the division, while Page County ranks twelfth.

Central towers undefeated above the district with a 9-0 record, which would assure an automatic regional