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By LOU HATTER
Rappahannock Newt Staff Writer
BROADWAY — “The season that could have been” was the epitaph pronounced by a disappointed Coach Gary Leake following Rappahannock’s quarter-final loss to Strasburg Monday night.
The Rams eliminated the Panthers in the Bull Run District Tournament’s opening round, ending the team’s hopes of a berth in the regional tournament.
The game mirrored the team’s roller-coaster season, as the Panthers allowed the Rams to dominate the court for most of the game before staging a comeback in the fourth quarter that proved too little, too late.
Early foul trouble forced Coach Leake to go to his bench, but the Rams also capitalized to numerous Panther miscues to open a lead that proved impossible for Rappahannock to overcome.
The Rams never relenquished an early first quarter lead, as the Panthers seemed to play without the enthusiasm that had marked their season-ending drubbing of Stonewall Jackson on Feb. 19.
Following two regular season losses to Strasburg by close scores, Coach Leake said last week he had hopes that the Panthers’ late season upswing would position the team on an emotional high for the district tournament. But the six-day layoff apparently took the edge off the team instead, as Rappahannock struggled to come up with a consistent offense through much of Monday night’s game.
The Rams leapt out to an early lead on the shooting of Robert Cameron, who hit 12 points of his 24 points in the first quarter, ending the frame with a 20-15 lead after Bobby Jenkins surrendered one point on a technical foul for hanging on the basket after a missed dunk attempt.
The second quarter proved little better for Rappahannock, as the Rams consistently outshot and outrebounded the Panthers to stretch the lead to 35-26 at halftime. At the half, the Panthers were shooting only 36 percent from the floor.
The Panthers picked up the tempo of the game in the second half, but the Rams capitalized on their poor shooting percentage from the floor to build the lead to as much as 19 points, 51-32, with less than two minutes left in the quarter. The Panthers picked up six points in the quarter’s last moments, including free throws by Roger Brown and Jason Butler, to.end the third trailing 53-38.
In the fourth, Coach Leake exhorted his team to pull together, reminding them that earlier in the season Stonewall Jackson scored 33 points in one quarter.
But although the Panthers struggled to make up the margin, hitting eight straight points to narrow the margin to 53-46, Cameron’s return to the court marked the beginning of the end for Rappahannock.
Zach Allen, who came off the bench to contribute 10 points and nine rebounds for the night, brought
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