Wilson Hall basketball splits with Trinity Collegiate to open region

Wilson Hall hosted Trinity Collegiate for its region opener on Friday. The results were split, with the Barons coming out victorious 65-41 and the Lady Barons suffering a 65-31 defeat.

BARONS SNAP STREAK, WIN REGION OPENER

The Wilson Hall boys were able to get things back on track with a 65-41 win over the Titans. It's a win that head coach Rip Ripley is hoping will string together a period of success in the coming weeks.

"We've had a tough couple of weeks," Ripley said. "We've played some good competition and taken some losses. Trinity is a team that's had our number the last few years, and I think it was exciting to see the way they came out and wanted to play. We played with great energy. We were getting a little down. On Wednesday, we lost to Hammond. District 9 was great competition, but it was still tough not getting a win, so I think that being able to come out here and get a win tonight in the first game of region play is really, really big.

"I'm excited. We've got a long way to go, and hopefully we continue to grow."

It was a big opening quarter for the Barons, who jumped out to an 11-4 lead early before leading 17-9 at the end of the first. From there, Wilson Hall couldn't get caught and at one point led by 14 before taking a 33-22 lead into halftime.

The Barons outscored the Eagles 16-13 to lead 49-35 after three quarters. The rout continued in the fourth, with Wilson Hall going up by as many as 27 before the final horn sounded.

The Barons had four players score in double figures. Hugh Humphries and Shawn Michael Matthews had 12 points, and Jerry Brown had 14 points. It was a big night for Daniel Burton, who finished with a team-high 17 points. Burton was also a force on the glass, getting multiple rebounds and blocks.

"Daniel Burton is a kid that we challenged in film a little bit," Ripley said. "Daggum if he didn't respond like a maniac. He had a heck of a game. I'm so proud of him. All the way across the board, we played a great team game."

LADY BARONS CAN'T KEEP UP

After getting out to a slow start, the Lady Barons weren't able to close the deficit against the Lady Titans, losing 65-31.

Wilson Hall trailed 31-19 at the end of the first half. The Lady Barons were outscored 20-5 in the third quarter, and that all but sealed things.

Marybeth Van Patten led the Lady Barons with nine, while Aubrey Payne added eight.

Despite the game being a lopsided defeat, head coach Glen Rector was proud of some of the things he saw from the girls and believes that as long as the girls improve, there's something good to take away from each game.

"We're a basketball team that is making progress," Rector said. "At this point in the season, I like the progress that we're making. We're doing a lot of things better as we've gone through the season. We really struggled with press early in the season, and even though we lost both games Wednesday night and tonight, I felt like the girls did a better job of handling the pressure of the press and passing the ball. We were a little bit more aggressive and took the ball to the basket tonight, which is one thing that we've been talking about.

"With everything that we've been through this year, I feel like the girls are constantly making progress. And our goal every time we walk into the gym is to get better… This is a team that as we go through region play will improve. And then hopefully, by the time we get to the playoffs, will upset a few people as we get there."