Members of the Westfield boys’ basketball team celebrated with fans Monday night after winning the program’s first conference/district title since 2008.
While those associated with Westfield enjoyed the moment, the Bulldogs have their sights set on much more.
Westfield defeated Herndon 66-54 in the Conference 5 championship game Feb. 23 at Chantilly High School. The Bulldogs led the entire second half after briefly trailing in the second quarter.
“It feels real good,” Westfield guard Blake Francis said. “It’s good for our school, our program because we haven’t won it in quite a while. It’s good to win this and bring it back to the school.”
The victory improved Westfield’s record to 22-1 and extended its win streak to 20 games. The Bulldogs haven’t lost since falling to Lake Braddock, 65-52, on Dec. 9. While the win was sweet, the Bulldogs are focused on greater accomplishments. Next up would be winning the program’s first region title since 2012.
“It’s a good start,” Conference 5 Player of the Year Tyler Scanlon said. “Hopefully we’ll [win even] more this year.”
Westfield jumped out to a 12-2 lead, but Herndon came roaring back, tying the score at 12 at the end of the first quarter and taking a 24-20 lead midway through the second.
“Herndon punched us dead in the face, that’s what they did, to be honest with you,” said Westfield head coach Doug Ewell, the Conference 5 Coach of the Year. “They punched us dead in the face and we just had to settle down. ... The key for us is always getting [defensive] stops.”
The Bulldogs settled down, and took the lead for good when Michael Scruggs buried a 3-pointer with less than 2 minutes remaining in the opening half.
Francis sent Westfield to the locker room with momentum, burying a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer, giving the Bulldogs a 31-25 lead.
“I think it [had] a big impact because that put the lead up to six,” Francis said. “We came out of halftime with a pretty decent lead, so that put us over the hump a little bit.”
Francis finished with a game-high 20 points and Scanlon finished with 17.
Scruggs scored 10 points, Zach Sheahan finished with eight and Patrick Lawless added seven.
Francis received first-team all-conference honors, and senior guard Jacob Williams was named to the second team.
Francis and Lawless were members of the first-team all-conference defense.
“It’s just weight off your shoulders,” Ewell said about winning the conference. “We’re a pretty good basketball team and this was something they wanted to do before the season started.”
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