Blue Ridge falls at final hurdle

PETERSBURG — Fresh off an emotional victory over rival and top-seeded Benedictine in the VIS Division I semifinals, Blue Ridge was never able to get into its groove against a talented Paul VI team on Saturday in the championship game.

The Panthers took advantage, and rode the strength of a second-quarter run to the 61-47 win, the school’s first title.

“We talked all year about trying to do something that’s never been done in school history. We’ve been talking about [a state championship], and I’m so proud of these kids — they’ve stayed positive all year and they did a fantastic job,” said second-year Paul VI coach Glenn Farello. “I thought the kids did a nice job of once we got the lead to sustain it. We didn’t let up and we played the full 32 minutes and we had to, because they’re a fantastic team. We’re very fortunate to get that spurt in the second quarter to get us some breathing room.”

Blue Ridge led briefly, with a slim 6-4 advantage heading into the second quarter.

But Paul VI went on a tear in the frame, using a 16-3 spurt to essentially put the game out of reach.

“We just got down too far against a team that was pretty good at ball-handling to come back,” Blue Ridge coach Bill Ramsey said. “We struggled getting our emotions and energy back from the night before and it seemed like it took until it was too late for us to dig down deep and play.”

During that second-quarter stretch, Paul VI got key baskets from Erick Green, Dominick Sanders, Raven Barber and Eugene McCrory. The Panthers were able to penetrate inside, and used a well-balanced attack to maintain the lead.

The Panthers extended the lead to as many as 20 in the fourth quarter. The Barons bounced back to cut it to 10, but could not get any closer.

Paul VI let its defense do the rest. The Panthers dominated the boards on both ends and contained Denzel Wilson, the Barons’ floor leader, for most of the game. Wilson finished with seven points, while Darnell Turner paced Blue Ridge with 15. The pair, along with teammate A.J. Williams, were selected to the all-tournament team.

Green, who was named the tournament MVP, led all scorers with 23 points. McCrory and Deon Jones added 10 points apiece.