Jays Win Sectional
WINAMAC – North Judson will host the Class 2A Regional next Saturday, and as expected, they will playing in it.
It wasn’t easy getting by physical Winamac to win the sectional, just as in their two regular seasons meetings, the Warriors made a game of it.
North Judson, relying on a suffocating full court defense, beat the Warriors for the third time, pulling away in the final minutes for a 64-53 win.
The Bluejays are a multi-faceted offense, with a lot of weapons, but it was their defense that bought them this championship.
The Jays jumped out to an early lead, going into the second quarter with a 19-7 advantage, mostly behind juniors Winston Yergler and Kendall Hochstedler. Yergler had six of his game-high 23 points in the first eight minutes, along with three rebounds. Hochstedler drilled two three-pointers and had three steals in the first quarter.
Winamac fought back. Two minutes into the third quarter, the Warriors took the lead for the first and only time, at 33-31. They upped the margin to four, before Yergler tied the game at 35-35, and an Andrew Frasure steal and free throw got Judson the lead back for good, with two minutes left in the third quarter.
Frasure fed John Eckert inside and the Bluejays were up by three, and Winamac would never get closer for the rest of the game.
“I thought we changed the complexion of the game with a total pressure defense,” said North Judson coach Ryan Bales. “Andrew Frasure willed us to win, he played like a senior tonight.
“Kendall’s threes (he finished with 14 points) got us going early, and his, Winston and Andrew’s defense got us where we needed (to a good lead). Hochstedler’s defense on (Zach) Shidler was a big key.
“John (Eckert) worked hard inside, he got (their big men) in foul trouble. His attacking the rim, and his mentality on offense carried over to his defense.”
Eckert pulled away 12 rebounds, he scored 12 points, and was big in the fourth quarter as Judson held Winamac to just one basket until it was too late for a Warrior comeback.
“We knew we had to get John more involved in the offense,” said Frasure, who scored 12 points himself. “We had a couple plays set up especially for him.
Eckert has worked especially hard year in building up his endurance against the physical inside play of teams like Winamac.
“It was kind of rough in there, but I just kept going after the ball,” Eckert said of his stellar inside play.
Dustin Knapp had three assists. “Knapp went in there (at times) when we needed a lift, and while he was in there, we were able to build on our lead.
The Bluejays take a 22-1 record into the regional.
“It’ll be great to be at home,” said Yergler.