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The curtain closed on the Rockbridge County High School boys basketball season with a 55-49 road loss to Valley District rival William Monroe on Tuesday of last week in Stanardsville.
It was the end of a rebuilding season for the Wildcats (3-20 overall, 3-9 district), whose season was characterized by singledigit losses. William Monroe (14-8, 5-7), which had beaten RC 62-44 on Jan. 12 in Lexington, again looked to its leader, Brady Lam, to fuel the offense.
Lam, who scored 35 points in the teams’ January meeting, erupted for 31 points in the rematch.
The game was close most of the way, though the Dragons led throughout the night. WM was ahead 15-12 after the first quarter and took a 29-18 lead into halftime. “We played well in the first half,” said RC head coach Rob Winfield. “We just couldn’t make a shot.”
In the second half, the Wildcats started hitting more shots, and they cut the lead to two points in the fourth quarter, but the Dragons fended them off and held on for the win. “We couldn’t make one more play,” said Winfield, concluding his third year as RC’s head coach.
Henry Lambert led the Wildcats with 20 points, scoring 15 points and making all four of his 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. Milo Mulitalo scored 12 points for RC, while Noah Hamm added six points on two 3-pointers, and Luke Eversole chipped in five points, making one 3-pointer. Hitting one triple each for the Wildcats were Zane Ramsey and Sam Ballstaedt.
Other than Lam, the Dragons’ leaders were Parker Hildebrand with 12 points and Tyson Fowler with four.
The Wildcats made seven 3-pointers while holding WM to one.
Coming up short in a close game was nothing new to the Wildcats, who had 12 games decided by 10 points or less this season. They managed to win three of those games, all against district rivals, beating East Rockingham 79-75 on Dec. 15 and overcoming Turner Ashby twice – most recently a 67-66 overtime win in the Wildcats’ last home game on senior night Feb. 2.
Commenting on the close losses, Winfield said, “We were right there. Last year, we won those.”
Last winter, the Wildcats went 11-11 and 5-3 in the district, overcoming an 0-7 start and winning 11 of their last 15 games, just missing the playoffs.
The Wildcats will miss their five seniors: Lambert, Mulitalo, Simon Emore, Ian Johnson and Jackson White.
Lambert and Mulitalo were leaders for RC throughout the season, both consistently scoring in double figures with Mulitalo leading the team in rebounds. “They both had really good years,” said Winfield.
With their younger returning players, the Wildcats will have to play a little bit differently and do things differently in practice, said Wingfield. “Obviously, losing the kids you’ve got, that’s a lot of points,” he added.
Among the players expected to lead next year are juniors Ramsey, Eversole, Hamm and Ballstaedt, as well as freshman Bradi Ziegler, who moved up from the junior varsity team in mid-January and proved himself to be a strong outside shooter.
Reflecting on the efforts of his seniors, Winfield said, “You always want more for the seniors. … I appreciate those guys battling all year.”
