By Jeanne Sager
JEFFERSONVILLE — Even playing on neutral territory far from home couldn’t stop the Statesmen Tuesday night.
The boys from John A. Coleman (9-11) overtook the Roscoe Blue Devils (10-11) in a Section IX Class D quarterfinal game in Jeffersonville, 63-50.
The Statesmen were able to carry their early 5-0 lead early in the first period throughout the game, never letting Roscoe catch up.
The visitors maintained a hefty lead through the second period, ending the half up by 11 points.
The Blue Devils showed their horns in the third quarter, charging back from the locker room and quickly closing the gap to just seven points by the end of those eight minutes of action.
Dave Eggleton contributed six points during the quarter which, along with four points from Tim Haas, helped the Blue Devils make a comeback. Eggleton finished the game with 15 points, a team-best total that was matched by teammate Brian Bury.
“I thought we made a good comeback,” said Roscoe Coach Fred Ahart. “We pulled it up to within four points at one point.”
But the Statesmen quickly regained their momentum, leaving the Blue Devils with a 17-point deficit on the board.
“When you have to come back from that far behind, you use up so much of your energy,” Ahart explained.
Coleman was able to maintain their cool through the end of the fourth period as Michael Pittner, Dave Matturo and Corey Chambers sank a total of eight free throws to ensure their victory.
“Hitting those foul shots, that was the big thing,” said Coleman Coach Corey Chambers.
The eight points racked up by his players from the foul line were a boost, even though they were already ahead, Chambers noted.
But he also gave credit to the Roscoe team for their ability to come back when they were down so far.
“They just never gave up,” he said. “They’re a good team.”
Ahart congratulated his players on a good season, especially his two seniors – Keith Buck and Bury.
Brian Ballard also contributed eight points for the Blue Devils.
Ahart added his congratulations to the Coleman team.
“They did a good job building an opening lead and weathering our comeback,” he noted.
Michael Pittner led the Coleman offense with 15 points. David Matturo and Corey Chambers each posted 13 on the board, and Dan and Sean Cunningham each had eight.