FHS boys fall hard in regional final

Published 6:48 am Sunday, March 1, 2009

The Franklin High School boys’ basketball team got a dose of T.T. Carey Saturday night, and boy did it taste bad.

Carey torched Franklin for 42 points to lead Colonial Beach to an 84-57 victory in the Group A Region A Division I championship game at Surry County High School.

By finishing second in the region, Franklin still advances to the the Group A Division I state tournament. The Broncos will meet Altavista, the top-seeded Region B team, at 3:45 p.m. Saturday at Longwood College in Farmville. Altavista is located south of Lynchburg. The Colonels beat Riverheads 41-29 on Saturday in the Region B championship game at Eastern Mennonite University.

Franklin reached Saturday’s Region A championship game by beating Chesterfield Community 66-55 on Friday night. Colonial Beach cruised past Surry County 100-76.

The Drifters dominated the game right from the beginning and led 23-13 at the end of the first quarter and 46-26 at the half. Carey was unstoppable. He drove the lane, stopped and popped short jumpers, and sank long 3-pointers from everywhere on the court.

“We knew coming in he was an exceptional player. He was the regional Player of the Year,” said Danny Dillon, Franklin head coach. “He is one of the best high school ballers that have come through in awhile.”

Dillon said the Broncos had a hard game Friday night, which hurt his team’s chances on Saturday.

“The effort we put in last night to get us to the state took a big toll on us, and Colonial Beach eased through Surry,” Dillon said. “We had to fight for our lives last night. I think that carried over to tonight. We got down early, and it took our legs out from under us.”

Ashley Lee dominated the Franklin offense with 25 points. Lee was effective both inside and out. Denzel Smith added 11 points for the Broncos (18-5).

Donzell Shearin was named to the All-Region A first team, and Dillon was named the Region A Coach of the Year.