varsity.roanoke.com

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. -- William Fleming's fleet of athletic guards and 6-foot-7 center Jamelle Hagins proved insurmountable as the Colonels defeated Stafford 51-45 on Tuesday night in a Northwest Region boys basketball tournament quarterfinal.

William Fleming (21-4) plays at Gar-Field in a region semifinal Thursday at a time to be announced.

"We weren't able to get the ball to the basket and draw fouls," Stafford coach Steve Spicer said. "They played such great defense that we just weren't able to get them to foul us."

Darrien Downing scored eight of his 10 second-half points in the third quarter to tie the game at 32-32 after the Indians (17-6) trailed 28-21 halfway through the quarter.

But the Colonels (21-4) began the fourth quarter with seven unanswered points and pulled away. Williams Fleming guard Stephon Anderson had a game-high 17 points, while Aeron Spencer led Stafford with 14.

"Although we're going home, we still did a lot of things that the school hasn't done in years," Downing said. "We can't be mad. We had a great season."

Stafford 41, PH 38

In Marquel Davis' first game after orally committing to Pittsburgh over the weekend, she kept Stafford's season alive by showing exactly why she earned a Division I scholarship.

The senior point guard scored 12 of her game-high 27 points in the fourth quarter to help the Indians overcome an eight-point deficit in the final minutes and beat Patrick Henry 41-38 in a Northwest Region girls tournament quarterfinal.

"I wanted this really bad," Davis said. "I had to step up some way, some how, to pull out this win."

Davis' heroics helped the Indians (23-3) advance to Thursday's semifinal. They will host Stonewall Jackson at 7 p.m.

With Stafford's season hanging in the balance, Davis took the game over by aggressively attacking the box-and-one defense by the Patriots.

Patrick Henry led 34-31 with three minutes to play when Davis scored eight consecutive points. She hit a jumper in the lane, made two free throws, scored an uncontested layup on an inbounds play and made two more foul shots.

"We needed her to take over in the fourth," Stafford coach Julie Hinckley said.

Patriots guard Latoya Flint misfired on a potential game-tying 3-pointer with 15 seconds left, and Davis converted a layup on the opposite end to seal the win.

Davis scored 12 of Stafford's final 14 points

Patrick Henry senior guard Kate Norbo recognized Davis' superb ballhandling ability in the first half and asked coach Toree Dunleavy at halftime if she could guard Davis in a box-and-one. The defensive switch, however, was not effective.

"In the fourth quarter, I don't know," Norbo said. "A couple times, since I was in man, some people weren't playing help-side. If she beat me, then it was like nobody could step in to help. But I wouldn't take it back. I think it was something we needed to do."

Davis became assertive against the box-and-one late in the third quarter. At first, she hung back while her teammates tried to get the ball inside. But at the 2:15 mark, she attacked the basket and scored a layup.

She was practically unstoppable after that.

Davis' layup pulled Stafford to within 25-21 and gave her confidence that she could take control of the game.

Early on, Patrick Henry (17-7) seemed poised to blow Stafford out of its own gym. Guard Sarah Williams (19 points) hit two 3-pointers to give the Patriots a 14-4 first-quarter lead before Stafford started trimming the deficit.

Stafford extended its zone defense to half court in the second half and increased its ball pressure with the help of reserve guard Kiera Johnson.

Patrick Henry had trouble protecting the ball and committed 12 of its 18 turnovers after halftime.

"At first we started to panic a bit, which caused some turnovers where they got some easy points," Norbo said. "We definitely had more trouble when they extended the press. When we started getting into the flow of it again, it was just too late."

WILLIAM FLEMING (21-4)

Tucker 2, Henderson 0, Preston 0, Manning 5, Anderson 17, Andrews 0, Daniels 12, Thomas 6, Hagins 9, Johnson 0, Jones 0. Totals 17 12-19 51.

STAFFORD (17-6)

Jones 4, Grasso 0, Spencer 14, McDougle 2, Wilson 4, Downing 13, Harris 0, Young 6, Johnson 2, Repass 0. Totals 19 2-8 45.

William Fleming 10 12 10 19--51

Stafford 10 7 15 13--45

3-point goals -- William Fleming 5 (Daniels 3, Anderson, Manning), Stafford 5 (Spencer 3, Young 2).

PATRICK HENRY (17-7)

Norbo 8, Preston 0, Buschor 0, Williams 19, Doane 0, Walker 7, Flint 4, Stephens 0. Totals 14 6-14 38.

STAFFORD (23-3)

Johnson 2, Jones 0, Hempe 0, Davis 27, Gray 0, Sullivan 3, Fox 9. Totals 15 11-19 41.

Patrick Henry 14 2 13 9--38

Stafford 6 6 12 17--41

3-point goals -- Patrick Henry 2 (Norbo 2, Williams 2)