The Warriors returned to action Tuesday night in a frenzied Warrior Dome to meet local rival St. Francis High School. This intense back-and-forth game got off to a quick start for the Spartans as #4 Prociuk scored 9 points in the first quarter to give St. Francis a slim 13-10 lead. The Warriors continued to fight back though, bolstered by a pair of three pointers from
Gordon Behr and Will Burdett. St. Francis led by four points, 29-25 at the half. WA had 9 turnovers at the half compared to St. Francis' 6, but outrebounded the Spartans 13-11.Â
Wheaton Academy surged in the third quarter, led by the outstanding point guard play of
Bryce Sandberg who had 6 assists on the night and 5 points for the game, including a three-pointer and a two point field goal at critical points in the third quarter.
Chandler Fuzak made some noise in the post, netting 7 points in the third quarter to lead the team to outscore St. Francis 19-8 in the quarter and position Wheaton Academy with the biggest lead in the game, a 7-point, 44-37 lead heading into the fourth quarter.Â
St. Francis was not done though. The Spartans battled back to tie the game and at one point take the lead down the stretch. A crucial drive and jump shot in traffic by
Josh Ruggles and the free throw shooting of
Christian Smith (5-for-6) in the fourth quarter propelled the Warriors to an eventual 59-55 win.Â
Gordon Behr had a strong showing for the Warriors leading the team with 14 points and 9 rebounds, while the other big man,
Chandler Fuzak contributed 13 points, going 6-for-8 from the field and grabbing 6 boards.Â
The Warriors improve to 5-2 on the season and have the privilege of returning the frinedly confines of the Warrior Dome on Saturday night in a conference matchup against Aurora Central Catholic at 7:30 PM.Â
Boxscore (PDF)
Pictures from this game (Daily Herald)Â
