Boys Basketball: Panthers Drag Another Title Back to the Pit

Mickey Wagenhoffer and Matt Hoover played big roles in the Panthers win Saturday

South Riding (Feb. 23, 2010) - Here is all you need to know about Potomac Falls High School boys basketball: Jeff Hawes is the only coach the school has ever had. And just about every year the Panthers collect some sort of regular season or tournament title.

Now last year, Potomac Falls didn't get either a regular season or district tournament title, but don't fret PFalls faithful as Hawes and the Panthers more than made up for it this season with a 69-58 victory over Broad Run Saturday night in the Dulles District tournament finals at Freedom High School.

After the game the Panthers (18-2) collected both the regular season and tournament titles to increase their haul to nine total titles for the school in boys basketball (five regular season, four tournament) since opening in 1997.

Even more impressively than the win over the Spartans (19-3) and the clinching of a No. 1 seed in the Region II Division 4 tournament which starts Tuesday with Broad Run as the No. 5 seed on the road at No. 4 Fauquier, was the fact that PF did with a starting line-up void of seniors.

Teams have to wonder ... if you don't catch Potomac Falls this year ... what's going to happen next year.

Junior Lukas Mihailovich started slow without any first quarter points but finished with a team-high 21 points and junior Brendon Chesson scored 19. The deep Panthers also had great games from  junior Mickey Waggenhoffer, who had six in the first quarter, and junior Matt Hoover, six first half, off the bench early. Waggenhoffer, Hoover and lanky sophomore center Greg Graves (10 points) were all part of a PF front line that blocks and changes up every shot near the paint.

Broad Run got 21 from Kevin McGaughey but 10 of that came late after PF already established a healthy lead. Taylor Johnson scored 18 for BR but the Spartans lacked the depth of the Panthers.

They may have to find that depth rather quickly as a win Tuesday pits Broad Run into the Panther Pit Thursday night as they would have to play at Potomac Falls.