Basketball: For Pete's Sake! Potomac Falls Boys Repeats State Title as Simoneau Hits Game-Winner with 5 Seconds Left; Loudoun County Girls Fall to Liberty

Richmond (Mar. 13, 2011) - Spending most of the night on the sidelines, it was fitting perhaps that Potomac Falls High School senior Pete Simoneau was knocked back into the Panther bench as he launched his game-winning 3-point shot with five seconds left in the VHSL Division 4 boys basketball title game Saturday night.

"Once I let go of it, I knew it was going to go in," said Simoneau of the clutch shot that lifted the Panthers to a stunning 58-55 victory before a large Potomac Falls crowd that had made the trip to VCU's Siegel Center.

The 5-foot-6 super substitute Simoneau ended up with the role of a lifetime when he replaced injured Panther star Lukas Mihailovich with 2:58 left in the contest and while he -- along with the rest of the Panther deep bench -- was held scoreless to the that point, Simoneau made his five points count. They were the Panthers final five points in a magical 30-1 season , including a pair of free throws with 27 seconds left to give Potomac Falls a 3-point cushion that evaporated quickly when Hidden Valley's Taylor Walker hit a 3-pointer with 20 seconds to play.

"My heart was tested to the limit," said Potomac Falls coach Jeff Hawes after his team clinched a second straight state title -- the only two boys basketball state titles in Loudoun high school sports history. Simoneau's shot touched off a wild celebration of Panther players, coaches and fans and capped a two-year run of a 10-member senior class that saw the team lose just three contests.

"It was really a fitting ending ... it shows what a real team we are," said Mihailovich who finished with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds, despite missing half the final quarter with an ankle injury.

6-foot-7 Panther junior Greg Graves may have struggled on the offensive end, shooting 1 of 8, but he was a force inside all night and almost came away with a triple-double -- scoring 12 points with 18 rebounds and six blocks. 

"I had his back," said Graves of his reaction when Mihailovich first went out injured with 4:16 to go. The all-state senior tried to return with 3:16 to go but left 20 seconds later after hobbling badly on the ankle.

Graves took over down the stretch, completing a three-point play on a basket inside with 2:50 left, making a free throw with 2:27 to go and then sinking two pressure free throws with 1:31 play after the Titans had come all the way back from a one-time, 10-point deficit to take a 52-51 lead with 1:46 to go.

The two foul shots by Graves was followed by a key defensive possession where Panther senior Zack Curran knocked a ball in the paint loose and senior Mickey Wagenhoffer recovered it. After the Panthers dribbled away nearly 30 seconds off the clock, the Titans were forced to foul and Simoneau went to the line to shoot two, making both to set up the wild final 20 seconds.

On the game-winning shot, Simoneau came off a screen by Wagenhoffer near the 3-point line and stepped several feet behind the arc, hitting a fadeaway shot over the out-stretched arms of a Hidden Valley defender.

Brendon Chesson scored 10 for Potomac Falls which shot just 37 percent in the game (17 of 46) but the taller Panthers, thanks in large part to Graves, out-rebounded Hidden Valley, 41-27. The Panthers picked up 20 offensive boards with Graves pulling down nine.

"That kid made a great shot," said Hidden Valley coach Troy Wells. "I told him after the game, 'young man, you will remember that shot the rest of your life'."

Liberty 68, Loudoun County 55

The Loudoun County High School girls basketball team could not clinch a second state title in three seasons as Liberty, a team that fell to the Raiders by 16 points in the Region II title game two weeks earlier, turned the tables and beat the Raiders by 13 Saturday night.

JMU-recruit Jazmon Gwathmey was the difference maker as she was held to four points in the loss at Liberty but on Saturday she broke loose for 26 points and eight rebounds.

The Raiders lone senior, Brittany Batts, the school's all-time leading scorer, who had 31 in the regional title win, finished with a team-high 19 but she was bottled up most of the night by the tall and physical Eagle defense. Erica Linnemann, the hero in Wednesday's semifinals with a buzzer beater, scored 14.

Liberty pounded the Raiders on the boards, out-rebounding County, 49-30 with Ashley Lindsay grabbing 16 and Brianne Croushorn 13.

"They were playing a rough game and we couldn't finish around the basket," said Batts.

Batts finished with more than 2,000 points in her brilliant career.

"I love being a Raider ..." said Batts before breaking down in tears in the postgame press conference.