A third-place team finish and an all-state individual performer at last May’s Class 1 state golf tournament, following district and sectional championships.
A 3rd place finish in Class 1 boys’ soccer in November, led by five all-state players.
And now, the first boys’ basketball district championship in more than a decade.
Greenwood continues to increase its spot on the proverbial high school athletics map.
Led by senior Julius Walker’s game-high 28 points, Greenwood defeated Fair Play 60-50 in the Class 2 District 10 championship game Saturday night at Skyline High School.
“After the Blue and Gold Tournament, I said I wanted to put Greenwood back on the map. I think we’re starting to do that, with these two district titles (soccer and basketball),” Walker said. “Hopefully we can continue this run.”
PHOTOS: GREENWOOD VS. FAIR PLAY
The Blue Jays last won a district championship in the 2004-05 season, when current coach Darren Taylor was in his second season with the team.
Now in his 14th year as Greenwood’s coach, Taylor has a second district championship to go with the winning standard he’s established at the school. The Blue Jays haven’t had a losing season during his tenure.
“(The players) had a goal starting the year that they’d like to contend for a district title,” Taylor said. “They’ve worked very hard to accomplish that. I’m really happy for the players.”
Greenwood’s play at the start of the first and third quarters made all the difference.
The Blue Jays opened on a 13-0 run, a margin that was whittled down to six (26-20) by halftime. Greenwood started the second half hot as well, leading 37-22 midway through the third quarter after a three-point play by Walker.
“(The 13-0 start) gave us some momentum, but then we lost it going into halftime,” Taylor said. “One of the things I told the players was that it was important to come out and re-establish that momentum. We forced a turnover on their first possession and then ran off about six, eight points in a row.”
Fair Play cut the deficit to nine with five minutes remaining in the game, but the Blue Jays immediately answered by breaking Fair Play’s full-court press and getting a layup from Tony Brandt.
Brandt, who was an all-state golfer last spring and is playing basketball for the first time since his freshman year at Bolivar High School, finished with 15 points. He played the game with a cast on his right hand after suffering an injury in Greenwood’s semifinal victory over Morrisville.
Seniors Camden Welch (21) and Devon Roverstine (12) combined for 33 points to lead Fair Play. The Hornets finish 20-9 overall.
Fair Play left some points on the table, shooting 16-for-27 at the free throw line. Greenwood made 10 of 16 free throw attempts.
Greenwood meets Iberia (20-7 overall) at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Lebanon High School in the Class 2 sectional round. The winner of that game faces either Crane (17-10 overall) or Pierce City (22-7 overall) in Saturday’s Class 2 quarterfinals at Drury.
“I think we’ve created a lot of excitement at our school and it’s been really cool to do that,” Walker said. “It was really cool to go to state in soccer. That’s was a great experience. I’ll never forget that. This was a great experience tonight and hopefully we can replicate what we did in soccer.”
Fair Play 6 14 6 24 — 50
Greenwood 18 8 16 18 — 60
Fair Play – Camden Welch 21, Devon Roverstine 12, Kohner Thomas 6, Ryan Rutledge 5, Justin Smith 4, Logan Underwood 2
Greenwood – Julius Walker 28, Tony Brandt 15, Wesley Bergen 11, Joseph Brock 6
