Washington got a scare during its first boys basketball meeting this season against Ft. Zumwalt East.
There were no issues the second time around.
The Blue Jays (14-7, 3-2) snapped a three-game losing streak with a 65-41 victory Friday at Ft. Zumwalt East High School.
“The first time we played them, we didn’t have that sense of urgency and just went through the motions,” said Washington Head Coach Chip Sodemann. “This time, we played with purpose and with a sense of urgency. We were ready to go from the opening tip.”
Washington senior guard Luke Schroepfer reached 1,000 career points during the game.
“It’s a nice individual honor for Luke,” said Sodemann, who also scored over 1,000 career points at Parkway West. “Luke has worked really hard on his game. We’re proud of him and his family is proud of him. He’s had a great career.”
It was the first win for the Blue Jays since claiming the Washington Tournament championship over Westminster on Jan. 12.
“We’ve played three tough teams since then in Ft. Zumwalt North, Ft. Zumwalt South and Rock Bridge,” Sodemann said. “It was good to get the win.”
Washington currently sits in third place in the GAC Central standings.
Ft. Zumwalt North (14-5, 4-0) played Tuesday against Ft. Zumwalt East and visits Washington Friday.
Ft. Zumwalt South (14-5, 3-1) played Tuesday against Holt, hosts Ft. Zumwalt East Friday and visits Washington Tuesday, Feb. 12.
The Blue Jays host FZN Friday, visit De Soto Monday, Feb. 11, and host FZS Tuesday, Feb. 12.
“We’ll prepare this week at practice for Friday’s game and then we have a quick turnaround with games Monday and Tuesday,” Sodemann said. “North presents a unique challenge with three guards who shoot the ball well. We didn’t have the sense of urgency the last time we played them. Hopefully we’ll make the adjustments and do a better job attacking them.”
Ronnie Suggs led three Blue Jays in double figures against Ft. Zumwalt East with 18 points, knocking down three three-pointers.
Schroepfer finished the game with 16 points.
Brad Carpenter pitched in with 12 points on four three-pointers.
Jacob Mulkey netted six points. Jared Walde had five points.
Patrick Menke scored four points. Luke Hasenjaeger and Austin Subke both scored two points.
Cory Epperson, Christian Hardesty and Cole Schroepfer also played.
“Menke started just to give us a jump-start. He did a good job,” Sodemann said. “Carpenter came off the bench and responded very well by knocking down some shots.”
The Blue Jays were 7-11 from the free-throw line and connected on eight three-pointers.
Ft. Zumwalt East (5-14, 0-4) was led by Logan Coburn’s 12 points. LaRoyce Eason added 10 points.
Leading 11-7 after one quarter, Washington broke it open with an 18-9 second-quarter run, increasing their advantage to 29-16 at halftime.
The Blue Jays outscored FZE 21-11 in the third quarter to make the score 50-27 heading into the final eight minutes.
“We played the way we know how and the way we’re capable of playing,” Sodemann said. “We moved the ball about as well as we have all year. We made the extra passes to open guys and got good looks at the basket.”
