Liberty Christian Boys Basketball Takes 3rd Place in Boys 1B Washington State Championship

My son is a sophomore on Liberty's Varsity Basketball Team.  The team took third place in state in the final second of the game to win against the Curlew Cougars.  Here is the story as it was reported Sunday, February 25th, in the Tri-Cities Herald:

YAKIMA -- Through four years at Liberty Christian, Drew Hegarty had yet to hit a game-winning shot.  But he made sure his first one will go down in Patriots' history.  The senior guard swished a 12-foot pull-up jumper from the left wing with two seconds left to beat Curlew 49-48 at the 1B state tournament Saturday at the SunDome to lift Liberty Christian to a third-place finish and its first-ever state trophy.

"I knew it was in. It felt really good coming out of my hand," said Hegarty. "I was hoping to hear the buzzer, but we still had a couple of seconds left."

Hegarty was an offensive force for the Patriots in four tournament games, averaging a team-high 16.5 points. Against the Cougars, Israel Morgan led the team with 12 points, while Hegarty had 11.

Loren Bodeau scored inside to give Liberty Christian (20-9) a

47-42 lead with 3:32 left in the fourth quarter, but Austin Mannick scored the next six points for Curlew to give the Cougars a 48-47 lead with 13 seconds left to play. Mannick finished with 24 points to lead all scorers.

Patriots coach Terry Watson said the final play was designed for Hegarty.

"He was supposed to penetrate and dish off if they got close to him," Watson said. "Two years ago, he would have forced a pass. It's fitting that he'd be the one to hit it."

Hegarty is one of six seniors on the team, and Watson said the team will feel their loss next year.

"I wanted this for them so badly," he said. "They built our program. It's a bittersweet day."

Story from Tri City Herald, written by JACK MILLIKIN HERALD STAFF WRITER

Joe and Colleen Lane are Southeast Washington State Realtors® specializing in Real Estate Tri Cities WA buyer/seller services for Kennewick Real Estate, Richland Real Estate, Pasco Real Estate, and surrounding areas.  Search the MLS for residential houses, multifamily homes, commercial buildings, vacant land, and condos.  Professional service providing real estate information for all areas of Benton/Franklin counties.  Check out our Free Real Estate Articles.  Call Joe or Colleen Lane toll free 1-800-526-3588.

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