MORGANTOWN – The No. 10 University Hawks welcomed the Preston Knights on Friday night for a Region I, Section 2 boys hoops matchup on Baker’s Ridge.
After leading by 12 at halftime, 37-25, the Hawks outscored Preston 44-23 in the final two quarters to pull ahead for a decisive win, 81-48.
Four players scored double figures for UHS (10-2), with junior Eli Karpinski leading with 16 points off the bench. He was joined by Luke Byrer (14), Glenn Brown (13), and Jagger Barnes (11).
Karpinski also added five rebounds and four assists. UHS had 23 assists on 31 made field goals in the contest.
“We wanted to push the ball as much as we could in transition tonight, which resulted in some easy buckets for us,” UHS head coach Joe Schmidle said. “I think our depth really wore them down, especially towards the end of the game. Really proud of our guys for showing up today the way they did.”
Junior Easton Hayes led the Knights (6-3) with 11 points, while Kash Jenkins added 10 off the bench.
“I think we got a little tired near the end,” Preston head coach Bucky Forbes said. “It was a track meet back and forth there for a bit, and they’re a deep team that can push the ball all game. They sped us up and caused a few extra turnovers.”
The first half of the game saw the Hawks go on multiple scoring runs, which Preston managed to find a response to.
After the opening quarter, the Hawks led 18-13, but the Knights began the second strong and came within four points, 20-16.
But UHS pulled off a 13-0 scoring run to pull ahead by 17 with 2:00 minutes to play before the halftime break. However, the Knights finished the half positively and cut the Hawks lead to 12, 37-25, entering the locker room.
Preston began the second half by forcing a turnover from UHS, but the hosts didn’t allow the opening possession to deter them from stepping on the gas and pulling ahead.
The Hawks used two scoring runs (8-0 and 6-0) in the third quarter to double their lead heading into the fourth, 60-36.
They added 21 in the final frame to seal the deal and earn their 10th win of the campaign.
“Eli played his best game of the year after being hurt earlier this season, and we had some guys step up for us tonight,” Schmidle said. “Jagger Barnes has also done a great job and has started for us at times this season. The hardest part of my job right now is trying to find all of my players minutes that deserve them because they all do.”
PHS head coach Bucky Forbes was an assistant with the University program in 2019 when the Hawks captured the Class AAA state championship and knows how special it is to step foot in the gym again.
“This will always be a special place to me,” he said. “I love all of those guys on the other sideline, and this is a great program, no doubt. They are talented and well-coached, and the program knows what it takes to win.”
Preston will return home for its next contest on Tuesday to host Robert C. Byrd at 7:30 p.m.
University will also host its next contest as the Hawks welcome Wheeling Park on Tuesday for a 7:30 p.m. tip.
BOX SCORE
University 81, Preston 48
PHS 13 12 11 12 – 48
UHS 18 19 23 21 – 81
Preston (6-3) – Hayes 4 2-4 11 Jenkins 4 0-0 10 Schmidl 3 0-0 8 White 3 1-1 7 Bachtel 2 2-5 6 Smith 1 0-0 3 Manko 2 0-0 5
University (10-2) – Karpinski 6 3-5 16 L Byrer 6 1-2 14 Brown 5 2-2 13 Barnes 4 0-0 11 Demidovich 3 3-4 9 Lewis 4 0-2 8 Adams 2 0-0 5 Weaver 1 0-0 3 Helbig 0 2-2 2 J Byrer 0 1-2 1
3pt goals made – University 8 (Barnes 3 Weaver 1 Byrer 1 Brown 1 Adams 1 Karpinski 1); Preston 7 (Schmidl 2 Jenkins 2 Hayes 1 Mannko 1 Smith 1)
