WAYNESBORO – Waynesboro was coming off a disappointing outing at Penn Manor last Friday. The loss wasn’t so bad, 51-42. It was how head coach Tom Hoffman’s team lost in Lancaster County.
“It almost looked like we were playing scared,” said Hoffman. “I gave them the whole weekend off, and we came back Monday, and for two days, we were practicing to make tough plays, winning 50-50 balls, find a body and box out, step to passes, and try to take charge.”
Hoffman’s emphasis on the physical side of the game paid dividends against Northern. The two teams have embraced an intense rivalry for several years, characterized by very physical and low-scoring games.
The Polar Bears got close, but not close enough as the Tribe improved to 2-1 with a 52-40 Mid-Penn Colonial Division win inside an enthusiastic and vocal Waynesboro Area Senior High School gymnasium.
Rayshawn Frazer-Hewitt led the team with 13 points. Nate Nystrom and Alex Torbica each finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Farin Parks added 10 points.
Carter Hough had a team-best five assists.
This time around, Waynesboro took over the game in the second half and prevented the Polar Bears from getting a hot hand like it did in the second period. The Tribe had none of it down the stretch, and four players from the home team scored in double digits.
Waynesboro led Northern 16-11 after the first quarter. The Indians reeled off 18 of 22 points in the second stanza to lead 34-15 at halftime.
The lead swelled to 40-15 early in the third quarter. That’s when the Polar Bears went on an 18-2 run, cutting the deficit to 42-32. But Waynesboro seized the momentum and never looked back. Northern outscored the Indians 18-9 in the third period, but Waynesboro won a low-scoring fourth quarter 9-7.
Nystrom scored five straight points and Torbica ended the opening frame with a long-range jumper to give the Indians a 16-11 lead.
It was 20-11 after Parks and Nystrom made put-back buckets. The lead continued to grow until Waynesboro appeared to have made it impossible for Northern to come back.
It’ll be a while until the Indians play another home game. That’ll be Jan. 7. The next scheduled game is Friday at West Perry in a league game.
