Blythewood 68 – Wando 44
by Chris Dearing
COLONIAL LIFE ARENA
- Chase Thomas and India Willams were freshmen one season after Blythewood went 0-19. Four years later, the two seniors will go out as two-time state champions after the Bengals routed Wando 68-44 in the Class 5A, Division I state championship Friday evening.
- Thomas, who is headed to play at South Carolina State, scored 28 points while Williams, a USC-Aiken commitment, added 20 points. Another senior, Madison Thomas, was a menace on the defensive end with eight steals and she added five assists.
- It was the second straight title for the Bengals.
- “When this group came in the ninth grade, the season before they were 0-19,” Blythewood coach Emily Schaeffer said. “They came in and decided that they wanted to change it around. I told them to trust the process, it was going to take a little while, but they worked hard day in and day out and now they’re getting to feel the moment of back-to-back.”
- This one was close for a half and then it was all Blythewood (25-5) in the second half. They trailed 17-9 after one quarter but turned that into a 30-27 lead at the break. Wando’s Makenna Reynolds scored 19 points in the first half, but the Bengals defense locked down on her in the second half and held her scoreless over the final two periods.
- Williams scored eight points and Thomas added seven in the third quarter when the lead went to 48-36 entering the final period. The lead grew to as many as 26 before settling for the final score.
- Wando (22-8) finished third in its region but got hot in the playoffs to make the state finals for the first time since 1980. Bella McKevitt chipped with nine points, but it wasn’t enough for the Warriors.
Blythewood Final Stats
Wando Final Stats
