Bridgeport will begin the 2017-18 postseason on Tuesday. And they’ll do so riding a three-game winning streak.

 

The Indians closed the year with two wins in the final week of the regular season. Last Saturday, the Indians rolled past Lewis County by a 67-46 score and came back in their regular season finale to topple Robert C. Byrd by a 61-28 score.

 

The Tribe closes the regular season at 15-7.

Bridgeport managed to roll in its win at Weston. The Minutemaids trailed early and found themselves down 23-6 after one period. The game was never close after that.

 

“We probably played as well in the first quarter as we have all season,” said Coach Dennis Hutson. “They moved the ball well, played defense and built on the lead from there

 

“We played a lot of kids in the first half and got some kids logging a lot of minutes rest,” he continued. “We had all of our starters out by the start of the fourth quarter and that’s encouraging because not only is Lewis County a pretty good team, but playing there is never easy.”

 

Sarah Haynes led the way with 15 points, while Kaitlin Smith added 13. Emily Riggs finished with 12 and Paige Humble chipped in with 10. Rory Marple just missed double figures with eight points.

 

The Indians got out to another quick start and didn’t look back Tuesday in the win against the Eagles. BHS led 16-6 after one period and 29-10 at the break on their way to the lopsided victory.

“I thought it was pretty good outing again,” said Hutson. “For the most part, we did everything we needed to go against Byrd much like we did against Lewis.

 

“If there was a negative to take from both games it’s that we gave up too many offensive rebounds and I’m not happy about that,” Hutson continued. “Rebounding more about desire than technique and we’re going to have to shore that up if we want to move ahead.”

 

Marple led the way with 16 points. Smith and Riggs both finished with 15.

 

Bridgeport begins Postseason play Tuesday. Ironically, the first postseason game will be a rematch of the final regular season affair as the Indians host Robert C. Byrd in the sectional contest. The Indians are the No. 2 seed, while RCB is No. 3. The winner of that game will play the winner of the game between top-seeded Lincoln and the winner of the Elkins-Liberty contest in Randolph County.

Although Bridgeport has won both games handily this season, Hutson said he doesn’t have to look too far for an example of getting a big win and then seeing a loss nearly come a short time later.

 

“Braxton County is a good example,” said Hutson of a team they beat 70-28 in the first game of the season and two weeks later beat 44-42. “It’s a brand new season and we’re all 0-0 and if we lose there’s no tomorrow.

 

“Hopefully the kids will understand that and if not we’ll motivate them to understand that,” Hutson continued. “I do think they know what’s on the line and they’re usually motivated against Byrd because all the kids know each other so well. It shouldn’t be an issue, but we’ll do our part to make sure it isn’t an issue because anyone can beat anyone at this time of the year.”

 

Tuesday’s matchup at BHS begins at 7 p.m.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo is of Kaitlin Smith, while Emily Riggs is shown driving in the photo below. Photos by Joey Signorelli of www.benqueenphotography.com.