St. Anne’s-Belfield’s coaching staff has laid out a different expectation lately for senior big man Carter Lang and Friday night in a critical Prep League clash with Woodberry Forest, he met that expectation.
“We’ve been challenging Carter to not just be consistent but to be exceptional,” said STAB coach Damin Altizer. “I think tonight he showed just how special he can be.”
The Saints rode a huge night from Lang and their talented backcourt of John St. Germain and Chance Mallory to a 67-50 win over the Tigers. Lang poured in 24 points and hauled down 15 boards for a huge double double. Mallory finished with another stat-sheet-filling night with 13 points, eight rebounds and five assists and St. Germain put up a wild double double of his own with 12 points and 10 assists to go with four rebounds.
That trio combined for 15 of STAB’s 27 points in a huge second quarter that gave the Saints a 38-20 halftime lead, a hole the Tigers couldn’t dig out from. Seven different Saints scored in that frame, with Gabe D’Alessandro hitting a three while Brayden White scored four points and Austin Williford and Dyllan Thompson also notched buckets.
The Saints, who came into the game tied for the No. 5 ranking in the state, knew that facing the No. 9-ranked Tigers at home was a huge road test.
“Woodberry is always an extremely tough place to play with their student section and how hard they play,” Altizer said. “We challenged our guys to match that energy and for the first half we did a great job of that.”
Woodberry played the Saints essentially even after the break but couldn’t overcome their second quarter struggles. Sam Crosby had a big night for the Tigers with 21 points and McGuire Newman hit a pair of fourth quarter threes as the Tigers tried to scrap and claw their way back into the game.
Both teams face a quick turnaround with STAB squaring off against Norfolk Collegiate in the Locker Room, Inc. Showcase at Charlottesville High at 1:15 p.m. and Woodberry Forest hosting Eastern Mennonite at 4 p.m., both on Saturday.
