On Tuesday night, Feb. 24, the St. George’s Gryphons beat Franklin Road Academy 53-49, advancing them on to the state championships. Fans supported the Gryphons in their last home game of the season by wearing all black.

During last year’s sub-state game, the Gryphons lost against FRA and were automatically eliminated from the tournament, which made them out for revenge this year.

“I’m really proud of this year’s team,” Coach Jeff Ruffin said. “Our guys really stepped up tonight, played with great effort, and competed hard as a team to get a win, even without our starting center, Connor Green.”

During the game, St. George’s was down 8-13 at the end of the first quarter, but they made a quick comeback and were up by 22-21 at halftime.

Beginning in the fourth quarter, the Gryphons were winning 34-31 and advanced to 49-45 with less than a minute left in the game. With only 18 seconds left, they were leading by only two, and after 12 seconds passed, Franklin was at the line to shoot two free-throws, giving them the opportunity to tie the game. However, this intensity did not shake the Gryphons, and they went on to defeat Franklin Road Academy, bringing their record to 26-4.

“We always push each other to be the best one can be, and tonight it showed,” senior Justin Scott said. “When everyone’s moving together, the success takes care of itself.”

Chase Hayden led St. George’s, scoring 27 points in the game. Senior Justin Wertner helped the team by scoring 12 points.

This win allowed the Gryphons to advance to the D2-A boys’ final four.

“We’re looking forward to our first state tournament appearance since we won the state championship in 2010, and representing St. George’s well,” Coach Ruffin said.

On Friday, Feb. 27, they will play Davidson Academy at 2:45pm on the campus of Lipscomb University. The winner from that game will move on to the state finals on Saturday.

“These [teammates] are my brothers, and I’d do anything for these guys,” said Scott.