College Park, MD – The Thomas Stone Cougars fell to the Patterson Clippers 54-74 in the Maryland 2A State Semifinals last weekend. The loss ended a memorable season for coach Dale Lamberth who reached his 400th career win and his players who were SMAC and 2A South Region Champions.
“I’m proud of the guys, I’ve had them since they were freshman and they’ve been the most loyal. My words to them were that this loss will not tarnish all they’ve accomplished. They’ll be able to talk about this [season] at reunions,” said Lamberth after the game.
The long time Stone coach’s Cougars came into the semifinals riding high, having earned the 1-seed in their region and upsetting Great Mills in the SMAC Championship game. As coach Lamberth has said in the past this season, Thomas Stone was often counted out in the conversation surrounding the top teams in Charles County. Though they were counted out early on, the Cougars rallied around one another and persevered, finishing the season 22-5 one of Stone’s best records under Lamberth and reaching the semifinals for the first time since 2012.
The game began on a bad foot for the Cougars who only made two field goals in the first period, leading to a 15-4 deficit. With the game almost out of hand, senior Shawn Barclay came off the bench and energized Stone, scoring 12-points and shooting 2/2 from beyond the arch. “I wasn’t thinking about points or anything, I just wanted to help the team get back into the game.” The spark lit by Barclay opened the door for the team’s leading scorer, senior Gary Grant. The two worked together, narrowing the Clipper’s lead to just three points in the third period. The duo combined for 41 points, all but nine of the team’s total, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the talented Patterson roster.
“What people saw of him tonight and over the last five games, that’s Shawn Barclay. We’ve been waiting on that for a long time. He is very talented and will have a very good collegiate career,” said coach Lamberth of Barclay’s effort.
Grant played his last game as a Cougar, but his mark will be left on the program. The prolific rebounder/scorer set a new career point record for Thomas Stone in the semifinal match-up, achieving 1,467 career points over his four-year varsity career. “I’m humbled to have set the record, but it didn’t come with a win,” said Grant, making the moment bittersweet.
Patterson went on to defeat Wicomico 79-56 in the Maryland 2A State Championship game. The win gave the Clippers their third championship with wins in 2012 and 2017. They finished the year with a 25-3 record. Their win in 2012 also came after they defeated Thomas Stone.
Contact Jerold Massie at staffwriter@thebaynet.com.
