Waterford's Avery Pottmeyer (30) looks to pass as Fort Frye's Caden Henniger defends during Saturday's game at Dan Liedtke Court. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

BEVERLY — Saturday night capped off a week the Waterford boys basketball team won’t soon forget.

After winning Wednesday’s game at Federal Hocking on a half-court shot at the buzzer, the Wildcats found themselves in another down-to-the-wire matchup, this time against rival Fort Frye. Once again, Waterford came out on top.

The Wildcats survived a halftime deficit, a roller-coaster fourth quarter and even a pregame coaching change to edge out the Cadets by a score of 51-48.

“It’s always great to beat Fort Frye,” said Waterford junior Finn Pennock. “I can’t stop smiling. It’s a great environment. The whole community comes out and supports you. It’s what I live for.”

During the JV game, Waterford head coach DJ Cunningham was ejected, prompting assistant Riley Burns to step up and coach the varsity squad.

Fort Frye's Caden Henniger, center, drives the lane as Waterford's Weston Fairchild, left, and Finn Pennock defend during Saturday's game at Dan Liedtke Court. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

“We kept our composure in really tough situations,” Burns said. “We executed a few sets when we needed them. Defensively, we were sound in that last two, three minutes of gameplay. I think the fourth quarter was where we won the game.”

The energy was sky-high going into the fourth period after a wild end to the third. Tied at 34-all, Fort Frye’s Cade Hoskinson seemed to give his team all the momentum when he knocked down a 3-pointer with seven seconds left. However, Pennock got the ball on the other end and drained a stepback 3 at the buzzer to tie things up with eight minutes to play.

There were eight lead changes in the fourth quarter alone, starting with Kainan Bradford’s layup at the beginning. Waterford’s Avery Pottmeyer answered with a basket-and-one on the other end, but Ethan Wagner’s bucket put the Cadets back on top. Pennock and Grady Hesson traded baskets, and then Pottmeyer and Wagner did the same to make it 45-44 in Fort Frye’s favor with 3:14 left to play.

Finally, it looked like one side was going to take control when Wagner knocked down a trey to give the Cadets a four-point lead. Pennock had other ideas, pulling up for a 3-ball on the other end and splashing it to get the Wildcats back within one.

“When my team needs a shot,” Pennock said, “they look toward me.”

Waterford's Reese Lang (14) is all smiles as he jogs off the court following the Wildcats' 51-48 win over Fort Frye Saturday at Dan Liedtke Court. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

Waterford got a stop on defense, and Reese Lang, who made the miraculous last-second shot against the Lancers, drew a foul and hit a pair of free throws to put WHS in front 49-48 with 37 seconds left.

Fort Frye’s next two possessions came up empty, and Lang hit two more foul shots to make it a three-point game with 1.3 seconds remaining. The Cadets nearly created a miracle of their own as Grady Hesson threw up a last-second shot the length of Dan Liedtke Court, but it hit off the back iron to give Waterford the win.

Lang, who led all scorers with 17 points, said of the last two wins, “We’re having a lot of fun now. You get through the downs and now we’re on an up.

“We expected a tough atmosphere. We just believe in our guys. It’s been tough this year. We’ve been through a lot of adversity. We came together as brothers.”

Pennock added 13 points and led Waterford with 11 rebounds and three assists. Weston Fairchild finished with 10 points and seven boards while Pottmeyer chipped in seven points.

“We’re on a roll now,” Pennock said. “I’m proud of our team for staying composed and just playing strong. It’s a big game, big environment. Devin Pottmeyer, he’s a freshman and he came in for some good minutes. Everybody stepped up.”

Fort Frye led 12-10 after one and 23-19 at halftime. Waterford outscored the hosts 18-14 in the third to tie things up.

Burns said the team was riding the momentum of Wednesday’s win.

“It really elevated our spirits, really elevated our game in practice, and it just kind of flowed over into today’s game,” he said. “We had a great sea of green over there. Awesome crowd, both Fort Frye and Waterford. This is what a rivalry is all about and I’m thankful we got to come out on top this time.”

Waterford (5-8) will look to keep the positive vibes going Tuesday when it plays host to River Valley. Though he wasn’t present inside the gym, Cunningham was able to follow the game and was proud of what he saw.

“What can I say about the group? Start rocky for the year. They don’t lose their way. Come in and work every day to get better and fight. We’re to the point where we’re seeing the gathering of our hard work. That’s on those guys. To be in the position they were, to come in and keep grinding every day. I couldn’t be more proud of them,” Cunningham said.

The Cadets (6-7), who are back in action Tuesday at Caldwell, celebrated senior night by honoring Bradford, Terry Tompkins, Wyatt Duskey, Aiden Brooks and Chatum Courson. Courson is out for the year with an injury, while Brooks returned from injury but played sparingly.

Hoskinson and Henniger led Fort Frye with 10 points each. Bradford added eight points and six rebounds while Wagner and Hesson chipped in seven points apiece.

Contact Jordan Holland at jholland@mariettatimes.com.