WESTMORELAND – With four minutes remaining in the contest, the Marauders had cut the Westmoreland lead to 57-56. But the home Bulldogs finished on 15-2 run, taking the 72-58 first round win over Sherburne-Earlville.

At the end of the first half, the Bulldogs led by five points despite being outscored 18-14 by S-E in the second quarter.

By the halftime break, the Marauders’ Hunter Lane led the team with 14 of his game-high 27 points.

In the third, both teams scored 15 to keep the difference at 5 points heading into the final eight minutes of play.

In that span, Sherburne-Earlville kicked off with a 10-6 advantage to get the contest within that one point, keeping their season hopes alive.

But a basket by Luke Fredsell with 3:44 remaining started Westmoreland’s run, one that was made mostly from trips to the free-throw line. Nine of the 15 points came from made foul shots. The Bulldogs finished the contest shooting 12-for-15 at the line (80-percent) to take the win and move on in the Section III Tournament.