The Woodlawn Bears surged ahead in the fourth quarter Thursday afternoon to knock off the Dierks Outlaws, 61-56, in the first round of the Class 2A Region 4 Tournament at Hampton. By virtue of the victory, the Bears earn one of four regional berths to the Class 2A State Tournament that will be held next week at Poyen.
Woodlawn, the no. 3 seed from the 8-2A conference, trailed Dierks, the no. 2 seed from the 7-2A, 26-23 at halftime and was still down 38-36 to start the fourth quarter. The Bears, however, put up 25 points in the final period to pull out the win. The 8-2A swept all four of their regional games against the 7-2A.
Woodlawn will face the Hampton Bulldogs, the 8-2A champions, in the first regional semifinal at 5:30 p.m. today at Hampton. Should the Bears win, they would play the winner between Junction City and Poyen at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Hampton. Should the Bears lose, they would play the Junction City/Poyen loser in the third-place game at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Hampton.