WELLINGTON- The matchup everyone has been waiting happened tonight as Wellington took on Atlantic in a 3-9A regional semifinal game.

Wellington senior guard Bryan Williams would get things started for his team as he scored eight straight points to open the game.

Atlantic’s Rodwens Albert would knock down a quick three to slow Wellington’s momentum a little over midway through the first. But Williams would finish the quarter with 11 points, and the Wolverines would have a 20-9 lead going into the second after a buzzer-beater three by Linton Brown.

Atlantic would open the second quarter with a 7-0 run to close the gap, but guard Johnathan Philistin would get things going for the Wolverines on a hard charging layup.

Brown would ignite the crowd with a little over three minutes left in the first half after knocking down back-to-back threes that would force Atlantic into a timeout.

Williams would push his point total to 18 and send Wellington into the locker room with a commanding 42-26 halftime lead.

Atlantic would come out in the second half firing and rip off a quick 7-0 before Brown would knock down a three to take away some of the road team’s momentum. Midway through the third Wellington would be up 49-36.

Wellington’s defense would bend in the third quarter as Atlantic gained a little momentum. However, Atlantic would still be down 54-42 at the end of the third.

Albert would get the Eagles within six less than two minutes into the fourth quarter as he intercepted a pass and knocked down a three.

Atlantic’s Bradley Renaud would follow Albert’s act with a three of his own to keep the Eagles within striking distance.

The Eagles would close the gap down to 59-55 with 5:29 left in the game after a layup by RJ Duhart. The momentum called for a timeout for Atlantic to keep its steady pace.

Renaud would show up again for the Eagles late in the fourth to get Atlantic within two. Wellington would call a timeout with 1:20 left in the game to regroup.

Kadeem Wilks would get Atlantic within one after he connected on a three with 21 seconds left in the game to cut the deficit to 64-63.

Wellington’s lethal combination of offensive firepower and defensive pressure would eventually down Atlantic in a 68-65 win.

Wellington will advance to the 3-9A regional final and continue its undefeated streak at 29-0.

Leading scorers for each team

Wellington: Bryan Williams with 21 points

Atlantic: Rodwens Albert with 23 points