WTRF 7 Sports Zone Flashback - Sam Andy gets 500th career win

1998 Wheeling Park Wins 4th Straight Regional
WHEELING,W.Va. (WTRF) - In our 7 Sports Zone Flashback we go to March 10, 1998. The Wheeling Park boys basketball team enjoyed a lot of success during the mid-late 90’s they won the 1995 state title, lost in the finals in 1997 and won regional titles in five of six years from 1995-2000. In this flashback they were looking for their fourth straight regional title taking on Parkersburg South.
Park was ranked No.1 in the state at 20-3 entering the match up with the Southern Patriots. Now Park head coach Michael Jebbia was in his senior season of his record setting career. And legendary Park coach Sam Andy was going for career win 500.
South was strong early in fact they led by six, 20-14 after the first quarter. But Park took control in the second quarter as Javier Gonzales would score 15 of his game high 28 points in the second, for a 37-33 Park lead at the half.
Jebbia was also key as he scored 16 of his 22 points in the second half while also starting a couple of huge runs for the Patriots. Park outscored scored South 45-26 combined in the second and third quarters.
The Park also owned the boards with a 47-23 advantage on their way to an 80-69 win over South. Giving coach Andy career win 500, he would finish with 611 wins over a 39-year career, the most in OVAC history.
Park would defeat Capital in the quarterfinals, but fall to No. 2 Beckley in the semi finals 96-87 in front of a crowd of 12,000, that was before they seeded the tournament. Park finished the season 21-4.