Its first meeting with Winfield in December was memorable, setting a milestone as the first conference win for the Warrenton boys basketball team in 40 games.But Friday’s rematch against the GAC foe was perhaps more telling, as the Warriors escaped with a much easier and more dominant 62-34 win, showing the progress made over the past two months. “Sometimes you need to get a win like this to reassure yourselves,” said Coach Mike Uffmann.After beating Winfield by 11 in the initial tilt, Uffmann was relieved to watch his team have its way against an opponent. It had not happened in three weeks, as the Warriors struggled to stay above .500 during a stretch where they lost six out of nine games.“Finishing above. 500 was one of our goals coming into the year, because we haven’t done that in a while,” said Uffmann.Friday’s blowout was a product of methodical pull-away in each quarter, as the Warriors relied on the balance of a unusually accurate shooting night. It followed a week-long gameless stint during which Uffmann concentrated on certain areas during practice.“It was good to see a week’s worth of practice pay off on the floor,” said Uffmann. “It was a good game where everybody was balanced and contributed both offensively and defensively.”Senior Ryan Bradshaw caught fire shooting the ball during that off time and carried his accuracy into Friday’s contest, leading the way with 16 points.“Ryan shot the ball really well like he did in practice all week,” said Uffmann. “He distributed the ball really well too. We moved the ball around really well, and the post passed the ball well amongst each other too.”Bradshaw finished with eight assists, helping the Warriors build a 13-7 lead after one quarter.Warrenton’s size in the paint was paramount too, as they cleaned up the glass to the tune of 43 boards. Senior Craig Vardiman was responsible for 22 of those rebounds, as the Warriors took advantage of second-chance opportunities.“The size was a factor, but I think our biggest difference is that our younger guys have improved that much more,” said Uffmann.By halftime, Warrenton was in firm command, up 26-16.Uffmann says his team was more effective against the zone this time as well.“We attacked better this time around,” added Uffmann.The Warriors found an offensive rhythm in the third quarter, exploding for 22 points in what Uffmann says has become fairly routine.“We’ve been a second half team all year, and we were able to come out and put another opponent away quickly this time,” said Uffmann.Vardiman finished with 13 points, while senior Alec Tonioli netted 12 points.Freshman Caleb Strauss added seven points and five rebounds.The Warriors host Montgomery County on Thursday and St. Charles West on Saturday to conclude the regular season.WARRIORS DOMINATE WINFIELDDerrick Forsythe photo.