It didn’t take long for the Wolverines to figure out that there wasn’t much for them to worry about as they jumped out to an early lead that they would not relinquish en route to a 68-50 victory.

“Playing a Class B school that hadn’t lost yet we were definitely concerned,” said Westfield head coach Nolan Swanson. “Man, we just came out and played hard. My guys played some defense and I just love how it went.”

The Wolverines’ defense caused fits for the Dunkirk offense, led by the efforts of Cole Holland. While Holland may have not made the biggest impact on the scoresheet, his defensive presence set the tone for the game and his five steals led the Wolverines.

“We haven’t had a defender like him in our league in a while,” Swanson said. “He’s a lockup guy. The turnovers he’s caused all year — not just for him — but steals for other guys because he makes them throw the pass a little wild … yeah, he’s just a pleasure to have up on top of my zone.”

Westfield’s Darien Swanson puts up a shot between three Dunkirk defenders. OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms

Westfield led 15-10 after the first quarter, and 31-27 at halftime.

If not for Darien Swanson, that lead would have been lost as he was the lone Wolverine to score a field goal in the second quarter. Darien Swanson’s highlight of the quarter was draining two big 3-pointers as Westfield and Dunkirk went four consecutive possessions with a shot from downtown. First, Dunkirk’s Timothy Brown hit a huge 3-pointer, cutting into the Westfield lead, then Darien Swanson responded with a trey of his own. Dunkirk’s Marcel Carter then followed with a second consecutive Marauders’ shot from beyond the arc, then Darien Swanson raced to the same spot as earlier and put up rainbow from distance.

What could have been a big six-point swing for the Marauders turned out to be a wash, keeping the lead with Westfield heading into halftime.

The third quarter was where the Wolverines were able to put the game to bed, outscoring Dunkirk 26-15. Darien Swanson continued to pour it on, and he got some help from his teammates, including brother Carson, who drained a pair of 3-pointers.

Darien Swanson certainly proved to be the deciding factor in the game, scoring 30 points while going 12-of-16 from the field and dishing out seven assists. Defensively, he had two steals and grabbed seven rebounds.

“He’s an all-around player,” Coach Swanson said. “He’s an assist guy, he’s a steals and rebounds guy, and he’ll put the ball in the basket. The last few games he hasn’t put it in for a ton of points, but tonight it kind of went to him.”

Darien Swanson was not alone grabbing missed shots off the glass as Wyatt Schuster grabbed eight rebounds and Chris Rotunda had six.

“Wyatt Schuster had a year off last year. He didn’t play in the COVID year,” Coach Swanson said. “He’s played with these boys all along. His last two games have brought our team to another level having a center who’s 6-foot-5 in our Class D league that can do some things. It’s great.”

Carson Swanson finished with 11 points and Holland added 10 for Westfield.

Marcel Carter had 14 points, Lorenzo 13 and Timothy 10 for the Marauders.

Westfield’s victory sets up a date with Sherman in tonight’s championship game at 7:15 and Dunkirk will play Chautauqua Lake in the consolation contest.

DUNKIRK (50)

Carter 4 4 14, Lewis 3 6 13, Tell 2 0 6, Brown 3 5 12, Couser 0 1 1, Thompson 0 0 0, DeJesus 0 0 0, Morrisroe 0 0 0, Thomas 2 0 4. Totals 14 16 50.

WESTFIELD (68)

Weingart 1 0 2, Barresi 2 0 4, Tuah 0 0 0, Holland 4 2 10, DSwanson 12 4 30, CSwanson 3 3 11, Hernandez 0 0 0, Emery 0 2 2, Quagliana 0 0 0, Post 0 0 0, HRotunda 0 0 0, Larson 0 0 0, Schuster 0 0 0, CRotunda 0 5 5, Whitesell 0 0 0. Totals 22 16 68.

Dunkirk 10 17 15 8 — 50

Westfield 15 16 26 9 — 68