By RYAN MARSH

WAKEFIELD — Wakefield players sprinted up the floorboards of the Charbonneau Field House on Tuesday night with the crimson red of the Arlington basketball team chasing behind them. The orange ball flew to senior captain Jeff DiFazio as he stepped behind the three-point line and swished the shot. The whistle blew as Arlington’s coach could do nothing but call a timeout. The Warriors were hot to start the game – and it was going to continue, all the way to a signature 60-52 victory.

Over the Holiday break, the Warriors did not play any games with their last being a home win against Stoneham on Dec. 22. To start the new year, Wakefield was looking to steal a victory and move to 3-2.

Head coach Colin Halpin accredited the win to one thing: hard work.

“I thought the guys worked hard throughout the break,” he said. “Ultimately, I just think it was the work ethic that got it done tonight.”

Senior captain Jeff DiFazio (16 points), senior captain Andrew Quinn (4), junior Ethan Margolis (6), junior Mike Wilkinson (19) and freshman Matt Beaver jogged onto the court to open the night up for the Warriors. Wilkinson and DiFazio led the team in scoring.

Arlington won the opening tip-off but strong defense from the Warriors led to a bucket by Margolis to begin the scoring. The opening minutes of the game were all Wakefield’s, with DiFazio hitting two huge back-to-back 3’s including a steal leading to one. Arlington was forced to take a timeout with 5:17 left in the first quarter with the Warriors already up 10-2.

Following the timeout, Arlington grabbed their second bucket of the game, but Wilkinson and Quinn both hit 3-pointers and extended the lead to 12 points. The rest of the quarter calmed down on the offensive side of the ball, but Wakefield’s defense dominated.

Arlington managed to score another five points but Beaver was fouled and made a free throw. As the buzzer rang to end the quarter, the Warriors held a 17-9 lead.

The beginning of the second quarter saw the tide shift a little bit to the Arlington side. Five quick points within the first minute of the quarter saw the Warrior lead fall to four, but a big 3-pointer by senior Sean Russell (11 points) pushed the lead to 20-13. Promptly following the quarter break, Halpin called a timeout for the Warriors with 7:05 left in the half.

Defense for both teams played fiercely, with neither scoring for a few possessions until an Arlington basket broke the streak. The Warriors were slipping as Arlington slowly clawed their way back until they grabbed a 23-22 lead late in the quarter.

Now down one, Wakefield needed to recapture the lead. Sophomore De’Ari Burton sprinted down the court towards the opposing basket where the ball found his hands. Burton hit the layup to take back the lead. A big crossover from DiFazio got him an open 3-pointer that he drilled to take a four-point lead. The half ended with the Warriors up 27-26 after a late Arlington 3-pointer.

In a better spot than expected leaving halftime, Wakefield needed to be aggressive and maintain the lead. Wilkinson made his two free throws after a hard foul and extended the lead. A back and forth game led to big baskets, including a goaltending call on Arlington which gave Wakefield a three-point lead again.

Following two free throws by DiFazio, Wilkinson drilled a 3-pointer. Arlington responded with their own triple and called a timeout with Wakefield up 36-31 and 3:16 left in the half. The two teams exchanged baskets until Russell swiftly ended the exchange as he made two back-to-back fast break layups. Now up 42-33, Halpin stopped the clock with 1:24 left in the third quarter.

Neither team could do much to finish out the quarter as Wakefield marched into the fourth holding a seven-point lead, 42-35. DiFazio and Wilkinson dominated in the fourth quarter as the team fought to hold Arlington at bay. Arlington took a timeout with 5:35 left in the game with the Warriors winning 48-39.

Arlington began to start a comeback, getting five points and bringing the game to 50-44. With the clock ticking past the four-minute mark of the quarter, the Warrior lead was down to three. Russell and Wilkinson both made two layups to make it a three-possession game. Arlington called a timeout down 56-49, but with only 41 seconds left on the clock, there was not much time for a comeback.

Wakefield won the game with a final score of 60-52, securing a huge win for the team and their momentum. “I’m proud of my team,” said coach Halpin.

Having beaten a tough Arlington team, the 3-2 Warriors immediately looked ahead to a road game against 4-2 Burlington in hopes of advancing their winning streak to three.

The game, originally scheduled for Friday night, was moved up due to the impending snowstorm and will now be played tonight, 7 p.m. at Burlington High.