Photos: Edgewater falls in heartbreaking 71-68 loss to Winter Haven in regional final | Observer Preps

Four points — that's what separated Edgewater from another trip to the state semifinals in Lakeland.

Unfortunately for the Eagles (24-6, 10-0), their run came up just short as they fell in a wild 71-68 game with the Blue Devils (23-9, 6-0) in the regional final on Friday night.

"You have to love the fight in them — they never quit," said Eagles' head coach Jason Atherton. "There were a couple of times when they could have quit. When things aren't going your way — whether it's shots not going in, whether it's officiating, whether its 50/50 balls — some times things just don't go your way."

Things didn't go their way early on, when the Blue Devils jumped out in a 12-0 run in the first five-minutes of play — before Eagles' guard Terrence McClain stopped the bleeding with 3:33 in the first quarter.

After the slow start, the Eagles would find a better rhythm behind guard Trevon Cason, whose 10-points in the half helped the home-side go into the half tied at 22-22. Cason would go on to finish with a team high 23-points.

The second half would start off a bit rough for the Eagles as well, as the Blue Devils went on a 6-0 run. After a few minutes passed in the third quarter, the Blue Devils would find themselves up by 13 with just under two-minutes to go in the quarter.

The Blue Devils' offense was largely led by Keyshawn Bryant (24-points), Dorian James (21-points), and Bryson Birdsong (15-points) — each scored most of their points in the second half.

Despite the deficit, the Eagles would claw their way back into the game in the fourth quarter behind the heroics of Cason.

In the span of just over five minutes, the Eagles and Blue Devils exchanged the lead three times, while finding themselves knotted up three times as well.

Unfortunately for the Eagles, however, time simply ran out following a couple of untimely turnovers and missed shots — leading to a victory for the Blue Devils.

While there was obvious disappointment in the faces of players and coaches following the loss, there was a lot to look back on and appreciate, Atherton said.

"It's going to be hard tonight, it's going to be hard tomorrow, and it's going to be hard next week when everyone is in Lakeland — but at the end of the day, to reflect back on what we were able to accomplish this year, it was a good season," Atherton said. "Metro champs, district champs, and we won the Rotary again and made it back to the regional final — so it's nothing to hang your head about."