CHARLESTON — The Trinity Christian High School boys’ basketball team saw its season come to a close on Thursday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Class AA state basketball tournament in Charleston.
The Warriors fell to the No. 2-seeded Charleston Catholic Irish, 52-39, after a nine-point halftime deficit got away in the third quarter.
The duo of Carter Hartsock and Chayce Adams combined to score 27 of Trinity’s 39 points as Adams, a junior, scored 14 and Hartsock, a senior, finished with 13 in his final game as a Warrior.
The Irish were led in scoring by senior Jayallen Turner with 16 points, who finished with a double-double that included 13 rebounds. He was joined in double figures by junior Max Wilcox (12) and sophomore Zaden Ranson (14). Wilcox added seven rebounds and four assists while Ranson ripped down 14 boards, including nine on the offensive end.
The Warriors end their season in the Class AA quarterfinals in Charleston for the second-consecutive year.
“We came here last year and lost by 41 (to Williamstown) and that was our goal all year, to get here,” TCS head coach Cody Horton said. “This year we said we would make it back but our goal was to win a game. That was a heck of a performance by these guys who didn’t quit. It was a nine-point game at halftime and it felt good but we talked about rebounding and turnovers all year being our kryptonite and they got to us a little late in the game.”
The Irish scored the opening four points of the game but Trinity responded with a triple by Parker Hopkins and a jumper from Hartsock to take a 5-4 lead early on. Catholic then went on a 7-0 run that extended the lead slightly but a good end to the first eight minutes saw the Warriors trailing by only five points, 15-10.
Adams began the second quarter with four-straight free throws that cut the lead to one, but the Irish scored quickly in response and pulled back ahead by two possessions. With 90 seconds until halftime, the Irish exploded out of a timeout for a swift 5-0 run to end the frame and swell the lead to nine, 27-18.
“We’ve been primarily a full-court man defense all season, so I don’t think anyone expected us to use a zone primarily,” Horton said. “I know they have some shooters but they also love to drive and get to the rim. We held them pretty well at first; our defense brought good energy and communicated. On offense, we slowed it down a little and had some good shot selection.”
The Irish shot just 3 for 12 from beyond the arc in the first half and didn’t make a single three in the second half as the 2-3 zone of the Warriors worked well.
“They ran their sets better and had better shot selection today than the first time we saw them,” CC head coach Hunter Moles said. “They were better prepared for the pressure today and I thought they played well — they’re a great program and team that we respect so much.”
The third quarter would prove to be the difference in the game as CC outscored the Warriors 19-11 over the eight-minute frame. That included a 9-2 run through the middle of the quarter that extended the lead to 16 points at 38-22. Defensive rebounding and turnovers began to hurt Trinity as the Irish grabbed 17 boards on the offensive end that helped them earn 21 second-chance points in the contest.
A strong fourth quarter saw the Warriors outscore CC 10-6, but it was too little, too late as the clock ran down to zero.
The Warriors finish the season 12-11 and will bid farewell to seniors Hartsock, Ben Lohmann and Charles Steptoe, while also bidding farewell to Class AA basketball. Trinity is set to join Class A next year with three of its five starters slated to return in juniors Adams and Lucas Kniska, and sophomore Parker Hopkins. Sophomore Austin Porta will also return and look to make an impact.
“We got everyone in the locker room and talked about how being down here is the expectation of the program now,” Horton said. “We are dropping down to Class A next year and look forward to that. Class AA was a buzzsaw this year with the top six teams all being worthy of a one-seed almost. The expectation is to be back here and we want everyone to have experience and be prepared to come down here and win.”
BOX SCORE
Charleston Catholic 52, Trinity Christian 39
TCS 10 8 11 10 — 39
CC 15 12 19 6 — 52
TRINITY — Adams 4 5-6 14; Hartsock 5 3-5 13; L. Kniska 2 0-0 4; M. Kniska 1 2-2 4; Hopkins 1 0-0 3; Lohmann 0 1-2 1.
CHARLESTON CATHOLIC — Turner 6 2-5 16; Ranson 5 4-4 14; Wilcox 5 1-1 12; Cinco 2 0-0 4; Reynolds 1 0-0 2; Aliff 1 2-4 4.
3-Pt. Goals — Trinity 2 (Adams 1, Hopkins 1). Charleston Catholic 3 (Turner 2, Wilcox 1).
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