Crusaders claim TCIS crown
VIRGINIA BEACH — No. 3 Catholic led No. 9 Peninsula Catholic by 15 points at halftime of a boys basketball game Wednesday night.
Most fans in attendance thought the game was over.
But not Catholic coach Bobby Steinburg.
“I knew somehow it was coming down to the wire,” he said.
And he was right. The Knights battled back and cut the deficit to two with 1:01 left, and had a chance to tie the game with 27 seconds left.
But the Crusaders made two crucial free throws and got a key steal from Josiah Rickards to hold off Peninsula Catholic 57-53 and win the Tidewater Conference of Independent Schools regular-season title. They also extended their winning streak to an area-best 25 games.
“We’ve been preparing all year trying to win a conference championship,” said Rickards, who finished with 16 points and six rebounds. “This is a really good win for us. We’ve had a really big target on us
all season, so this is really big. This is just momentum going into the TCIS Tournament.”
The Crusaders (29-2) went on several spurts early, including a 16-5 run to take a 15-point lead into halftime. They led by 12 after three quarters.
But Peninsula Catholic (24-6) wouldn’t go away as the Knights slowly chipped away at the lead.
Forward Kamari Vinson and guard EJ Joyner made several big
shots to cut the deficit to 53-51 with 1:36 left. They also turned it up on defense, holding Catholic scoreless for more than three minutes.
Catholic guard CJ McPherson ended the scoring drought with a basket to give the Crusaders a 55-51 lead, but Joyner made two free throws to make it a one-possession game with 1:01 left.
After a Crusaders miss with 43 seconds left, Peninsula Catholic had a chance to tie the game or take the lead, but missed a jumper with 27 seconds left.
Aidan Filippini made one free throw with 19.9 seconds left to give Catholic a three-point lead.
The Knights set up for a final shot to tie the game, but Rickards got a steal and the Crusaders made another free throw to seal the game.
“I just wanted to make sure we won,” Rickards said about the steal. “They were playing really good. They slowed us down a little bit, but we fought back and did what we needed to do to win.”
Peninsula Catholic coach Trevor Dorsey loved the fight of his team.
“We’re the not the biggest or the deepest, but our guys have guts and a ton of heart,” he said. “We won’t ever quit. I’m proud of them.”
Brayden Mann and Stylz Gardner finished with 15 and 14 points, respectively, to lead Peninsula Catholic.
McPherson’s game-high 16 points paced Catholic. Filippini chipped in with 11.