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Catholic Central led by as many as 15 points in the third quarter and held on to beat the Lions 62-57 in a Division IV sectional final game on Saturday night at Troy High School.
Mykah Eichie had a game-high 23 points and Trey Dunn added 13 for the Irish (21-3), who will play New Miami in a D-IV district final game at a time to be determined on Friday night at University of Dayton Arena.
The Irish earned back-to-back trips to the D-IV district finals for the first time since 1996 and 1997.
“The goal for us is always to get to UD,” said Irish coach Cody Sarensen said. “We’re definitely going to have the mindset to get in there and win again. It’s hard to get to UD, especially in the Southwest District. I’m just glad our guys were able to hang in there all season and be resilient.”
Fred Shropshire led the Lions with 21 points, while Jason Channels had 17 and Casey Swank added 12.
The Lions cut the lead to six multiple times in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t get any closer down the stretch. Shropshire hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to cut the lead to five as the clock ran out on Emmanuel.
“We ran out of time at the end,” said Lions coach Danny Moore. “We needed more time because of the third quarter. If you would’ve told me we would’ve held Doolittle to two points and not win … Eichie had a great game. That’s what great teams do, other guys step up.”
The score was tied at 12 after the first quarter, but the Irish used a 10-0 run midway through the second quarter to take a 26-21 halftime lead.
The Irish coaching staff has always emphasized the importance of the first four minutes of the third quarter, Sarensen said. Catholic Central came out on fire, going on a 13-3 run to start the second half and extend its lead to 39-24.
Doolittle fouled out with about four minutes left, but seniors Jayden Borden and Casey Kampman came up huge with their teammate on the bench, Sarensen said. The Lions hit multiple 3-pointers to cut the lead to six in the final minutes, but the Irish always had an answer, including big buckets by both Borden and Kampman.
“This was a total team effort, although down to the end of the bench,” he said. “I’m proud our guys were able to hang in there.”
The Irish and Lions were two of the best Southwest District teams in D-IV this season. Central won the first matchup 62-47 on Jan. 29. The rematch between Clark County private schools was one of the most anticipated games of the postseason and brought a big crowd from Springfield to Troy.
“Dan and I were talking before the game about how neat this was for our community,” Sarensen said. “I’m just glad we’re fortunate enough to be on the winning end of it. I’m proud of our guys. It’s really hard to do this two years in a row.”
The Lions finished the season 19-6, the most wins by any team in school history.
“We’re a week or two weeks shy of our goal,” Moore said. “We kind of saw this playing out all season. We thought this (rematch) would probably happen. It’s nothing to be disappointed about. It was a great season. I’m super proud of the guys.”
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