Guerin Catholic will play Danville for Regional 13 championship
By RICHIE HALL
INDIANAPOLIS – The Guerin Catholic boys basketball team began the week as sectional champions.
The Golden Eagles finished up play at Class 3A Sectional 27 at Shortridge Monday with a convincing win over Bishop Chatard 53-41. With the victory, Guerin Catholic claimed its second sectional title in three years and its sixth overall in program history.
It was a nice conclusion to a sectional that was pushed back due to a Friday night leak towards the end of the Golden Eagles’ semi-final win over Brebeuf Jesuit. Guerin Catholic had to come back the next night to finish the game, then took care of business on Monday.
“We handled it as best as we possibly could,” said GC senior Kamea Chandler. “We got in the gym early Saturday morning. Everyone did their part. We practiced certain things that we had to do. We accomplished that. Having a day off yesterday, that was a little weird.”
But Chandler said the team got itself mentally prepared, and everything went smoothly.
“Everyone was locked in and ready to go,” said Chandler. “We knew we were going to win the game from the tip.”
The Trojans gave Guerin Catholic some resistance during the start of the game, taking a 4-0 lead. The Golden Eagles were denied their first basket until the 4:02 mark of the first quarter, when Robert Sorensen hit a 3-pointer.
That triple was the beginning of a 10-0 run for Guerin. Dylan Murans made two free throws, followed by a floater from Sorensen and a long 3 by Lucas Parker. The Golden Eagles now had a 10-4 lead, and never trailed again.
“Chatard had our number earlier on in the season,” said GC coach Bobby Allen. “They outplayed us in the second half. And that was written all over our board that we were not going to get out-toughed tonight.”
Chatard kept things close for most of the game, but someone from Guerin Catholic was always able to step up when necessary. Chandler took over at the end of the second quarter, with seven points to turn a 14-13 lead into a 21-15 advantage at the halftime buzzer, including a 3 towards the end of the half.
Kamea Chandler scored 11 points for the Golden Eagles and handed out seven assists. (Kirk Green)
“Our defense was great,” said Sorensen. “Holding them to 15 points in the first half is what we like. That’s where we win championships, defense, and we did that tonight.”
Chandler opened the second half with a fadeaway, and GC led 23-15. Chatard came back with an 8-0 run to tie the game; Robert Davidson poured in six straight points, then freshman Ethan Roseman scored off a steal.
Parker threw in his second 3 of the game to end the run, but the Trojans tied it up again at 26-26. After a quick timeout, Sorensen got his turn: He scored six points during those last minutes of the period, and Guerin Catholic led 32-28 going into the fourth.
“Everyone did their job,” said Chandler. “Everyone stepped up at different moments.”
The Golden Eagles began the closing quarter with eight straight points, four each from Ty Sanders and Sorensen. That put Guerin ahead by double digits for the first time, at 40-28. Chatard made one last run, getting five straight free throws (three from Lewis and two from Davidson) to stay within 42-37 with 1:48 left.
“It was one of those games that even though we were up eight to 10 at the end, it still didn’t feel like it was comfortable yet,” said Allen. “But finally, we grabbed it. We did what we had to do in the end. I’m just so proud of our guys, man, because we went up and down all year, played a tough schedule and it worked out the right way.”
Sanders stopped that possible run with a layin, after which Davidson hit two more free throws. But the Golden Eagles would let Chatard get no closer. An 8-0 run clinched the game and gave Guerin Catholic a sectional trophy, plus a ticket to the regional.
Sorensen scored 19 points to lead GC’s scoring, with Chandler and Parker both adding 11 points. Chandler also dished out seven assists, with Jack Cherry handing out five. Sanders led the rebounding with eight, while Sorensen collected seven and Bryson Cardinal pulled five.
The Golden Eagles improved to 17-8 with the win; Guerin Catholic is presently on a five-game win streak. Next up for GC is the Lebanon regional, where it plays Danville for the Regional 13 championship at 1 p.m.
GUERIN CATHOLIC 53, BISHOP CHATARD 41
Guerin Catholic FG FT TP PF
Jack Cherry 0-1 1-2 1 3
Robert Sorensen 4-9 9-13 19 4
Kamea Chandler 5-11 0-0 11 2
Dylan Murans 0-5 2-2 2 2
Bryson Cardinal 1-3 0-0 2 4
Lucas Parker 3-7 3-4 11 1
Ty Sanders 2-2 3-6 7 2
Andy Caron 0-0 0-0 0 0
Malcolm Houze 0-0 0-0 0 0
Josh Holba 0-0 0-0 0 0
Kyle Shadoan 0-0 0-0 0 0
Totals 15-38 18-27 53 18
Score by Quarters
Guerin Catholic 12 9 11 21 – 53
Bishop Chatard 7 8 13 13 – 41
Guerin Catholic 3-point shooting (5-13) Sorensen 2-5, Parker 2-4, Chandler 1-3, Cherry 0-1.
Guerin Catholic rebounds (33) Sanders 8, Sorensen 7, Cardinal 5, Murans 4, Chandler 3, Cherry 2, Parker 2, team 2.