Coaches like to say “defense wins championships,” and Guerin Catholic’s defense did just that on Saturday.
The No. 6-ranked Golden Eagles triumphed at the Class 3A Greencastle regional, first beating the host Tiger Cubs 52-41 in the semi-finals. That sent Guerin into the championship, where it defeated Northview 59-43. That game featured an incredible shooting performance by senior Joseph Bobilya, who scored a career-high 40 points and made a school-record 10 3-pointers.
The GC offense scored quite a few points, and the defense did its part in helping the Golden Eagles win their fourth regional championship and first since 2015. Guerin Catholic held both of its opponents to well under their season averages.
“Our defense was incredible today,” said Golden Eagles coach Bobby Allen.
The defense was ready from the start, as Guerin Catholic jumped out to a 12-2 lead over Greencastle after one quarter. The Tiger Cubs cut into the Golden Eagles’ advantage in the second quarter, but GC still led 25-19 at halftime. Guerin held a 32-27 lead after three periods, then pulled away in the fourth with a 20-point quarter.
Matthew Gillis reached double-double status with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Kaleb Edwards added 14 points. Will Grissom collected five rebounds and Bobilya dished out four assists.
RECORD-SETTING GAME
In the championship game, Guerin Catholic outscored Northview in each of the four quarters. The Golden Eagles went up 11-10 after one period, then jumped out to a 26-17 lead by halftime. Guerin led 43-32 after three quarters.
Bobilya led the way, making 10 of 16 3-point attempts. That sets new records for most field goals attempted and made in a Guerin Catholic game. The old records were seven 3s made and 14 attempted, both set by Christian Munson.
“Everything he threw up was going in,” said Allen. “Towards the end of the game, he realized that they were trying to take him out, and he was able to get the ball where it needed to go in the end.”
Edwards added 10 points and led the rebounds with eight. He also played tough defense the entire time in both games.
“He had the two toughest assignments and he stepped up and he played incredible defense for 64 minutes today,” said Allen.
Jack Cherry and Gillis both collected seven rebounds against Northview, while Grissom handed out six assists.
The Golden Eagles improved to 21-3 after the victory. Guerin Catholic will play in next Saturday’s Class 3A south semi-state, taking on No. 2-ranked Silver Creek at Seymour.
SEMI-FINAL GAME
GUERIN CATHOLIC 52, GREENCASTLE 41
Guerin Catholic FG FT TP PF
Kaleb Edwards 6-12 2-6 14 4
Joseph Bobilya 1-8 4-4 7 3
Will Grissom 3-5 2-2 9 2
Jack Cherry 1-1 0-0 2 1
Matthew Gillis 7-12 6-8 20 3
Matthew Etchison 0-1 0-0 0 2
Jack Parenteau 0-0 0-0 0 0
Elijah Edwards 0-0 0-0 0 0
Spencer Wilt 0-0 0-0 0 0
Aden Cannon 0-0 0-0 0 0
Totals 18-39 14-20 52 15
Score by Quarters
Guerin Catholic 12 13 7 20 – 52
Greencastle 2 17 8 14 – 41
Guerin Catholic 3-point shooting (2-9) Bobilya 1-6, Grissom 1-2, Etchison 0-1.
Guerin Catholic rebounds (24) Gillis 11, Grissom 5, K. Edwards 3, Bobilya 2, Cherry 1, Parenteau 1, team 1.
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
GUERIN CATHOLIC 59, NORTHVIEW 43
Guerin Catholic FG FT TP PF
Kaleb Edwards 2-10 6-8 10 2
Joseph Bobilya 12-22 6-6 40 2
Will Grissom 0-4 1-2 1 5
Jack Cherry 1-4 0-0 2 1
Matthew Gillis 3-8 0-0 6 5
Matthew Etchison 0-0 0-0 0 1
Elijah Edwards 0-0 0-2 0 0
Jack Parenteau 0-0 0-1 0 0
Spencer Wilt 0-0 0-0 0 0
Patrick Baird 0-0 0-0 0 0
Aden Cannon 0-0 0-0 0 0
Garrett Kreiner 0-0 0-0 0 0
Totals 18-48 13-19 59 16
Score by Quarters
Northview 10 7 15 11 – 43
Guerin Catholic 11 15 17 16 – 59
Guerin Catholic 3-point shooting (10-19) Bobilya 10-16, K. Edwards 0-1, Grissom 0-1, Cherry 0-1.
Guerin Catholic rebounds (39) K. Edwards 8, Cherry 7, Gillis 7, Bobilya 4, Grissom 4, Etchison 3, Wilt 2, Parenteau 2, team 2.