Ben Carter
Columbus Christian battled back in Saturday afternoon’s Indiana Christian Schools Athletic Association South Regional semifinals, but couldn’t overcome a slow start.
Calvary Christian withstood a Crusader comeback attempt and pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 61-51 victory. The Eagles had beaten Columbus Christian by 23 points during the regular season.
“We played them a lot tougher today,” Columbus Christian coach Kevin Roth said.
Calvary Christian jumped out to a 17-6 lead late in the first quarter. The Crusaders (12-17) got back to within 17-12 at the end of the period and cut the lead to 28-27 with 2:37 left in the first half. But then the Eagles’ Tha Lian hit back-to-back 3-pointers, and Columbus Christian couldn’t get closer than four the rest of the way.
Lian finished with a game-high 19 points to lead Calvary Christian.
“We tried some gimmick defenses,” Roth said. “We tried a diamond-and-one, and we just didn’t have an answer for 2 (Lian). We couldn’t contain him.”
Ben Carter scored 13 points, and Judah Carlson added 12 to lead the Crusaders.
“I thought Judah played real well, and Ben Carter had a pretty solid game,” Roth said.
Guard Hunter Goddard led Columbus Christian with six rebounds. The Eagles outrebounded the Crusaders 34-25.
“For one of the biggest teams I’ve ever had here at Columbus Christian, it’s so frustrating,” Roth said. “There’s no way that team that has five kids that are about 5-9 to 6-foot when we have all the size and beef that we have to get outrebounded. They’re shooting 3s, and we’re going to the rim to try to rebound, and that ball is kicking over our heads. That’s kind of been a thing for us all year.”
Calvary Christian 61, Columbus Christian 51
Calvary Christian;17;17;17;10;—;61
Columbus Christian;12;17;14;8;—;51
Calvary Christian: Andrew Stirneman 4 2-4 11, Tha Lian 6 4-5 19, Corbitt Henderson 3 1-2 10, Owen Fisher 6 0-2 14, David Sang 2 2-2 7. Totals: 21 9-15 61.
Columbus Christian: Adam Haines 3 0-0 7, Krew Flickinger 2 1-2 5, Ben Carter 3 7-9 13, Hunter Goddard 1 0-0 2, Canon Carr 0 0-2 0, Elijah Fields 4 0-2 8, Judah Carlson 4 4-5 12, Eli Wright 2 0-0 4. Totals: 19 12-20 51.
3-point goals: Calvary Christian 10 (Lian 3, Henderson3, Fisher 2, Stirneman, Sang). Columbus Chrisitan 1 (Haines).
