Thursday had the Lions from Morrill come to town for a pair of games against St Agnes. Down early, it was the hometown Crusaders rallying for a 27 to 17 victory in the team’s home opener. Top scorer for the Academy was Mason Conyers who ended with 13 points. With the win, the Crusaders now have a 1 and 1 record on the year. Alliance was also victorious in the late, JV contest. The Academy tamed the Lions 21 to 17 in improving to 2 and 0 for the season. Two Crusaders-Tristin Hansen and Liam Pena-paced the Alliance offense with 6 tallies each.
Morrill was the aggressor from the start. The guests stormed to an early 4 to 0 lead before a basket by Crusader Chief Cody to made it 4 to 2. Back to back threes by the Lions ended the first with the Academy down 10 to 2.
Alliance’s defense was solid in the second as the visitors were held to just one hoop. Seven straight Crusader point began play with St Agnes tying the affair at 10. Scoring started with a Cody three and Pena deuce. Down 3, the Crusaders would knot the score after a three point play by Tee Johnson. The second closed with a bucket by the Lions and the visitors up 12 to 10.
Seven third quarter points by Conyers helped Alliance surge ahead. An old fashion 3 point play by Conyers early on gave the hosts a 1 point lead. Alliance then went up by 5 after back to back scores by Conyers. Morrill came back with a bucket to slice their deficit to 3 at 17 to 14. St Agnes then received four consecutive tallies from Hansen to take a 21 to 14 advantage heading to the fourth. Once again, it was the Crusaders D foiling a Lion comeback. Morrill would muster just 3 free throws in the fourth as SA maintained control. Conyers continued his fine play in period 4 with 3 hoops. A steal and layup by the 8th grader made it a 23 to 15 ball game. Two more baskets by Conyers ended the Alliance scoring as the Crusaders claimed the win 27 to 17.
Mor 10 2 2 3 17
All 2 8 11 6 27
Scoring for the Academy. Conyers 13. Cody 5. Johnson 3. Pena 2 Hansen 4.
In the late battle , SA controlled action from the tip. Early hoops by Pena, Hansen, and Jaden Acosta-Estevane helped Alliance take a 6 to 2 lead after the first. Both teams would swish treys threes in the second for their lone scores. A three ball by Alliance’s Max Bailey helped the Crusaders take a 9 to 5 cushion at halftime.
Four third period points by Hansen carried the Crusader offense. Alliance also got scores from Pena and Jackson Chasek in maintaining their advantage. Heading to the fourth, the Academy was up 17 to 9. Buckets in quarter 4 by Pena and Chasek put the contest away. Final Alliance 21 Morrill 17
Lions 2 3 4 8 17
Crusaders 6 3 8 4 21
Scoring. Pena 6. Hansen 6. Chasek 4. Estevane-Acosta 2 Bailey 3.
SA hosts AMS on Saturday