in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, M ar ch 8 , 2 01 8 | £ 8 SPORTS Cathedral rallies to edge Trinity in GHAC final H ERB GARBUTT hgarbutt@burlingtonpost.com The Holy Trinity Titans knew they were going to face a long, tough road to reach the provincial cham pionships. It was going to be tough just to get out of their league. The Titans had respond ed to each test along the way. From a 60-57 victory over Jean Vanier in the fi nal regular season game to secure first place in the Halton Catholic league, the Titans have not had an easy victory this month, even if the score at times made it look that way. Needing one more to ad vance to the provincial championship tourna ment, Holy Trinity was five minutes away from com pleting the gauntlet. The Cathedral Gaels had other ideas. They outscored Trin ity 14-6 over those final min utes to earn a 51-44 win in the Golden Horseshoe Ath letic Conference final and advance to OFSAA. "They were a physical team and they just wore us down. That was our third big game in five days," said Trinity coach Andrew Sau- lez. "We got cold for a while and our shots were hitting the front rim, which is usu ally a sign that you're tired." The Titans looked good in the early going with Kur- tis Rourke driving to the basket and dishing off and Corey Zannatta and Max Campanelli distributing the ball well. Rourke and Alexander Odle helped Trinity match Cathedral on the boards and Anthony Briscoe continued to be a long-range threat, hitting a trio of threes. Trinity led by 14 until giving up three points in the final minute of the half. That would prove to be a sign of things to come. Still up by 11 at the half after holding Cathedral to just 15 points in the opening half, Trinity struggled to contain the Gaels in the sec ond half. The Gaels began to control the boards and an 11-0 run in the first five minutes of the second half wiped out Trinity's lead. "They hurt us on the of fensive boards," Saulez said. "We knew they were going to be dangerous in side." The Titans still had some fight in them, though. They briefly surrendered the lead in the third quarter but Dante Richards an swered by going coast-to- coast for the layup to put Trinity back in front. The missed opportuni ties from the line would slowly erode Trinity's ad vantage. And when the Gaels started hitting from outside - three three-point ers in the final five minutes after netting just one the rest of the game - it opened up the Titan defence, allow ing Cathedral to pull away. Briscoe led the Titans with 11 points, Campanelli had 10 and Richards added eight. All three guards will be back next year. Rourke had seven points and seven rebounds and Chima had five points. "For those Grade 11s, it will be valuable with the number of big games they were able to play in this year," Saulez said. "It's tough for our veterans, but only one team is going to end the year with a win. They won a lot of close do or die games just to get to this point. I'm really proud of the guys." N ik k i W e s le y /M e t ro la n d Titan Alvin Chima jumps to shoot during HCDSB basketball finals action at Holy Trinity on Monday afternoon. Jfi/ access abilities I 11 Your ability store.Our passion. We can help you with your home healthcare needs and we'll do it with a smile ENJOY EVERY LEVEL of your home with a 1STAIRLIFT • We carry major brands |gL i M • Straight or curved • Indoor or outdoor • We install and service w MILTONHARDW OOD FLOORS SPECIALIZING IN: Sales, Installation and Stairs, Pre Finished/Engineered, Hand Scraped/Wire Brushed, Sanding and Refinishing, Building/Contractors. C a n a d ia n R e d O a k , H a rd M a p le o r W ire B ru s h e d A s h 4 1 /4 " fo r $4.99 p e r s q f t while quantities last McMaster Camps 2018 Registration now open! visit: m arauders.ca /cam psfor more info mailto:hgarbutt@burlingtonpost.com Cathedral rallies to edge Trinity in GHAC final EVERY LEVEL 1STAIRLIFT • We carry major brands |gL • Straight or curved • Indoor or outdoor • We install and service Canadian Red Oak, Hard Maple or Wire Brushed Ash 4 1/4" for $4.99 per sq ft McMaster Camps 2018