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Boys Basketball Clinch Second Straight NEPSAC Championship
St. Luke’s Boys Varsity Basketball capped off another remarkable season on Sunday evening by winning the NEPSAC Class C championship with a 74-65 win over Greens Farms Academy.
The victory at Clark University, Worcester, MA completed a second straight trifecta for the team adding the New England title to the regular season championship and the FAA tournament trophy.
The game against GFA would prove to be just as dramatic as the previous three meetings between the teams this season, all of which were decided by a total of five points.
The Dragons would start the game well taking an early 4-11 lead before Luke’s responded with a 14-4 run to give them a three-point advantage midway through the first half. The two teams would continue to trade blows but the Storm extended their lead at the break to eight points going into the locker room with a 37-29 advantage.
St. Luke’s came out strong after the interval and started to pull away, stretching their lead to 14, before the Dragons would come roaring back. The #2 seed slowly chipped away at the Storm’s lead and a big three with just six minutes to go in the game tied it up at 53-53.
GFA then took the lead for the first time since those opening few minutes. Another team may have buckled under this kind of pressure and momentum swing, not this one. Two huge threes from Andrew Varoli ‘18 and Jackson Selvala ‘18, followed by a steal by Joel Boyce ‘17 gave Luke’s an 8-0 run and turned the game on its head again. Luke’s led 63-55 with under four to play.
The Storm would not look back from there and some calm shooting from the free-throw line by Jonas Harper ‘18 and Varoli in the closing minutes would see the game out and allow Luke’s to celebrate a repeat New England title.
The win gave BVBB an overall season record or 24-1 and Head Coach Drew Gladstone was thrilled with his team after the game: “These kids had so much outside pressure on them to repeat, and match last season's success so for them to actually do that is amazing. It is a true measure of the character of this team.”
He added, “We are so proud of the way these kids battled, pulled for each other, and enjoyed the process all year long. They were never worried about winning a championship or meeting outside expectations. They focused on being the best version of themselves every single day and another pair of championships was the result."
St. Luke’s School is a secular (non-religious), private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5 through 12 serving over 40 towns in Connecticut and New York. Our exceptional academics and diverse co-educational community foster students’ intellectual and ethical development and prepare them for top colleges. St. Luke’s Leading with Humanity curriculum builds the commitment to serve and the confidence to lead.
