District 2 Boys 3A Quarter-Final Recap (Riverside vs. Carbondale)
Written by: Jon K on February 22, 2023
February 21, 2023
Vikings Hold Off Carbondale Rally for Boys 3A Win
Boys 3A Quarter-Final: Riverside 49, Carbondale 46
by Jon K.
TAYLOR – With only six players in uniform, Carbondale knew that their margin for error was minimal in their Boys 3A Quarter-Final game at Riverside on Tuesday evening. The Chargers got a superb effort from Tyler Donato as he repeatedly fought for rebounds and putbacks while Casey Preston provided plenty of offense on the perimeter. Speedy point guard Darryl Bennett ran the offense with precision, and Shane Herbert, who only netted 6 points all season, found himself playing a key starting role as he connected on a pair of second half triples, one with under 90 seconds left that brought his team within a single point, 47-46. Even after the Vikes grabbed a 3 -point lead in the closing minute, this one went down to the final second as they to failed to convert any of their four free throw opportunities. The 49-46 victory sends Riverside to a road date against top seed Holy Redeemer on Friday night.
Shane Herbert got out of the gate strong hitting a corner triple and layup to give the Chargers a 5-2 lead. After Connor McNally drove down the baseline for a layup, Casey Preston connected on another Chargers’ trey for an 8-4 advantage midway through the first period. With crowd getting a bit anxious, Frankie Antoniacci got an “and 1” 3-point play followed by a triple by McNally to grab the lead, 10-8. Teams would then trade layups (Tyler Donato for Carbondale and Connor Monahan for Riverside) as the Vikes took a 12-10 lead into the second quarter.
Riverside cashed in on three consecutive turnovers by Carbondale in the first minute of the second period – a Monahan baseline jumper, another one by Matthew Godlewski, and a Gerry Rose layup – to seize an 18-10 lead. Coming out of a timeout, the Chargers managed to flip momentum back their way as Preston Casey got a layup on a fast break followed by a steal by Bennett and ensuing 3-point play on a reverse layup cutting it to 18-15. Following some misses by each team and several untimely miscues on the Vikings (charging call on Rose, a backcourt violation call, and a travel), Casey connected on a trey at the 2:51 mark to knot things up at 18. Riverside stopped the 8-0 run and responded with a pair of triples over the next minute (by Godlewski and Rose) to send their home fans to their feet (24-18). The Chargers would close out the first half as Bennett dazzled with an assist for a Donato layup to bring CA within four points, 24-20, at the break.
Riverside again threatened to break this one open taking their largest lead of the contest, 38-26, midway their the third quarter and culminating in Frankie Antoniacci scoring his career 1,000th point with 1:20 left in the period. After Donato got a putback to start the second half bringing the Chargers within a single score, Riverside would go on a 9-2 run highlighted by a corner triple and drive by Godlewski. After Rose connected on a trey for a 12-point advantage, Casey countered with one of his own cutting it to 38-29. Following Antoniacci’s scoring milestone, Carbondale put together a quick 5-0 spurt on a triple by Herbert and score by Donato making it 40-35. A buzzer-beating triple by McNally got the mostly home crowd erupting as the Vikes had taken a 43-35 lead.
Casey started the final stanza with a triple and another score wrapped around a putback by Monahan as Carbondale began to inch their way back trimming the deficit to 45-40 with 5:37 left in the game. After several missed shots by both teams, Antoniacci connected on a smooth fade shot on the baseline giving Riverside a 47-40 edge approaching the three-minute mark. Some clutch shooting by the Chargers and some struggles at the charity stripe made for plenty of white knuckle moments for fans of both teams. Bryan Salitsky would get his only score of the game with 2:17 left, but it was a big one, cutting it to 47-43. A minute later, Herbert would drain a wide-open corner triple making it 47-46 with 1:25 left in the game. Antoniacci drove down the lane with 1:06 left making it 49-46. The “and 1” was no good but the Vikes chased down the carom only to turn it over on a backcourt call with 55 seconds on the clock. Two more trips to the charity stripe came up short for Riverside. In the closing moments, the Vikings elected to use up some fouls as the clock was under 15 ticks left. Carbondale had one final opportunity to tie the game, but their 3-point attempt caromed off the front of the rim as Riverside celebrated the 49-46 victory.
Riverside was led by Matthew Godlewski with 12 points while Connor McNally added 10 points. Frankie Anontiacci, Gerry Rose, and Connor Monahan each netted 9 points. The Vikings hit 6 triples and were 3 of 9 free throws.
Carbondale was paced by Preston Casey with 16 points. Tyler Donato (13 points) and Shane Herbert (11 points) were also in double figures. Darryl Bennett and Bryan Salitsky combined for 6 points. The Chargers drained 8 triples and were 2 of 7 from the free throw line.
Shane Herbert trey cuts it to 47-46 with 1:25 left pic.twitter.com/6mLPx0ladn
— LLHoops Neast Beat (@LLHoopsNEPbeat) February 22, 2023
— LLHoops Neast Beat (@LLHoopsNEPbeat) February 22, 2023
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