Springfield CYO basketball update

Junior Varsity
OLP 41
SFA 38
Dan Dickinson and Mike Dougherty powered for 15 and nine points, respectively, but it was not enough as the JV Bruins fell to Our Lady of Peace.
This was a close contest throughout, and SFA led 27-24 after three quarters of play. Coach Milt Hedrick commented, that he should have changed his defense in the fourth quarter, but he went on to say, "give OLP credit - they made some tough shots down the stretch."
Kevin McKnight was big defensively for SFA with six blocked shots.
This loss ended a nine-game league winning streak for the JV, whose league record now stands at 9-4, and 9 and 5 overall.
Fatima 40
SFA 33
It was a game of missed shot, rushed shots and overall missed opportunities as the JV Bruins fell to Our Lady of Fatima; although, sophomores Kyle Klosinski and Nick Cahill played exceptionally well.
Part of the overall problem was an unbelievably bad night at the free-throw line for St. Francis. The team was just 1 for 13 from the charity stripe.
The playoffs loom soon, and Coach Hedrick is confident that he can get this solid team back to its winning ways for the CYO Regionals
Varsity
SFA 39
OLP 33
The coach was glad to see Dan VonTanhausen on the court" against Our Lady of Peace. He noted that VonTanhausen brought a lot of energy, plus 10-key points to help the Bruins up their overall record to 8-8. It seemed as if the Bruins were sleepwalking a bit, but VonTanhausen's energy provided a spark along with solid efforts from teammates Chuck Ringwalt and Joe Nilan. John Oakley also had a nice outing with eight points.
The team made six clutch free throws in the fourth quarter to help to put away this important win, and get back to .500 for the season.
SFA 48
Fatima 43
Junior center Joe Nilan was simply outstanding in leading the Varsity Bruins to victory over Our Lady of Fatima. Nilan played like a man possessed, pulling an impressive 10 rebounds to go with his 13 points. Kris Dellaciprete also played an outstanding game, as did John Oakley who chipped in with eight points.
The coach had to manipulate his lineup a bit, sitting five players who normally get serious playing time for the entire first half for missing practice during the week. The maneuver obviously paid dividends because the team played hard and played well against an always-tough-as-nails regional CYO opponent.