Central Catholic finds spark in 4th quarter to win defensive struggle with Fox Chapel
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Thursday, February 20, 2025 | 10:14 PM
Central Catholic’s Xxavier Thomas scores past Fox Chapel’s Caden Kaiser during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Central Catholic’s Calvin Vento fouls Fox Chapel’s John Rehak during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Central Catholic’s Enzo Khalil fights for a rebound with Fox Chapel’s Caden Kaiser during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Fox Chapel’s Ike Moser scores past Central Catholic’s Jordan Ray during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Central Catholic’s Xxavier Thomas grabs a rebound from Fox Chapel’s Caden Kaiser during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Central Catholic’s Calvin Vento is fouled by Fox Chapel’s Asher White during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Central Catholic’s Xxavier Thomas defends on Fox Chapel’s John Rehak during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Fox Chapel’s John Rehak scores over Central Catholic’s Christian Williams during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Fox Chapel’s John Rehak scores past Central Catholic’s Ryan Hower during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Fox Chapel’s Ike Moser scores under Central Catholic’s Enzo Khalil during 6A WPIAL quarterfinal action Thursday.
Central Catholic and Fox Chapel combined for five points in the first 5 minutes Thursday night, hinting at the struggle between two of the WPIAL best big-school defenses.
They were tied midway through the fourth.
A tie-breaking 3-pointer by Central Catholic’s Christian Williams sparked a late run for the Vikings, which was just enough to squeak past Fox Chapel, 52-45, in a WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal that drew a capacity crowd.
Points were hard to find. No player scored more than 13.
“Our two styles of play mirror each other,” Central Catholic coach Brian Urso said. “Tough. Hard-nosed. Physical. I think both programs take pride in their defensive intensity.”
The teams entered with the second- and third-stingiest defenses in WPIAL 6A, each holding opponents to fewer than 50 points per game.
That was evident in this one.
“We knew Fox Chapel was definitely going to bring it that way,” Urso said. “They’re a team that likes to have games played in the 40s and early 50s. But so do we.”
No. 5 seed Central Catholic advances to face No. 1 Upper St. Clair in the semifinals Monday at a site and time to be announced. Only four WPIAL teams from 6A qualify for the PIAA playoffs, leaving Fox Chapel out of states.
Calvin Vento scored a team-high 13 points with three 3-pointers for Central Catholic, and Williams had 11. Caden Kaiser led Fox Chapel with 13 points, and Ike Moser had 11.
Central Catholic led 14-6 after one quarter, 26-18 at half and 37-32 after three quarters in a game dictated by the defenses.
“We kind of knew that coming in,” Fox Chapel coach Zach Skrinjar said. “Our teams are very similar in that regard and in style of play. We expected that.”
Central Catholic built an 18-6 lead early in the second quarter on a layup by Xxavier Thomas and was ahead eight at halftime. But Fox Chapel clawed back in the third, and a free throw by Kaiser forced a 37-37 tie with 5 minutes, 12 seconds left in the fourth.
But Williams’ tie-breaking 3 sparked a quick 10-2 run for Central Catholic.
Thomas was awarded a basket on goaltending, Enzo Khalil made a layup and Vento followed with a 3 to lead 47-39 with 1:17 left.
Central Catholic went 7 for 17 from beyond the arc including a buzzer-beater by Khalil to end the first half. Fox Chapel went 3 for 13 from 3-point range.
“They all just seemed to come at really critical times,” Skrinjar said. “Even that one right before the half was a tough one. … We just couldn’t seem to find our rhythm from back there.”
Central Catholic led 3-2 with more than 5 minutes gone in the first quarter. But the Vikings found an offensive spark, scored seven consecutive points and soon led 14-4 after a layup by Williams.
The Vikings’ lead peaked at 18-6 on a steal and layup by Thomas less than a minute into the second quarter.
Free throws helped Fox Chapel cut into its first-half deficit.
The Foxes made seven foul shots in the second quarter, accounting for more than half of their points. Those shots shrunk Central Catholic’s lead to five points, until Khalil made a buzzer-beater entering halftime.
Central Catholic led 28-16 at the break.
Fox Chapel won the third quarter 14-11 and carried that little bit of momentum into the fourth. A 5-0 run by the Foxes to start the final quarter forced a 37-37 tie.
“There was more urgency,” Skrinjar said. “You see the clock kind of winding down. You know you’ve got to do a little bit more.”
Fox Chapel’s run started with baskets by Moser and Rehak, leading to a tying free throw by Kaiser with 5:12 left. But Central Catholic, which never trailed, responded by outscoring the Foxes, 15-8, in the closing minutes.
“I said, ‘That was their run,” Urso said. “’From here on out, let’s take back control of the game.’ … We still had the belief that we were going to finish it out.”
Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.
Tags: Central Catholic, Fox Chapel
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