South Christian forces a tie for first place in O-K Gold after beating Catholic Central
South Christian’s Cam Post gives Sam Medendorp (20) a bear hug after the Sailors beat Grand Rapids Catholic Central 82-54 on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023. (Photo | Lenny Padilla)
GAINES TOWNSHIP, Mich. - Sam Medendorp got a huge bear hug from teammate Cam Post after the game. The South Christian seniors celebrated after getting the biggest regular-season game of their careers on Tuesday as the Sailors beat Grand Rapids Catholic Central 82-54.
“It knocked the wind out of me a little bit and he cracked my spine,” Medendorp said with a smile. “But I love the kid to death and I’ll take that any day.”
Carson Vis had 24 points, Jake Vermaas 22 points and six assists, Jake DeHaan 14 points and six rebounds and the 6-foot-6 Medendorp had 10 points and 14 rebounds.
It is the first time the South Christian senior class has beaten Catholic Central and it snaps the Cougars 75-game O-K Gold Conference winning streak.
“It feels great,” senior Jake DeHaan said. “They’re a great team. And to beat them feels good. But we’ll just keep moving on.”
South Christian (12-1, 17-3) led the entire game, and 35-22 at halftime.
“That’s just massive, especially for all the seniors,” Medendorp said. “We’ve come so close. We had a buzzer-beater loss our sophomore year (by Jack Karasinski) and earlier this year we lost by a few points (71-67). And to come out here and beat ‘em was a huge game for us.”
The win forces a tie in the O-K Gold standings. Both South Christian and Catholic Central are 12-1 with one conference game remaining. South plays hosts Cedar Springs on Friday and Catholic Central hosts Kenowa Hills.
“Means a lot,” DeHaan said of forcing a tie for the conference. “It’s on of the goals that we set at the beginning of the year to win the conference.”
Kaden Brown led Catholic Central (14-6) with 27 points and Durrall Brooks had 17.
South Christian’s Jake DeHaan scores on a layup in the first half as the Sailors beat Grand Rapids Catholic Central 82-54 on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023. (Photo | Lenny Padilla)
