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Jim Wieners Sports Roundup: Trinity Wins!
Trinity’s Wins 1st Football State Title
and Wins Vianney Basketball Tourney
By Jim Wieners
Photo provided by Trinity High School
In Aug. 2003, Trinity Catholic High School opened its doors on Redman Road in a building that once housed Rosary High School, merging that school with St. Thomas Aquinas-Mercy High School.
On Dec. 1 2018 at the University of Missouri’s Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium, Columbia, the Football Titans won Trinity’s First State title. In a battle of Archdiocesan Athletic Association division champion, Trinity, B Division Champions, rolled away from Cardinal Ritter, A Division Champions, 45-19 in the Class Three State Final.
The win comes over 20 years since Aquinas-Mercy won the last of 11 Boys Soccer State Titles (two of them came before the two schools merged in 1985) and Rosary won Class 3A Girls Basketball. It is the first State Football title for a North County High School since Hazelwood Central won the 2009 Class Six title. It is the fourth state football title for a Spanish Lake-based High School joining Hazelwood East with titles in 1989, 1995 and 2008.
With a 13-2 overall final record, Trinity won their last 13 games after losing the first two. Colquitt County, Ga., which won 42-14 in the Titans’ Aug. 25 season-opener, plays Dec. 12, 8 p.m. eastern time, against Milton for the Georgia High School Association Class 7A State Championship. The game will be at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, home of the National Football League’s Falcons and recently hosted the Southeastern Conference Football Championship Dec. 1.
After spotting Ritter a 7-0 lead, on an 18-yard touchdown pass from Hazelwood East transfer Mekhi Hagens to sophomore Keavian Long, Trinity started their roll from there. Outscoring Ritter 45-12 the last three quarters, Trinity scored 25 unanswered points— from 6:55 left in the second quarter, on the second of three touchdown passes from senior Isaiah Williams to senior Marcus Washington, to 3:25 left n the fourth quarter, when Hagens threw a two-yard Ritter scoring pass to senior Kailen Smith.
However, the Titans shut the door on any Lion comeback as Williams threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to junior Teriyon Cooper with 3:35 left and the state championship mission is complete when junior Reggie Love, who rushed for 203 of the Titans’ 372 yards, scored on a five-yard play with 57 seconds left.
Williams, who threw for 175 yards and four touchdowns, hooked up with Washington on the first of two 33-yard touchdown passes with 10:25 left in the second quarter to tie the game at 7-7. That was short-lived as Ritter senior Jameson Williams returned the ensuing kickoff 86 yards to put the Lions up 13-7 after the missed extra point. Washington caught the last of his three touchdown passes for 104 yards from Williams on a 38-yard play with 9:10 left in the third quarter.
Senior Alphonzo Andrews scored a pair of rushing touchdowns for Trinity Andrews put the Titans up for good 19-13 with 2:23 left in the second quarter, despite a missed extra point. Andrews completed the 25-0 Titan run with a fourth-quarter touchdown run of three yards with 9:11 left
The Trinity defense also pitched in to preserve the championship. Trinity sacked Hagens (who completed 16 passes for 237 yards and two Lion touchdowns) four times for a loss of 39 yards. Senior Shammond Cooper led the Trinity defense with seven solo tackles while assisting on two more.
Trinity’s win cuts the Ritter lead in the series to 8-6. Ritter finished the season 14-1 and 23-3 in two seasons. All three losses in two seasons are to Trinity
BOYS BASKETBALL — The night before the historic Football win (Nov. 30), the Titans, without the football players on the Basketball team, especially Washington and Williams, won the 52nd Jerry Boeckman Memorial Invitational at St. John Vianney in Kirkwood. Trinity dethroned defending champion Hazelwood Central 58-57. It was the first title for the Titans while the Hawks won the title 15 times.
Trinity took their only lead with six seconds left in the fourth quarter, completing a 35-27 second half comeback after Hazelwood Central led 30-23 at halftime. Juniors Ryan Kalkbenner and Rashad Weekly each scored 17 points while senior DaJuan Young pulled down 10 rebounds.
Trinity won the opening round Nov. 26 over University City 65-55, with a 33-20 second half after trailing 35-32 at halftime senior Rashaud Johnson scored 18 points while Young (15 points) and Kalkbrenner each pulled down 10 rebounds. In the Nov. 28 semifinal, defeating Whitfield 66-55, senior Jaron Thames scored 22 points and Kalkbrenner grabbed 11 rebounds, as the Titans broke a 23-23 tie with a 43-32 second half.
