Stockton- Coming off wins from Lincoln’s Freshman and JV teams, the Varsity was ready to finish off the night with a victory against their crosstown rivals. From the moment of tipoff, the two teams were overflowing with energy and excitement with a sold-out crowd ready to see a great game. With a theme of blackout/funeral, Lincoln’s students came decked out in their all black outfits, while St. Mary’s students showed up with a white-out theme. The starting lineup for Lincoln was Juniors Anthony Moore, Isaiah Davis, and Donez Lindsey, and Seniors Elijah Holmes and Quentin Thompson.
The first quarter started off with low scoring and a very evenly matched game. The final score of the quarter was Lincoln with 10 and St. Marys with 8. Both teams were very high on emotions and playing a particularly fast paced game, both sides working extremely hard on the defensive end. It started off with such a low scoring game due to the high number of fouls from each team, and high percentages of missed free throws from both. While Lincoln came away on top by the end of the 1st, St Mary’s trailed close behind, hoping to take the lead.
To start off the 2nd quarter, St. Marys was gaining many fouls, especially their star player, number 14, Cayden Ward. This caused him to have to sit on the bench and would later come back to haunt St. Marys. Lincoln stayed locked in with great defense, especially from player number 2 Donez Lindsey. While the quarter was based on a high number of turnovers and missed shots, Lincoln was still ahead with an ending score of 18-12. Both teams were still full of excitement by the time the buzzer sounded out for halftime. St. Marys was hoping for a big comeback and Lincoln wanted to maintain their lead for the duration of the game. The crowd was equally as excited, the student section packed to the brim, their cheers echoing throughout the entire gymnasium.
Both teams came back from halftime with even more intensity, especially Lincoln’s players, number 2 Donez Lindsey and number 24 Jagger Merolla. The Trojans defense was excellent, making it hard for St. Mary’s to score. While their main player, number 14, was still out due to foul trouble, number 11 Daniel Huerta played a key role in scoring for the Rams. But, this was still trouble for St. Mary’s with number 4 Anthony Moore and number 23 Quentin Thompson helping run the ball down the court, making big assists, rebounds and blocks. The game had smoothed out since the first half and Lincoln still was leading 39-29 by the end of the 3rd, only 8 minutes left on the clock for the rivals.
The crowd was very hyped at this point; students and parents were on the edges of their seats waiting to see who would come out victorious. St. Mary’s Cayden Ward had returned to the game by now hoping to help and even the score for the Rams. Lincoln was not going to let this happen as Lincoln’s number 1, Zeke Davis, was making plays happen and scoring points. With 6 ½ minutes left of the game, Ward still had 4 fouls and now so did Moore and Thompson. As the clock kept winding down, both teams were fighting till the end with players diving for balls and big dunks making the crowd go crazy. In the end though, it wasn’t enough as the Trojans took the game 53-38, a big win for them at home.
Students stormed the floor cheering and shouting, the players extremely happy as they defeated their rivals. This fast paced game was nothing short of amazing to watch and was a perfect way to end the night as all three levels won their games at home. This won’t be the last time these two teams see each other as they play at St. Mary’s on February 9th. Be sure not to miss it because if it is anything like this game, you’re in for a great night!
