If the Patriots keep playing to their current standard, the 2015 ball might have company soon as undefeated Tri-Village is now three victories away from another state title — and the Pats show no signs of slowing down from their dominant regular season.
Tri-Village is now 26-0 after blitzing Troy Christian by a 62-31 margin in a Division VI regional semifinal game on Tuesday at Vandalia Butler High School.
And just in case anyone thinks the Pats’ year-long success is a fluke, consider the fact that 25 of those 26 triumphs have come by double-digits.
“Coach Sagester keeps us focused,” said Tri-Village senior Noah Finkbine. “We know we have a target on our backs, so we want to go out and prove ourselves every night. We make sure we are prepared every game.”
Such was the case Tuesday as the Patriots topped a Troy Christian club that they had already defeated by 17 points in the regular season.
Duplicating that feat can be difficult in the playoffs, but not so for Tri-Village, which used an 11-2 spurt late in the first frame and early in the second to take charge for good at 21-10.
The Eagles stayed within 29-18 in the third quarter before Tri-Village’s motion offense and tenacious defense sparked another charge. Heading into the closing eight minutes, the outcome was all but determined with T-V leading 44-22.
“Our kids did a really good job with the plan,” Sagester said. “In these games, the team that defends and rebounds the best usually wins. We wanted to make (Troy Christian) have to make some tough shots. We were very physical and on top of things on the defensive side of the ball.”
Then there’s Tri-Village’s smooth-flowing offense, which was led by a combined 31 points from defending Division Player of the Year Trey Sagester (17) and Finkbine (14).
And if anyone wanted to know the reason the Patriots display such chemistry and knowledge of where each other is at on the court, it’s simple.
“We’ve been playing together since we were in sixth grade,” Finkbine said. “We know each other and we know our roles.”
The Patriots will now tangle with Marion Local in Saturday’s regional championship game at 7:30 p.m. — also at Butler.
“Our kids and our community are used to being here,’’ Josh Sagester said. “We know it’s not going to happen every year, but we have goals that we set — 20 wins, a league championship, districts and regionals, followed by the states. We’re trying to check the boxes as we go."
And that 2015 state ball, aging and in need of a little air, will be with the Patriots every step of the way.
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