After starting the season off at a perfect 8-0 record, the Golden Eagles failed to take home two big games against rivals Bishop Guilfoyle and Central that would have helped them to control their destiny for the rest of the season.

On Friday, Tyrone had the opportunity to prove to not just themselves but all of District 6 that they should be the team with the most attention and hype, but a hungry Bishop Guilfoyle team came to play, despite the pre-season loss of two-star players.

Bishop Guilfoyle who came into the matchup at a record of 8-3 had already played many big games, and had many opportunities in these big games to play with energy,  but controlled energy.

While a 12-point loss may not seem like a huge margin, it doesn’t convey the whole story. The total dominance that the Marauders showed from the tip-off to the final buzzer.

After an early lead for the Marauders in the first quarter, clutch threes from Tyrone’s Andrew Escala, and Sam Crilly on back-to-back possessions helped keep the score even at the end of the first and pull the energy in Tyrone’s favor. 

This would be the last time Tyrone saw an even margin for the rest of the night.

Foul trouble for the Golden Eagles, and a lack of key player availability, resulted in players like Trent Adams and Owen Oakes being thrust into major roles, and relied on heavily throughout the game. 

Strangling pressure in the halfcourt and a lack of defensive rebounding and defensive pressure allowed the Marauders to gain confidence on both sides of the ball and create many turnovers and defensive miscues for the Golden Eagles. 

However, Seniors Sam Crilly and Kendall Lehner found opportunities to score sporadically before the half, keeping Guilfoyle’s surge to just a 5-point advantage going into the half.

Lehner saw all of his 10 points fall in the first half and Crilly saw 9 of his game-high 17 points fall in the first half.

Bishop Guilfoyle came out in the second half with energy and never gave it up. Early fouls in the third quarter for the Golden Eagles began to pile up allowing for a plethora of free throw attempts, extended foul trouble, and a lack of a halfcourt offense showing a major weakness that the Marauders were able to exploit and push the lead to 9 at the end of the third. 

Despite the struggles and adversity, Tyrone never gave up and began to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter.

Tyrone who was at one point down by as much as 14 rallied midway through the fourth bringing the lead down to 4 points, before BG Junior Point Guard Tyson Lestochi found forward Chase Kissell for an easy lay-up that diffused the Golden Eagle run.

With time running slim, the Golden Eagles were forced to foul which generated free throws for the Mauraders, and quickly put the game out of reach. Tyrone suffered their first loss 51-63, scratching their record to 8-1. 

BG 63, Tyrone 51

BOX SCORE 

BISHOP GUILFOYLE (63): Lestochi 4 1-2 9, Consiglio 5 0-0 12, Ruggery 6 3-3 16, Foor 5 0-0 11, J. Kissell 1 2-2 4, Gates 2 0-0 5, G. Okonak 0 0-0 0, C. Kissell 3 0-0 6. Totals — 26 6-7 63.

TYRONE (51): Crilly 6 2-4 17, Walk 0 0-2 0, Woomer 2 1-2 6, Lehner 5 0-0 10, Escala 3 1-2 8, Adams 3 2-2 9, Hamer 0 1-2 1, Oakes 0 0-0 0. Totals — 19 7-14 51.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Bishop Guilfoyle 19 21 13 10 — 63

Tyrone 19 16 7 9 — 51

3-point goals: Bishop Guilfoyle 5 (Consiglio 2, Ruggery, Foor, Gates); Tyrone 5 (Crilly 3, Woomer, Escala).

Records: Bishop Guilfoyle (8-3); Tyrone (8-1).

JV: Bishop Guilfoyle, 69-37. High scorers–Carter Gwinn, T, 10; Connor Okonak, BG, 22.

Central 65, BG 63

Less than 24 hours after Tyrone’s 51-63 defeat to Bishop Guilfoyle, the Golden Eagles had another test versus a confident and physical Central team.

Without senior shooting guard Sam Crilly due to injury, Tyrone’s depth was once again tested in a bloody rivalry. 

Unfortunately for the Eagles, they came up just short, losing by just two points, 65-63.

Tyrone opened a 3-point assault to start the game vs the Dragons who were looking to keep the pace even and get into the Tyrone bench players early. They were able to do just that as Tyrone had early foul trouble with three starters having 2+ fouls by the end of the first.

Eli Woomer started the game two for two from beyond the arc and finished with 8 points in the first quarter.

Defensively, Drew Escala was getting rewarded for great defensive efforts in the first half where he saw the hoop get bigger and bigger with every shot. Escala hit two three-pointers in the first half and ended with a team-high 19 points.

Tyrone who jumped out to a 28-14 lead early in the second quarter saw their lead slip away as the dragons rallied a 16-2 run throughout the second quarter to push the score even at 30 a piece.

Tyrone during this run was forced to move into a different defensive scheme due to the foul trouble, and JV players Owen Oakes and Benny Walk had to step into the game and record some key minutes that helped the Golden Eagles make a five point swing, giving them a 37-32 lead into the half.

In the second half, the shots began falling for the Dragons, forcing the Golden Eagles to close out hard on the shot, allowing for easy drives and contact for fouls.

On the offensive side, Tyrone got good production from senior Ashton Walk who was getting downhill on the drives forcing Central to foul or give up an easy basket.

Senior Kendall Lehner was also getting opportunities to score off of mismatches and off of steals that set him up for easy fast break layups.

Lehner and Walk had 13, and 14 points respectively.

From there on, Central Star Point Guard Eli Muther took over completely, draining three after three from NBA range, and driving into the middle of the paint, forcing help defense to commit to him and kick out for wide open threes.

A lack of defensive rebounding for the Golden Eagles in the 4th quarter put Central in the lead with 31 seconds to go. Tyrone called a timeout, then had back-to-back turnovers to finish the game.

Both teams combined for 6 points in the final four minutes of the game.

“Both teams were very skilled and inspired; they were disciplined, and they made plays when they desperately needed them,” sophomore Carter Gwinn said.