The Trico Pioneers have a roster loaded with talented seniors in Jesse Smith, Logan Thies, Tyler Coleman, Dennis Froemling, Patrick Heller and Taylor Pyatt. But it was two Trico juniors that left their mark Friday night in a 66-48 victory over rival Steeleville in the New Athens 1A Regional championship game.
Chase Heins scored 15 points in each the first and second half to finish with a game-high total of 30 points, while Dylan Witthoft finished with 13. The two combined to score 17 of Trico’s 19 third quarter points, as the Pioneers went from a two-point lead to a 10-point advantage and never looked back. With the victory, Trico claimed its third regional title in five years under coach Shane Hawkins.
“We were more patient against Steeleville’s zone in the second half,” said Hawkins. “When we were patient, we were still able to get the ball inside to Chase. Chase was able to get the ball and take his time, that is when he is at his best. Dylan is such a good shooter that opposing teams have to keep an eye on him at all times. When he is set and has rhythm when he gets the ball, he is very accurate. He had his rhythm tonight, which helped open up things for Chase inside.”
“We didn’t have the strength down low to compete,” said Steeleville coach Gerald Mumbower. “They pretty much manhandled us in the paint. We got into foul trouble and we couldn’t continue to play with the same aggressiveness as in the first half.”
Trico grabbed the early lead 12-7 but Steeleville stole the momentum for the first quarter by ending the period with an 8-1 run for a 15-13 lead.
Heins poured in seven points for the Pioneers in the second quarter as Trico reclaimed the lead 27-25 at halftime. Andrew Pokrzywinski led Steeleville with six points in the quarter and his ability to penetrate the Trico defense off the dribble was the main reason the Warriors hung with the Pioneers point-for-point in the first half.
“Steeleville is a hard team to guard,” said Hawkins. “They have a very good point guard and he is in on every play. They shoot the ball well and they can get points inside. In the second half we did a better job of guarding Pokrzywinski and keeping him out of the middle of the offense.”
Trico’s junior duo of Heins and Witthoft stepped it up a notch in the third, as the pair scored nine and eight points respectively. Trico outscored Steeleville 19-11 in the period for a 46-36 lead and was the first team to take control of the game. Pokrzywinski picked up his third and fourth personal fouls in the quarter but didn’t leave the floor.
The game quickly got away from Steeleville in the fourth, as the team was whistled for three questionable technical fouls. On two of those technical fouls, Pokrzywinski and Colin Smith fouled out to end their high school career.
The Pioneers outscored Steeleville 20-12 over the final eight minutes for the 18-point victory, as Trico’s experience factor was in full display.
“These guys have been here before,” said Hawkins. “Some of these guys have already played in two sectionals. They know the games get tougher from here. They have played in front of big crowds this season and they know what to expect.”
Pokrzywinski and Coirie Reel each had 12 points to lead the Warriors.
With the win, Trico improved to 29-2 and advanced to the Norris City Sectional to face Crab Orchard (29-3) Wednesday night in the sectional.
Steeleville 69, Chester 52
Steeleville pulled away from a close game at halftime to stroll to a comfortable 69-52 victory over Chester Thursday night in the regional semifinals.
The Warriors outscored the Yellow Jackets 40-26 in the second half for the 17-point decision.
Chester led 11-10 at the end of first quarter but Steeleville rallied for a 29-26 edge at the half.
The second half was all Steeleville. The Warriors controlled the third and fourth quarters outscoring the Jackets 21-12 and 19-14 respectively.
A balanced scoring attack led Steeleville, as Andrew Pokrzywinski and Coire Reel each had 18 points, while Colin Smith added 11 and Nick Potter had 10.
Zach Lochhead and Justin Woodward led Chester with 17 points each.
Trico 60, Marissa-Coulterville 34
Trico held Marissa-Coulterville to just 11 points in the first half en route to a 60-34 victory Wednesday night in the regional semifinals.
The Pioneers, playing in their first postseason game of the year, jumped out to a 17-4 lead in the first quarter and led 34-11 at the break.
Trico pushed its advantage to 53-21 by outscoring the Meteors 19-10 in the third.
Daron Meyerhoff, Taylor Pyatt and Jesse Smith all had 10 points to pace the Trico attack. Tyler Coleman added eight, while Dennis Froemling and Chase Heins each had six.
Clint Runyon led Marissa-Coulterville with 10 points followed by Austin Place with eight and Joel Klimas and Joey Smith with six each.

In a battle of Perry County rivals, a late Pinckneyville turnover and some clutch free throws led to a 46-44 Du Quoin win Friday night in the Sparta 2A Regional final.
The Indians picked up their third win of the season over the Panthers and marked the third consecutive season that the Tribe has defeated Pinckneyville in the postseason.
The Panthers took the lead on several occasions in the fourth quarter but failed to add to their lead, allowing Du Quoin the chance to stick around and win it in the closing seconds.

“You could tell that the seniors didn’t want this to end, and that was the key,” said Du Quoin coach Gabe Sveda. “This time of the season, you lose you go home, you don't want practice to end now. When you’ve got seniors it’s a lot easier.”The Indians ran out to a big 18-9 lead in the first quarter and held a 28-22 halftime advantage. Pinckneyville rallied back in the third, outscoring Du Quoin 12-6, to tie the game 34-34 heading into the fourth.Connor Wheeler led Du Quoin with 22 points, while the Panthers were paced by Christian Shopinski with 14 and Steve Brueggeman with 11.

Pinckneyville 44, Gibault 39
Pinckneyville built a double digit lead in the first quarter but had to hold on late to knock off Gibault 44-39 Wednesday night in the regional semifinals.
The Panthers held Gibault, a team that defeated Pinckneyville earlier in the season, to just 2-of-9 shooting from the floor, while forcing six turnovers in the opening quarter.
On the other end, the Panthers made better than 50 percent of their shots (7-of-12) and finished the quarter with an 11-0 run fora 18-5 lead.
Bryant Shute made two-three pointers in the opening quarter to get Pinckneyville out to a fast start.
“We shot the ball well early and our full court trap really gave Gibault problems,” said Pinckneyville coach Bob Waggoner.
In the second quarter, both defenses took over the game as Gibault was held to nine points and Pinckneyville scored just six, all coming from senior center Kyle Lamb. At the break, Pinckneyville held a 24-14 lead.
While Pinckneyville’s offensive struggles continued in the second half, Gibault, in particular, its three-point shooting was able to get back in the ball game.

Gibault’s Justin Rueter hit two threes and John Pratl and Auggie Sexaure also hit shots from beyond the arc. With 2:14 to go in the game, the Hawks had cut the Pinckneyville lead to 38-36.
That would be as close as Gibault would get. The Panthers finished off the game with a 6-3 run to seal the win.
“We were struggling offensively, but I thought overall as a team we guarded pretty well and that was the main difference,” said Waggoner. “Early in the game it was all about our tempo and pressuring them into some turnovers, which we converted into some easy baskets. Late in the game, it was just about hanging on defensively.”
Lamb scored 15 points to lead the Panther attack.
Du Quoin 65, Sparta 44
Du Quoin knocked off Sparta for the fourth time this year Wednesday night with a  65-44 decision in the Sparta 2A Regional semifinals.
The Bulldogs were able to cut an early 10-point deficit down to three points in the second quarter, but that would be as close as they would get.
“We knew we had to take care of the basketball to have a chance against Du Quoin and we didn’t do that early on,” said Sparta coach Rich Williams. “We felt like we could win the game if we kept the score in the 40s but Du Quoin just had too many weapons tonight. They are a fine ball club. They won 21 games for a reason.”
Sparta’s big-game jitters were easy to spot, as the Bulldogs turned the ball over 10 times in the opening quarter. Trailing 7-5, Du Quoin ended the first quarter with a 14-2 scoring run for a commanding 19-9 advantage heading into the second period.
Sparta got back into the game, scoring the first seven points of the second quarter to cut the deficit to three points, 19-16.
The game wouldn’t stay close for long, as Du Quoin outscored Sparta 16-4 through the rest of the half to increase its lead to 35-20 at the break. Sparta was just 1-of-10 during the late half slide.
Du Quoin cooled off a little in the third quarter, making just 5-of-13 shots in the frame. However, the Bulldogs couldn’t get an offensive run going, as they made just 4-of-13 shots from the field in the third. The Indians outscored Sparta 11-9 in the period for a 46-29 advantage after three quarters of play.
The Tribe cruised to the 21-point win in the fourth by outscoring Sparta 19-15, as the Bulldogs never really threatened in the second half.
Du Quoin’s James Williams finished with a game-high 20 points, while Conner Wheeler added 12 in the win.
For Sparta, London Oliver had 14 and Wes Kiner finished with 12.
“We had high expectations coming into this year, but we struggled handling and passing the ball,” said Williams. “I am real proud of my seniors. They helped us win 29 games over the past two years and all three (Oliver, Kiner and Jordan Thompson) will be missed.”
Du Quoin advanced to the regional semifinal with the win, while Sparta wrapped up the season at 11-20.