DeMotte Christian Knights

Sectionals are behind us. Regional week is here. Riding the momentum of the program’s third sectional title, the DeMotte Christian Knights prepare to face off against Marquette Catholic in regionals on Saturday. The two teams will meet at Washington High School in South Bend at 3 pm CST. There was a regular season contest between the Knights and Blazers, a 73-63 home win for DeMotte on February 6, which actually marked the first win of DMC’s 10-game streak, which they hope to extend to eleven on Saturday. Marquette will be a tough matchup for the Knights, despite suffering that loss in DeMotte weeks ago. The Blazers are better than their 11-15 record and play a difficult schedule packed with larger schools. In fact, they’re 9-2 against Class 1A opponents, those only losses coming to sectional champions, the Knights and Elkhart Christian. The young and talented Blazers are led by shifty freshman guard Josiah Mays (#2), averaging 11.1 points, and Aleks Poceski (#1), averaging 10.1 on fifty made three-pointers this year. Mays went off for 22 points in the regular season game in DeMotte. Meanwhile the presence of 6’7” sophomore Colson Dobre (#12) promises to give the Knights problems inside. Dobre averages 10.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks. He’s also shooting 39% from three on the season (24/61). Dobre blocked seven shots in the sectional title game against Westville. Another Blazer to watch is Vaughn Rael-Kludt (#11), who made three triples against the Knights in the regular season game. The Knights will again rely on their balanced offensive attack. Senior Luke Terpstra is coming off an astonishing 25-point performance in the sectional title, where he shot 10/14 from the field. Sophomore Tony Bos will no doubt be a key contributor on both ends of the floor. He made three three-pointers in the sectional championship and guarded the Mustangs’ leading scorer, not to mention his role as the team’s lead facilitator. Senior Jayce Bultema also promises to be a factor in regionals, after posting a double-double last week against Kouts. Gabe Rottier scored 13 against Marquette in February, and Davis Peterson 10. Jacob Dyke is another Knight to keep an eye on, always a scoring threat and a defensive menace. On paper, it’s a close matchup. DeMotte hopes to repeat its regular season victory, while Marquette seeks revenge. It almost goes without saying… There’s a lot on the line this Saturday. One time advances to semi-state, and the other says goodbye to its season. Could this be the weekend for DMC’s first regional title?