Varsity Boys Basketball

Nine Warrior players and one coach earned All-EPIC honors for winter sports. Alan Hinnant was named girls basketball coach of the year for leading St. David’s to an undefeated conference regular season title, plus the conference tournament title. Senior Karis New was named the EPIC Player of the Year and joined senior Julia Hensley, junior Grace Haile and freshman Kyra Parker on the All-Conference team. Junior Juju Medlin made Honorable Mention. “Karis was a four year starter and contributed a ton on both sides of the ball,” said Hinnant. “She kept us loose, was fun to coach and has helped us win.” On the boys side, seniors Keonte Bradley and Tai Goode made the first team, while sophomore Nick Green was honorable mention. Senior Sarah Spencer Ball and sophomore Caroline Ross represented the swim team. Ball won the 50 and 100 freestyle races at the conference meet, while Ross prevailed in 200 freestyle and the 100 backstroke.

The Warriors season ended with an 85-64 loss at #5 seeded Fayetteville Christian Tuesday in the first round of the NCISSA playoffs.  St. David’s had beaten the Warriors earlier in the season by six points.  The first quarter was fast and furious as and ended with St. David’s facing a four-point deficit at 21-17.   Keonte Bradley came out determined with nine points in the quarter.   The second quarter was also closely contested.  Bradley continued his scoring assault with 7 more points but SDS trailed 40- 33 at the half. Fayetteville out- scored St. David’s 24-14 to take a commanding 65-47 lead into the fourth quarter.  SDS only lost the last quarter by one point 18-17 but could not recover from the 3^rdquarter onslaught.  Fayetteville Christian’s ability to dominate their offensive backboard proved to be the difference in the game.   Keonte Bradley did all he could to salvage the season with team highs of 28 points, six rebounds, and two blocks.  Nick Green added 16 points, and Tai Goode returned to the lineup to add 10 points, five rebounds, and six steals.   This was the last game for seniors Bradley, Goode, and Bo Rieker, who was still recovering from a severely sprained ankle and did not play.  

“ We gave it all we could tonight.   We just could not make the plays we needed them the most, said coach Will Coley, whose team finished 11-16.  “Their ability to attack the offensive board overwhelmed us.   We had no answer for that.  I am sad for my seniors who represented our program so well.  I am proud of the way they led us this season.  We dealt with a lot of adversity but never made excuses.  This has been a fun bunch of guys to coach.   I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of a great journey.”   

The Warriors opened EPIC Conference Tournament play Thursday at regular season champion Grace Christian. St. David’s would be without the services of Tai Goode who was at a choral event in New York.   Bo Rieker was also out with a severely sprained ankle. The Warriors got off to a slow start and found themselves in a 24-11 deficit after the opening period.  Keonte Bradley got busy in the second period slashing through the Grace Christian defense but SDS could only cut a point off the lead to give the Eagles a 42-30 lead at the half.  The Warriors came out in the third determined to battle back. Again spurred by Keonte Bradley’s great all around play to out score Grace Christian 18-12 to cut the lead to 6 (54-48)  heading into the final quarter.  The final quarter was a game of runs as St. David’s got as close as four points before an Eagle run would keep the game just out of reach.  The Warriors would fall 71-65.   Keonte Bradley led the Warriors with 34 points, 12 rebounds, and  2 blocks while taking the challenge of guarding 6’10 conference player of the year Jaylen Gibson. Nick Green also dropped in 11 points and 6 rebounds.   This was the first time in 6 years that the Warriors lost in the first round of the conference tournament and the 1^st time in 5 years that they will not be in the championship game.    SDS will open the playoffs on Tuesday.  “ I was proud of our team’s effort tonight" said coach Will Coley.  "We battled like champions.   We have battled all year.   I am proud to coach such a great bunch of guys.   Keonte did all he could to try to help us advance tonight.   We have shown so much growth.   Now it is time to prepare for Tuesday.”  

The varsity boys jumped out to a 36-31 halftime lead against the number one team in 3A, but couldn’t hold on as Carmel Christian of Charlotte came back to take a 75-64 victory at St. David’s Saturday afternoon. The Cougars (28-2) outscored SDS 24-14 in the third quarter to regain the lead. “I’m proud of our effort against a very good team,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 11-14. “We fought hard, but they made more plays than we did in the second half.” Nick Green led four Warriors in double figures with 16 points. Tai Goode had 14, while Keonte Bradley had 13 with six rebounds and four assists. Miek Goode added 12 points. The Warriors begin EPIC tournament play on the road Thursday. 

The JV and varsity Warriors lost at Grace Christian Tuesday. The JV fell, 68-60. Heyward George led three players in double figures with 15 points. Judson Thompson scored 11 and Scott York posted 10. The varsity led 13-8 after the first quarter, but trailed 29-22 at halftime on the way to a 52-44 loss. “Their center (Jaylon Gibson) is 6’9 and they went to him in the second quarter,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 1-4 in league play and 11-12 overall. “That was the difference in the game.” Tai Goode led the scoring with 12 points. Keonte Bradley added nine and had six assists. Nick Green also scored nine and Bo Rieker had eight. Both teams play at Cary Christian Friday and close the regular season at home Saturday against Carmel Christian of Charlotte.

The Warriors recognized seniors Keonte Bradley, Tai Goode and Bo Rieker Thursday night at home before a 69-46 loss to Word of God. St. David’s trailed the entire game before cutting a 15 point halftime deficit to nine starting the fourth quarter. “We didn’t stop playing and represented well,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 11-10. “Our shots need to fall and they didn’t tonight. Our seniors are the heart and soul of our program and I’ve enjoyed coaching them.” Meik Goode led the Warriors with 15 points and Keonte Bradley added 13 points and had five assists. Nick Green grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. The Warriors return to EPIC action at Parrott Academy Friday.

The varsity boys bounced back from Friday’s 19 point home loss to Cary Christian with a 68-50 rout of Southeast Raleigh HS Monday afternoon in the High School OT Showcase at Garner High School. St. David’s (11-9) exploded for 28 points in the first quarter on the way to a 44-28 halftime lead. “I was very happy with our response to a very poor outing Friday night,” said coach Will Coley. “I saw some really good things and I hope we can build on this momentum.” Tai Goode led four Warriors in double figures with 21 points and passed out five assists. Bo Rieker hit both of his three-pointers on the way to 14 points and had eight rebounds. Meik Goode hit three three-pointers for 14 points and Nick Green added 11. Keonte Bradley led the team with nine rebounds. The Warriors host Word of God Thursday on Senior Night.

The varsity boys lost, 67-46, to Cary Christian Friday night at home. The Warriors (10-9, 1-2) fell behind early and never recovered, as the Knights (8-8, 2-1) led wire-to-wire. “We didn’t come to play Warrior basketball tonight and Cary Christian played with great spirit from the opening tip,” said coach Will Coley. “I don’t know why it happened, but we never could get anything going.” Bo Rieker led St. David’s with 10 points and six rebounds.

The varsity boys took a 71-39 loss at Fayetteville Academy Wednesday night. The Eagles scored the games’ first 19 points and never looked back. “They had something like 10 dunks and a ton of offensive rebounds,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 10-8. “Their size was too much for us. It was a good measuring stick for us and we can’t let it get us down.” Keonte Bradley led SDS with nine points and six rebounds. The Warriors host Cary Christian Friday night.

The varsity boys mounted a furious comeback that fell just short Friday night in a 60-57 home loss to Grace Christian. The Warriors (10-7, 1-1) trailed by nine with 1:50 left, but used a full court press to come all the way back to trail by one with 33 seconds left. The Eagles hit both free throws for a three-point lead and the Warriors final three pointer to force overtime rimmed out. “I was proud of the way we kept fighting,” said coach Will Coley, whose starting point guard Tai Goode missed the game with a broken toe. “We played well short-handed and it was a great game to watch.” Keonte Bradley posted a game-high 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Nick Green scored 15 and Miek Goode added 10 with six steals.

The varsity boys took a 14-point lead into the fourth quarter Tuesday night at home against Parrott, but had to withstand a furious Patriot comeback for a 67-63 victory. The Warriors (10-6, 1-0) led 61-60 with 34 seconds left, but hit six free throws and forced a turnover to ice the win. Keonte Bradley led the Warriors with 31 points and 14 rebounds. “He was special tonight,” said coach Will Coley. “He came up with big plays when we needed one and hit some key free throws at the end. Credit Parrott for a great comeback. It was our first game in 11 days and it showed.”

The varsity boys basketball team completed the 2018 part of their schedule with a 70-48 rout of Community Christian of Wilson to claim fifth place in the Greenfield Christmas Tournament Saturday in Wilson. The Warriors (9-6) battled back from Thursday’s loss to Fayetteville Academy with a 68-50 victory over Neuse Christian Friday. Keonte Bradley led the way Saturday with 19 points and 15 rebounds after going for 16 and 10 on Friday. Meik Goode totaled 30 points in the two wins, while Tai Goode passed out 17 assists. Bo Rieker had over 20 points and 19 rebounds Friday and Saturday.  “I’m proud of the way we reacted to Thursday’s (30 point) loss because it motivated them to improve” said coach Will Coley. “That’s what good teams do. We’ll enjoy the holidays and be ready to go against Parrott on the 8^th.”

The varsity boys won for the sixth time in seven games, 52-46, over Fayetteville Christian Friday night at home. The Warriors (7-5) broke open a five-point game at halftime with a 17 point third quarter, then held off FC (6-7) down the stretch. “We are getting better at closing games,” said coach Will Coley. “We came out ready to extend our lead in the second half against a solid opponent. This win against a fellow 3A division school will help us later in the season.” Bo Rieker led three Warriors in double figures with 12 points. Meik Goode scored 11 and Tai Goode had 10 with five assists. Keonte Bradley finished with nine points and a team-high 10 rebounds. 

The varsity boys earned a 76-65 victory over Friendship Christian Tuesday at home. St. David’s started quickly with a 28-14 lead after the first quarter, built the advantage to 18 after three quarters, maintained the lead in the final eight minutes and handed the Falcons (9-1) their first loss. The Warriors (6-5) hit 12 3-pointers, including four from Miek Goode. “We feel good about our shooting,” said coach Will Coley. “We took another step in learning to play with the lead and close the game tonight. I’m happy with our progress.” Tai Goode led the way with 26 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Keonte Bradley had 17 and a team-high 11 rebounds, while Miek Goode (14) and Nick Green (11) gave the Warriors four players in double figures. 

The varsity boys bounced back from a loss on Thursday with a 72-62 victory Friday at Forsyth Country Day in Winston-Salem. Unlike Thursday, when the Warriors lost a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter, SDS iced the win with 18 straight points. “We learned a lot from Thursday’s game and I was pleased with our resilience tonight” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 5-5.  We showed heart in coming back from last night’s loss.” Keonte Bradley paced the Warriors with 18 points, eight rebounds, five steals and three blocked shots. Tai Goode had 14 points and eight assists, Nick Green scored 13 with seven rebounds and Bo Rieker posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. The girls lost, 36-23. Karis News was the leading scorer with eight points. 

The Warriors high boys basketball teams split a doubleheader at Word of God Thursday night in Raleigh. The JV Warriors raised their record to 3-5 with a 55-51 victory over the Holy Rams. Judson Thompson led a balanced SDS scoring attack with 14 points. Paxton Williams had 10, Cal Madden scored nine and John Hauser had seven.  “We started with great energy,” said coach Charles Graves. “That carried through and our defense made them work for every shot. We have strength in numbers and our guys are starting to buy into that mindset.” The varsity Warriors held a 56-40 lead after three quarters, but couldn’t handle the Holy Rams pressure defense in the final eight minutes and lost 68-63. “We just ran out of gas at the end,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 4-5.  “We kept turning it over against their press and that was the difference.” Tai Goode scored 13 of his team best 24 points in the first quarter and added six assists. Miek Goode scored 17 and Keonte Bradley had 10 rebounds and four blocked shots.  

The varsity boys won their third straight game, 50-42, over the New Life Camp Storm,  in the nightcap of a tripleheader Tuesday at home. St. David’s (4-4) led 28-15 at halftime and stretched it to 17 before a late Storm surge cut the lead to the final margin. “It was good for us to face some late game adversity,” said coach Will Coley.  “We handled it well enough to learn from it and win at the same time.” Tai Goode led three Warriors win double figures with 14 points. He added six rebounds, six steals and six assists. Bo Rieker scored 12 points, while Keonte Bradley added 10, six assists, four steals and a blocked shot. The girls fought back from a 10 point third quarter deficit, but fell 50-46. Kyra Parker led the scoring with 13 points and Karis New had 10. The JV opened the tripleheader with a 55-46 loss to the Storm. Hank Madden mad six three-pointers on the way to 22 points to lead St. David’s. 

The varsity boys blasted out of the gate with a 27 point first quarter on the way to a 73-46 blowout of Cary Academy Friday night at home. The Warriors (3-4) upped the advantage to 47-26 at halftime and the reserves played most of the second half. “It was a great team game,” said coach Will Coley. “Everybody played a lot and we continue to improve in all areas. Our defense was good and we shot well.” Nick Green led three Warriors in double figures with 19 points. Keonte Bradley had 17 and Bo Rieker added 10. Green and Rieker had eight rebounds a piece, while Tai Goode contributed nine assists for the second straight game. 

The varsity boys earned a 68-50 non-conference victory at North Raleigh Christian Academy Tuesday.  St. David’s came out with great defensive pressure spearheaded by Tai Goode.   NRCA shot well despite the pressure and led 16-14 after the opening quarter. The Warriors heated up offensively in the second quarter and outscored the Knights 16-10 behind the slashing play of Keonte Bradley and the post work of Bo Rieker.  Both players contributed six points to propel SDS to a 30-26 half-time lead.  The third quarter was all Warriors.  Goode controlled every aspect of the game with eight points, six assists, four steals and numerous deflections.  Nick Green found the touch from long distance with three trifectas, while Bradley dazzled the crowd with three dunks. The torrid Warrior flurry took the score to 57-32 at the end of the third period.  “I’m so happy to see our guys get a win after being so competitive all season,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 2-5.    “We have been right there but haven’t closed the deal and tonight we did. Tai and Keonte were great, Bo was solid and Nick looked really comfortable out there tonight.” Bradley led the Warriors with 21 points, eight rebounds, and two blocks.  Goode had 15 points, nine assists, six rebounds, five steals and no turnovers.  Green added 11 points and five rebounds. Rieker worked the low post for 10 points and five rebounds.  The Warriors will host Cary Academy Friday as part of a tripleheader with the JV boys and varsity girls.  

The varsity boys lost 49-37 to Cape Fear Academy in the Second Annual St. David’s Tip-Off Classic Saturday afternoon. St. David’s trailed throughout before cutting the margin to single digits in the fourth quarter. “Our shot was just off today,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 1-3. “We had our normal looks at the basket, but couldn’t make enough of them today.” Nick Green led the scoring with 15 points, while Tai Goode had eight with four assists and three steals. The Warriors travel to Ravenscroft Tuesday.

The Warriors varsity boys earned their first victory Friday in the second annual St. David’s Tip-Off Invitational. Tai Goode made two free throws with 1.7 seconds left for a 45-43 comeback victory over Coastal Christian of Wilmington. St. David’s wiped out a nine-point deficit with a 20 point fourth quarter, keyed by a full court press. “We got stops and turnovers from our press and that was the difference,” said coach Will Coley, whose team is 1-2. “We got it done when we needed to and we’ll keep improving.” Nick Green scored seven of his 10 points during the fourth quarter run. Goode had 14 points, seven rebounds and five steals, while Keonte Bradley scored 14 and grabbed nine rebounds. 

The Warriors varsity boys opened the home season with a down to the wire battle with Village Christian of Fayetteville that turned into a 65-55 loss Tuesday. The teams were tied 53-53 with three minutes left before the Knights turned a missed shot and three turnovers into a 12-2 closing run. “We’re still learning and that was the difference in this one,” said coach Will Coley. “I loved our effort and intensity and we’ll learn from tonight.” Keonte Bradley led the Warriors with 18 points. Tai Goode had 15 with six rebounds and five assists, while Nick Green added 14 points. Earlier, the varsity girls fell 66-35. Karis New led the scoring with 16 points and Samantha Leshnock added eight. The JV boys started the evening with a 58-34 defeat. Judson Thompson led with 11 points. All three teams host Coastal Christian of Wilmington Friday.

The Warriors varsity boys faced a capacity crowd who came to see a Trinity team that featured one of the top juniors in the country, 6’9 Isaiah Todd, who transferred from Richmond, Va. over the summer.  The home team prevailed, 65-58, but not without a fight. St. David’s trailed, 14-11 after the first quarter and 34-32 at halftime. Keonte Bradley scored eight of his team-high 23 points in the third quarter and Tai Goode added seven off three steals for layups for a 49-49 tie into the final period. Todd answered with eight points for Trinity in the fourth quarter to seal the win.  “We faced a big challenge tonight and I am very pleased with our effort,” said coach Will Coley. “We’ve only had the entire team together for four days, so we did well given that.” Bradley added nine rebounds and three blocks to his 23 points. Goode finished with 11 points, six assists and four steals. Bo Rieker also had 11 points. All three teams are home Tuesday against Village Christian.