In a close, hard fought game, the Atlantic Trojans fell to the St. Albert Saintes 49-45 Monday night in Atlantic. Although the Trojans fell behind early, they fought hard to keep the game in reach. At times throughout the game, but especially early on, the Trojans struggled with ball control as the press from St. Albert caused Atlantic problems. However, they were able to ride the wave and eventually found their stride. Down by four at the half, Atlantic flipped the script and played with the lead in the third quarter. Although they went into the fourth quarter tied, it felt as if the Trojans were in prime position to grab a win. However, St. Albert clamped down in the final quarter and made just one more play than the Trojans as they escaped Atlantic with a win.

The Trojans did not play their best basketball in the opening half, especially early on. However, St. Albert had a lot to do with that. Their full court press was relentless and caused all types of problems for the Trojans. The worst of which were the turnovers. Although Atlantic did have some unforced turnovers, a lot of them were due to the pressure of the Saintes. Despite the Atlantic defense playing well, the number of turnovers played a part in the Saintes controlling the game early. At times, it felt like the Trojans were hanging on by a thread, but they hung on. The Trojans did a tremendous job in the first half of dealing with adversity to keep the game well within reach. As the buzzer sounded at the end of the half, Atlantic trailed by just four.

The defense for the Trojans was solid throughout the game. For as many turnovers as St. Albert, Atlantic caused nearly as many in turn. This played into their game late in the second quarter and into the third as the Trojans eventually took the lead. The limited Avah Underwood to just three field goals while holding the rest of the lineup to under double digits. Offensive, Kirchoff had her best showing of the season. She not only led the game with 17 points, but she was an effective player in various aspects and had particular success driving the lane from the wing. Katrina Williams also had a strong showing with her second consecutive double-digit effort. Unfortunately for the Trojans, when push came to shove, they made just one too many mistakes, and St. Albert was able to take advantage where Atlantic was not. Head coach Dan Vargason was pleased with his team’s effort, especially on defense

The Trojans’ ability to handle adversity was also a positive.

Kichoff led the way on offense with 17 points and had particular success driving of the wings.

However, the Trojans will need to fix some things, including the turnovers.

The Trojans, now 1-2 will head out on the road Friday to take on Glenwood. You can catch all the action on KJANTV with coverage beginning at 5:50 pm. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:00 pm.