(Seguin) – The most successful boys basketball season in Marion High School’s history came to a close Saturday afternoon with a 71-37 loss to defending state champion San Antonio-Cole in the 3A Region IV championship game at Seguin’s Goldie Harris Gym.
The Bulldogs advanced through the regional semifinals Friday to earn a spot in Saturday’s title game by outlasting Bishop 77-67 in a double overtime thriller.
Cole captured its fourth straight Region IV title and will head to the Alamodome in San Antonio later this week with a chance to defend its state championship at the UIL state tournament.
Marion’s five-round playoff run to the regional finals was deepest in program history. After the loss to Cole, head coach Jon Allen emotionally reflected on the lasting legacy of seniors Ryken Autry, Kadeem Blyden, Jon Padron, Fernando Romero, Lane Pawelek, and Justin Clough.
“I’ll get teary eyed,” Allen said. “I mean Ryken was in third grade, coming to camp, and he was the best shooter in third grade that I had. Just amazing, these guys, all of them. I mean, six seniors, all of them played since seventh grade in the program, and what they did? Amazing. Just amazing. Can’t say enough about them.”
The Bulldogs got to experience an evening of glory and triumph in the semifinal battle against Bishop before Saturday’s disappointing loss.
Marion rallied back from a 49-40 deficit midway through the fourth quarter with a 13-4 run, capped by the game-tying corner three from Dominic Castellanos with 37 seconds left, to knot things up at 53-all and force the first overtime.
Autry hit a free throw in the closing seconds of the first overtime to tie it up at 63 and force the second extra frame. The Bulldogs pulled away with a 14-4 run in the final overtime period.
“Just grittiness, and toughness, and finishing,” Allen said. “We finally figured out that we need to attack the basket more and get some two-on-ones and stuff like that. We didn’t do a very good job of that in the first half.”
Autry led Marion with 23 points and hit four threes to go with seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Castellanos put in 12 points off the bench and grabbed a team-high four steals.
Blyden scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half and overtimes. He also ripped down a game-high 16 rebounds and blocked four shots.
“We tell him all the time, nobody can stop you when you play like a man down there,” Allen said of 6’6″ post. “And he did that. He played great.”
Romero and Richard Rayos chipped in with nine points apiece. Bishop’s Donny Thomas led all scorers with 32.
Cole got off to a hot start in Saturday’s final and put Marion in a 21-7 hole by the end of the first quarter. The Bulldogs hung around in the second period and pulled within 12 points, 32-20, at halftime on a buzzer beating three by Romero, his fourth make from long range in the first half.
The Cougars looked every bit the part of a defending state champion in the third quarter, outscoring Marion 23-2 to build a 55-22 cushion and put the game out of reach. Cole point guard Silas Livingston scored 17 of his game-high 29 points in the third period alone.
“What do you say about those guys? They’re good, and they earned the right to be where they’re at, and what they’ve been doing the last couple of years” Allen said after Marion’s third loss to Cole this season. “They’re just bigger, faster, stronger than they were last year. I said that the second time we played in district. I thought we had a chance after the first game, we hung with them you know, and then we played at their place and it was pretty much what we saw tonight. It’s hard.”
Romero’s 12 points in the first half led Marion for the game. Cole limited Autry to nine points and no threes. Blyden finished with six. Padron and Castellanos netted four points apiece.
The Bulldogs finish the 2021-22 season with a final record of 30-8.