Coatesville downs Henderson to take Ches-Mont title

The Coatesville basketball squad staged a remarkable comeback in the second half to surge past Henderson in front of a crowd of over 1,800 packed into Hollinger Field House at West Chester University last night.  With the victory, they secured their first Ches-Mont league championship in six years. Dominating the pivotal third quarter, Coatesville outplayed the Warriors and sealed the title with a commanding 69-60 win.

The first half belonged to Nyle Ralph-Beyer, Nelson Lamizana and Henderson. By halftime, the Warriors commanded a 29-23 lead, propelled by senior Nyle Ralph-Beyer’s impressive 15-point performance. Coatesville’s Zuri Harris managed to sink two crucial 3-pointers during the first half as well to keep the momentum.

The tide turned completely in the second half as Coatesville took control, particularly dominating the third quarter with a commanding 25-9 performance, completely altering the course of the game. It was a collective display of teamwork as Coatesville shot an impressive 9-for-13 from the field, propelling them to a 48-38 lead by the end of the third quarter.

Sophomore guard Larry Brown scored seven points in the third quarter, reserve forward Armon Shockley firing up the crowd with a steal and and-one layup. But it was senior guard Marquis Peoples who had his biggest contribution in the period, scoring 10 of his 13 points in those crucial eight minutes. Coatesville defense was hot. Despite his strong start, Ralph-Beyer was contained by the Red Raiders’ solid defensive strategy in the latter half of the game. 

“We started to make shots, we started to focus in and lock in on their individual players, that’s who it starts with,” Allen said. “Nelson, Nyle (were) unbelievable in the first half and we started to lock in on those two, we did a great job.”

Peoples provided a significant momentum boost for the Raiders as they entered the fourth quarter, first sinking a crucial 3-pointer and then sealing the moment with a timely mid-range jumper. The latter shot kissed the rim, soared high, danced around momentarily before falling through.

Henderson managed to keep pace for the majority of the fourth quarter, injecting excitement into the game by reducing the deficit to six points with less than a minute remaining, courtesy of Jesse Smith’s steal-and-layup. However, Brown, the sophomore starting post for Coatesville, displayed composure by nailing two crucial free throws, extending their lead to 66-58 with only 23 seconds left on the clock.

Zuri Harris was in the zone and led the Red Raiders with an impressive 22 points, accompanied by seven rebounds, three assists, and a steal. Meanwhile, Marquis Peoples contributed 12 points, and the towering presence of Larry Brown added another 14 points for the triumphant team.

“Coming into the season, the Ches-Mont was our first goal,” Harris said. “We just stayed together tonight at halftime and came out with a lot of energy to take the title. This is the first step for us. First was Ches-Mont, then districts and then the state playoffs. We are on a run right now. It is an amazing feeling to win this championship.”

Lamizana, Henderson’s 6-8 senior forward cleaned the glass with a 16-rebound effort and also added nine points and four blocks, but scored just one point after halftime. Ralph-Beyer had 15 of his 21 points in the first half, but the sharpshooting 6-4 Sacred Heart commit was 0-4 from 3-point range in the second half.  Connor Fleet contributed 15 points for the Warriors.

“It feels awesome for the city, it feels awesome for the kids,” Allen said. “We just put so much work in, in the 10 months before this. We started working and this is what we wanted, this is what we wanted. We wanted to start here and obviously we want to end with a state championship. But we’re going to end this and go celebrate because this group, this group really, really earned. This group of players, this group of parents, this group of coaches, we really earned it.”

There’s two more big goals ahead: chasing the school’s first district and state championships since Coatesville coach John Allen wore the uniform in 2001. Let’s hope his  23-year-old state championship shirt brings good luck! 

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