Calvary Christian falls in 1A semis
Calvary Christian, making its first-ever trip to the Final Four, saw its dream season cut short Wednesday morning at The Lakeland Center
In the Class 1A semifinals, the Warriors lost 51-38 to The Rock (Gainesville), getting held to their lowest point total of the season....Calvary Christiann (27-3) shot 25-percent and was plagued by foul trouble all game long (Kevin Cantinol and Marcos Quinones picked up 3 first half fouls)...
Calvary senior Brian Horrach had 10 points for Calvary. Cantinol fouled out with a minute left in his final high school game - he finished with 5 points.....He'll play at Mississippi next year
The turning point in the game, Calvary coach Dave Bintz said, was two minutes in - when Cantinol picked up his second foul and had to sit on the bench the rest of the quarter.
"He's our foundation," Bintz said. "And when he went out, it was tough for us."
The Warriors were admittedly nervous walking out on the floor, compared to the stone-cold Lions, which, in business-like fashion, took control of the game from the start. The Rock is battled tested, boasting wins over Palm Beach Gardens Dwyer (55-46), Edison (Fresno, CA), and Gainesville High (51-49). The Rock lost by 2 to Dr. Phillips, which is playing tomm in the 6A semis...
Lions' senior guard Vytas Sulskis and shooting guard Josh Snodgrass each had 15 for the Rock. Sulskis signed with Youngstown State, the school's first hoops signee....
Stay tuned. I'll post live updates from the Lakewood-Lee semifinal at 7 pm......Just click on comments and you'll find them
-- JOE SMITH
(Pictured: Calvary Christian's Justin Kissner, left, and Jim Appelt. Times photo - Chris Zuppa. Click to enlarge.)
The St. Petersburg Times High School Sports blog is written and compiled by the Times preps sports staff from Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco and Hernando counties. We invite your participation in the comments area.
Didn't think Calvary'd make it especially after yesterdays Times atricle about Giancola's lung problem. Doubt any College is gonna want that kind of baggage
Posted by: Joe Walshette | February 28, 2007 at 01:26 PM
he was not a college prospect at any point,he will be a great college student,and a fine young man...you missed the point....
Posted by: | February 28, 2007 at 02:20 PM
Joe- Don't you think it is amazing at how well these schools who find European players and RECRUIT do. A number of the teams in the Final Four don't do things the right way, and get rewarded. The Rock is perfect example. Three years ago they were losing games by 30 plus and would never schedule the upper class teams. Now they are in the Final Four. They should have an asterisk put next to their name. The FHSAA needs to get a back bone.
Posted by: Ryan | February 28, 2007 at 03:12 PM
I cannot imagine what kind of parent would a child with such a serious lung condition continue to play if not in the hopes of a scholorship.
Posted by: Joe Walshette | February 28, 2007 at 03:36 PM
Ain't that the truth! Leave the poor kid alone before he drops dead on the court!
Posted by: Joe Walshette | February 28, 2007 at 03:37 PM
You've missed an important fact in Joe's story, Andrew's condition is NOT life threatening at all. The lung that has been surgically repaired is good to go for the rest of his life. If the second lung goes down again, Andrew will also have it surgically repaired and he shouldn't have any lung problems the rest of his life.
Posted by: Coach Bintz | February 28, 2007 at 05:28 PM
What drives a kid like Andrew isn't necessarily scholarship hopes, but instead, the LOVE OF THE GAME! Someone who doesn't play basketball would have no concept of that!
Posted by: MrsCoach | February 28, 2007 at 06:40 PM
Andrew is a great player and great person with so much heart and love for the game. thats what drives him.
Posted by: | February 28, 2007 at 07:28 PM
I have often heard that the world is made up of stupid people, and you, my friend, Joe Walshette, are one stupid person.
Posted by: | February 28, 2007 at 07:32 PM
agreeed
Posted by: | February 28, 2007 at 08:58 PM
Listen Here.. I am going to lay it all on the line right here for you. Andrew Giancola is my best friend and all you who think his lung condition is life threatning and he cant play college ball becasue of that are absolutely rediculous. Do you people have anything better to do than sit on this blog and talk bad about high school players. I'll take Andrew aka A-Town over any other kid in the district, he plays with heart and passion and the slogan would be Overcoming Obstacles. And that is exactly what he has done. You gotta understand this kid plays with a passion and a swagger, he could of easily said "that's it" "Im done" but instead he kept his faith and continued to work hard on and off the court. I guarentee you he will play college ball somewhere and whatever program gets him will be truly Blessed. And if anyone has any questions about Andrew and his concept of "The Love Of the Game" Call my cell and we can Chat. 727-239-8293. That especially goes for you Joe Walshette...I'd love to hear from you..
Posted by: David Penn AKA Merk Squad | March 02, 2007 at 12:20 AM