Finishing a season with a losing record is not something Fenwick head boys basketball coach John Quinn is accustomed to doing. Quinn, whose Friars haven’t finished under .500 in 10 years, watched his team fall to 4-10 overall on Friday night on their home court after suffering a 68-67 loss to Hales Franciscan.
“We are going to have to rally and catch some breaks if we want to make this a successful season,” said Quinn, who has only had six losing seasons in his 25 years as head coach at Fenwick. “You can’t coach experience.”
The Friars (1-4 in the Catholic League) showed some flair against Class 2A defending state champ Hales, but they also showed their youthfulness. After gaining an early lead, Fenwick was outscored 18-11 in the second quarter and went into halftime down 29-23. In the closing minute of the third, the Spartans jumped on an 8-0 run, with four of the points coming off layups.
The Friars battled back in the fourth mostly at the free-throw line. Sam Ainsworth, who finished with 24 points in the game, went 8-for-8 at the charity stripe to erase a seven point deficit. Two three-point attempts to tie it by Luke Lattner in the closing seconds fell short.
The Friars, who are currently on a four-game losing skid since falling to De La Salle to begin the new year, turned the ball over 21 times, a number Quinn said has to decrease significantly with 10 games left in the regular season.
“We can’t keep making the same mistakes and expect to gain some momentum. Turnovers happen in a basketball game, but unforced turnovers can be prevented, and we’ll take this week to work on our passing in practice.”
Along with his game-high 24 points, Ainsworth finished with 10 rebounds and connected on 14-of-15 shots from the free-throw line. Lattner finished with 22 points. Sophomore Keyshawn Johnson, who fouled out late in the fourth, had six points, five assists and two steals. The point guard sat much of the third quarter with three fouls.
Larry Kuykendoll led Hales with 21 points, while Eddie Alcantara added 17.
Fenwick will play a single game per week for the next three weeks beginning with a trip to St. Rita on Friday (7:30 p.m.).
