Lightning suffer first setback without Beeler

The Sage Hill School boys’ basketball team played its fifth straight game without Coach Jeff Beeler on Friday. Megan Cid, the school’s athletic director, said Beeler took a leave of absence early last week.

Until Friday, Beeler’s absence had not affected the Lightning in terms of losses. Sage Hill won four in a row with Billy Conlon as the interim head coach.

That winning streak ended. Sage Hill ran into a team no one in the Academy League has been able to figure out this season.

Defending league champion Crean Lutheran remained undefeated in league with a 72-51 win at Sage Hill.

In the first round of league, the Lightning (12-5, 4-2 in league) actually gave the Saints (15-4, 6-0), ranked No. 4 in the CIF Southern Section Division 4A poll, their toughest game. St. Margaret’s, which shared first with Crean Lutheran last season, lost to the Saints by 33, Brethren Christian by 37, Whitney by 40, Downey Calvary Chapel by 45 and Oxford Academy by 49.

“It wasn’t real satisfying,” Crean Lutheran Coach Josh Beaty said of the Saints’ seventh consecutive league win. “We don’t feel like we played really well. We feel like we can play a lot better.”

Michael Bagatourian led the way for the Saints, finishing with 27 points and 12 rebounds. The other Crean Lutheran players in double figures were Even Kittelsen (12 points) and Tim Ghita (10).

The Saints return four starters from last season’s team that reached the quarterfinals. Their experience helped them jump out to a 19-7 first-quarter lead.

Crean Lutheran closed out the opening quarter on a 15-0 run. Five different players scored during the stretch, with Ghita, Brett Kittelsen and his twin, Even, each recording a three-point play.

Sage Hill went into halftime down, 34-19. The hosts shot 28% from the field and 20% from behind the arc.

Despite the shooting woes, Sage Hill managed to get within 12 a couple of times in the third quarter.

Chance Kuehnel, who finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, ignited the Lightning. His putback off his own miss began a 9-2 run by Sage Hill, which cut the deficit to 44-32 with 2:02 left in the third.

Crean Lutheran put away the Lightning in the fourth quarter, making nine of 14 shots. Sage Hill only took nine shots in the final eight minutes, seeing its four-game winning streak snapped.

“I felt like if we were able to keep them in the mid-60s … we had a pretty good chance,” Conlon said. “We just didn’t hit enough of shots.”

Sage Hill played well in the first four games under Conlon. Three of those games were in league, putting Sage Hill in a situation to move into a first-place tie with Crean Lutheran, if it had upset the Saints.

Conlon, in his first stint in charge of a varsity program, said he’s not sure if Beeler will return this season. Cid said the school was hoping he would.

Conlon has been around the Lightning. This is the 29-year-old’s fifth season with the program, serving under Beeler, as well as coaching the freshmen and junior varsity teams in the past.

“It was a tough situation obviously for all of us, players, coaches, staff, administration,” Conlon said of Beeler taking a leave of absence. “Jeff had been here for nine years and had put his heart and soul into this program and these kids. They had to battle through some adversity, but I give them all the credit in the world, to come out and win four straight after his leave.

“I’m taking it day-by-day, and I’m telling these guys [to] show up every single day to practice ready to work. Nothing has changed. I’ve been around these kids, for our seniors, all four years. They’re very familiar with me. We’re very comfortable. It’s been as much as it could be a smooth transition because of our continuity.”

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Academy League

Crean Lutheran 72, Sage Hill 51

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Crean 19 – 15 – 17 – 21 — 72

Sage Hill 7 – 12 – 16 – 16 — 51

CL – Bagatourian 27, E. Kittelsen 12, Ghita 10, B. Kittelsen 9, Scriven 5, Poirot 5, Sirossian 4 .

3-pt. goals – Bagatourian 2, Ghita 2, E. Kittelsen 2, Scriven 1, Poirot 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.

SH – Kuehnel 11, Sadeghi 11, Park 10, Toubia 6, Nanula 6, Corona 5, King 2.

3-pt. goals – Sadeghi 2, Park 2, Toubia 1, Corona 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.