Campbell Hall continues rolling along in postseason play

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Is it just me, or does anyone else think the Campbell Hall boys’ basketball team makes things look a whole lot easier than they should be? Almost too easy?

For instance: The Vikings traveled a good 140-plus miles Friday afternoon for a Southern Section playoff game before getting off the bus to defeat host Santa Maria St. Joseph, 84-68, in a Division III-AA quarterfinal and quickly heading home, seemingly without breaking a sweat.

Following the win, Coach Terry Kelly was diplomatic. ‘It was a tough game against some tough kids,’’ he said. Couldn’t help laughing underneath my breath at that one. Couldn’t let him get away with such a generic response either. So, after some poking and prodding, Kelly finally relaxed and gave me some good material. Knew my plan would work...

‘If there’s one thing we know how to do, it’s win,’’ Kelly said. ‘Our goal is to win titles, always has been. Some people might think we carry ourselves differently from most teams because of our philosphy and that’s OK with us. There’s a fine line between confidence and cockiness, and I think our kids understand the difference. We expect to come out and win. And we have the horses to do it.’’

He has a point. The top-seeded Vikings entered Friday’s game defeating postseason opponents by an average of 43 points a game. Next up for the defending section and Division IV state champs: Tuesday’s semifinal against La Canada, a showdown that figures to be anything but easy given the history between the two. Then again, it just might be, considering the way Campbell Hall has been winning with relative ease thus far.

--Sean Ceglinsky