Ripon Christian boys repeat as TVL basketball champions with rivalry win

Lukas Vermeulen lost his starting spot to an underclassman at the beginning of the season, but he never relinquished his confidence.

When the frustration subsided, the Ripon Christian High School senior made a promise to himself and his team: He would meet every opportunity off the bench with the energy and execution of a starter.

On Tuesday night, his commitment was rewarded with a Trans-Valley League championship. Vermeulen scored a season-high 10 points and grabbed five rebounds, personifying the Knights’ resiliency in a season of change and a game of chance.

Ripon Christian overcame the transition to a new coach, alumnus Mark Hofman, and then dug itself out of a huge first-quarter hole to post a 57-46 victory over Ripon.

Ripon Christian (18-7, 11-1) clinched its second consecutive TVL title. Players gathered for an impromptu photo shoot beneath a basket, while the Indians (22-5, 10-2), long in the face, took the long way to the exits.

In a season full of victories, Vermeulen revealed the growing pains endured by the champions.

“With a new coach, it’s always hard. We had seniors who had been coached all their lives by Mr. (Ron) Vander Molen, and then we got this new coach,” Vermeulen said. “At first, we didn’t trust him, but as soon as we bought into what he had to say, we grew exponentially. Our trust in our coach helped us on the floor.”

Few enjoyed the postgame celebration as much as the 6-foot-5 center, who struggled with Vander Molen’s stunning dismissal and a new role behind sophomore call-up Andrew Vander Weide.

“At that point, I figured my role was to come in and be his backup. I didn’t like it at first, but I figured I’d do my best anyway,” said Vermeulen, who started Ripon Christian’s comeback from a 13-point deficit with four first-quarter points. “I felt like motivating the team was part of my job also.”

Hofman could sense the uneasiness inside his locker room following a 53-52 loss to Ripon on Jan. 26, a game decided by Cody Haines’ tip-in with 1.6 seconds left. Hofman challenged his team to find their identity and circled the rematch at Ripon.

“The title is great, but the way my boys … how much better they got as basketball players and people is what’s more important to me,” Hofman said. “You see how tough they were? They executed. Ran their stuff. I told them they had three weeks to get better and you’ll get one more shot, and they responded. I’m so proud of them.”

The feuding neighbors entered the regular-season finale tied atop the TVL standings, but this one lacked the suspense of their first encounter.

The Indians came out blazing, scoring the first nine points. When Aaron Paschini made a 27-foot three-pointer from the wing and then scored in transition to make it 15-2, the Indians looked on their way to a blowout.

“Everything we worked on in practice, they did that in the first quarter and they did that to a ‘T,’ ” Ripon coach Rod Wright said. “And then Ripon Christian played through that surge.”

Ripon Christian narrowed the deficit to 19-12 on three consecutive back-door layups – two by Ty Beidleman and one by Vermeulen – cooling Ripon without its movement away from the ball.

“I was just trying to bring the intensity,” Vermeulen said. “Our guys came out flat, and we don’t usually do that in the first quarter.”

Travis Vander Molen’s three-pointer from the top of the arc to start the second quarter flipped the momentum. Suddenly, Ripon Christian could do no wrong.

Zach Cortright, an endless stream of energy at point guard, closed the half with nine unanswered points. His three-pointer from the wing gave the Knights their first lead, 26-25. Moments later, he tipped a ball into the backcourt and beat the buzzer with a layup to send Ripon Christian surging into the break.

“They kept their cool, fought and got back into it,” Hofman said. “They would have folded three weeks ago.”

The Knights never let their foot off the gas, outscoring Ripon 26-13 in the second and third quarters.

Cortright finished with 19 points and was 8 of 10 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter. Beidleman had 13 points and five rebounds, while Vander Molen had eight points and seven rebounds.

The Knights likely will be a top seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V tournament when the brackets are announced Thursday at 4 p.m.

“We’re going to keep working and get better. We’re going to practice the same way we always do,” Hofman said. “We have a good trajectory right now.”

Ripon’s stumble could cost it more than a league championship. A victory Tuesday would have assured the Indians a home game to open the Division IV tournament. Now, their fate is in the hands of the seeding committee.

Ripon is enjoying its best season in a decade, but is its body of work enough to warrant a top-eight seed?

“If we would have continued that 19-to-whatever run, it would have been a different conversation,” Wright said.

Haines had 22 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots in the loss, but Ripon got little production from its talented junior backcourt. Cole Stevens went nearly 24 minutes between points and finished with seven. Paschini fouled out with 7:17 left.

“When my two guards can’t score, you know it’s going to be a long night,” Wright said, “and it proved to be a long night.”

This story was originally published February 17, 2016 at 6:33 AM with the headline "Ripon Christian boys repeat as TVL basketball champions with rivalry win."