BOYS’ DIVISION V : Faith Baptist Has Final Word, 63-60

After 90 minutes of sweat and blood Saturday, not to mention an entire season, a tall toothpick of a player emerged from a shrinking list of candidates to determine the outcome.

Faith Baptist High center Peter Rasmussen, a rail-thin, 6-foot-8 senior, made a pair of free throws with 18 seconds remaining and the Contenders put away Delphic League rival Campbell Hall, 63-60, in the Southern regional Division V basketball final at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

In a game that Chick Hearn would have put in the refrigerator numerous times, Campbell Hall scratched and clawed its way back--until Rasmussen made both ends of a one and one to send Faith Baptist (27-6) to the state final this weekend in Sacramento.

The Contenders will play Ripon Christian (33-1), an 83-57 winner over Hoopa Valley in the Northern regional final.

Rasmussen, who finished with a team-high 20 points, had made four of seven free throws when he stepped to the line with Faith Baptist holding a 61-60 lead. Momentum was all but gone.

“We were missing all the free throws,” Rasmussen said. “I don’t know why.”

The most likely explanation was pressure, pure and simple. Campbell Hall (20-11), which Faith Baptist had defeated twice in three previous meetings, refused to roll over, despite being close to terminal on several occasions.

“Everybody thought we were dead about six different times this season,” Campbell Hall Coach Jon Palarz said. “We never gave up.”

Faith Baptist took a 57-48 lead with 3 minutes 23 seconds left on a jump shot by Alex Estrada, who finished with 15 points. Campbell Hall turned the ball over on its next possession, but James DeCarriere missed a pair of free throws.

It fast became the team theme. The Contenders made just 11 of 22 from the line and four of 11 in the final quarter--including the final pair by Rasmussen. Campbell Hall, meanwhile, made eight of its last nine free throws to slice into a seemingly impenetrable lead.

“They’re tough, they just keep pulling back,” Faith Baptist Coach Stuart Mason said. “We’d get the front end a couple of times, or miss the front end, and they’d do something on the other end.”

Campbell Hall, in fact, came back like a front-end collision. Junior guard C. J. Thompkins (eight points) made four free throws to spark a 7-2 run, bringing the Vikings to within 59-55 with 1:50 left. And with 48 seconds to play, Austin McKellar, who finished with a game-high 22 points, scored to bring the Vikings to within 61-60.

Rasmussen stopped the landslide with his free throws, setting the stage for McKellar, who with eight seconds left missed a leaning 15-footer under heavy coverage. A jump ball was called on the rebound, giving Campbell Hall possession with three seconds left. The Vikings got the shot they wanted after a timeout--a three-point attempt by McKellar from the left side of the key--but the ball caromed off the side of the rim.