St. Viator pulls away from Fenton

Until the fourth quarter, Fenton was able to take everything host St. Viator had to offer in Friday's Class 3A regional final.

It was in that quarter that the host Lions became too much for the Bison.

Viator (22-6) now has its first regional championship since 2001 and the most wins in a season in school history after a 54-40 win.

"We talked to the kids and said do the right things, and it will be a lot of fun tonight," St. Viator coach Joe Majkowski said. "And the kids are having a lot of fun right now."

The Lions led 34-29 at the start of the fourth quarter, and in that quarter senior forward Richard Markovits delivered a spark to help lift Viator.

Markovits scored 7 of his 9 points in the final quarter and took an important charge to help extend a Viator run.

"It was a critical point in the game, and I wanted to come up with some plays," Markovits said. "That's kind of my job on this team - to make plays in certain situations where plays need to be made. I just wanted to come out with a lot of energy and be a spark plug on this team."

Senior guard Alan Aboona was great all game for the Lions. He finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds.

"He's our leader," Majkowski said. "We go as he goes, and he played very hard tonight."

Aboona said Friday's game was his first-career double-double.

"I just like to make plays for my teammates, and score when I can," said Aboona, who also had 3 assists. "I hit the glass pretty hard today. It's just about being productive, and getting the win."

Senior forward Richard McLoughlin added 13 points and 8 rebounds for the Lions.

Fenton (11-18) coach Dennis Cromer said St. Viator is a very physical team, and his Bison struggled with that Friday.

"We don't quit," Cromer said. "And we are kind of fighters out there, which we demonstrated. But because we struggle a little bit to score, it's kind of hard for us to get over that hump."

Fenton was led in scoring by Daniel Montano, who had 14 points and 7 rebounds.

Vince Esposito had 11 points

After the game, a hand-made sign by Viator senior forward Brandon King reading "2010" was hanging under the heading "regional" on the Lions' boys basketball plaque that tracks the team's history. Only two other years stand beside the new sign: 1987 and 2001.

Under the heading "sectional" there are no numbers, and the Lions are on a mission to change that.

"It feels great right now, but we're not done," Aboona said. "We feel we can go really far. We really want to go far. Especially with our experience and our senior leadership."