COLUMBUS, Ohio -- St. Charles used a balanced attack and strong team defense Friday night to take down DeSales at home, 53-52. The Cardinals were led by a trio of double figure scorers, steered by Doogie James with 13 points, Chase Walker with 12, and Ryan Utt with 10. 

Despite going down early to start the game, St. Charles fought back and took the lead with a strong effort in the third quarter. The Cardinals carried that lead for most of the fourth quarter until DeSales senior wing Obed Achirem scored a tough basket with less than a minute to go in the game. 

In St. Charles final possession of the game, James attacked the rim during a broken play and threw up a floater contested by multiple defenders, only to see it hit rim, backboard, then fall in. With less than 10 seconds remaining, DeSales failed to get off a clean look to win the game. 

In the loss, DeSales senior and Davidson commit Des Watson scored a game-high 25 points on a number of tough shots, strong dunks, and impressive moves. Achirem contributed 12 points in an impressive effort as he was tasked with guarding Walker (St. Charles 6-foot-8 forward) and being the second scoring option for the Stallions. 

St. Charles now has sole possession of first place in the CCL as they are 5-1 in league action. DeSales falls to 5-3 and is essentially out of the running for a first place finish, barring two more losses from St. Charles. The Cardinals are now in the driver’s seat to win back to back league championships. 

St. Charles will look to finish off a brutal back to back when they travel to Pickerington North Saturday night. DeSales returns to action Wednesday as they will play host to Granville.