NCISAA football championship slips away from Trinity Christian at Asheville
A season that Trinity Christian football spent on an accelerated learning curve ended in Asheville on Friday in the NCISAA Division II championship.
The Crusaders fell to defending champion The Asheville School 42-29 after the Blues took a two-touchdown lead in the third quarter and Trinity Christian couldn't catch up.
The Crusaders (10-2) add a state runner-up title to their trophy haul of four NCISAA championships, all under the leadership of program-founding coach Chuck Webster.
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Led by Pine Forest transfer Xayden Watson and Gray's Creek transfer Elijiah Oehlke, the Crusaders spent much of the season learning to jell, with Webster calling the team's growth "tremendous."
Their season ends at 10-2, topping their wins total from the past two seasons combined and claiming their first Big East Conference title since 2019 — also the last year Trinity won a state title.
The Asheville School (8-3) won its second straight NCISAA Division II championship. The Blues beat Covenant Day 46-10 in last year's title game.
Trinity doubled up Asheville's time of possession Friday, controlling the ball 31 minutes to Asheville's 17. But the Blues converted a fumble and an interception into touchdowns, and Caleb Jenkins ran for 156 yards with a touchdown, and Ricky Tolbert ran for 97 yards and two scores.
Oehlke scored on a 16-yard run in the first quarter and Watson connected with Michael Ross Jr. on an 86-yard TD pass in the second quarter as the Crusaders matched each Asheville score.
Ross would make another touchdown grab, this time for 20 yards off the hand of Oehkle, to tie the game at 21 heading into halftime.
Before Trinity Christian could match Asheville's first touchdown of the second half, the Blues' King-Markell Shipman returned a fumble 65 yards for another score to put the Crusaders in a 14-point hole.
Ross picked off a pass for Trinity and he added another TD reception. Watson accounted for 175 yards (90 passing, 56 rushing, 29 receiving) and threw for two touchdowns. Oehlke threw for 144 yards and a TD, plus he ran for 29.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Trinity Christian football NCISAA championship Asheville School
