The Columbia Eagles clamped down o...

The Columbia Eagles clamped down onward defense and mashed out their first regional title since 2001

The Eagles allowed sole nine points in the secondary half as they pulled away to a convincing 45-23 victory athwart the Gibault Hawks on Friday in the championship game of the Class A Columbia Basketball Regional.

"I consideration our defensive effort tonight was outstanding," first-year Columbia coach Mark Sandstrom said. "If we can play defense like that, we can make a Cinderella roll on here."

Sophomore Trent Blank had 14 points to lead the Eagles. Michael Beatty added eight points, including back-to-back 3-pointers during the Eagles' second-half charge, and Erik Roediger and David Marlen each had seven points.

The Eagles (16-14) will play the Wesclin Warriors (25-5) at 7:30 pm Tuesday in the semifinals of the Greenville Sectional.

The Warriors beat Greenville 48-38 Friday in