Trinity Lutheran poses with its first state championship trophy after defeating Regis on Saturday night. (Photo by Andre Panse)

PENDLETON -- Trinity Lutheran opened the game with a big lead, then had to hold off a furious Regis comeback for an 88-84 victory Saturday night in the final of the OSAA/OnPoint Community Credit Union 2A boys basketball tournament at the Pendleton Convention Center.

“We came out ready and prepared,” Trinity Lutheran coach Kyle Gilbert said. “They played really well. We knew we would have to weather a storm somewhere down the road. I had a sense of peace. We don’t always know the plan of the Lord. If we give our all, we can live with it.”

It was the first state title in school history for the No. 1 Saints (28-1), who played for a 1A state title in 2019, but lost to Nixyaawii.

“It means so much to be the first to win one, and in my senior year,” Trinity Lutheran’s Chace Nichols said. “It’s a blessing from God.”

Regis (27-3), which trailed 30-14 after the first quarter, stormed back to tie the game in the fourth, but it wasn’t meant to be.

“The entertainment value was there,” Regis coach Jason Koehnke said. “It was worth the price of admission. They are a really, really deep team. They had a couple of key players foul out and they had kids come and do a good job.”

Chimi Gilbert knocked down three 3-pointers and had 11 points in the first quarter as the Saints took a commanding 30-14 lead. 

“They hit a lot of shots and out rebounded us early,” Koehnke said. “You can’t stop good players from making shots.”

Despite Trinity Lutheran's big lead, Koehnke said he did not count his team out.

“I knew we had faith,” he said. “They never give up. It was a mountain to climb, but we came back and took the lead. We didn’t quite pull this one out.”

The Rams pulled within 69-63 at the end of the third quarter, then traded baskets and free throws in the fourth with the Saints, then took a 77-76 lead on a bucket by Fletcher Gould with 2:39 left in the game.

Nichols drained a 3 from the top of the key, and Rhett Lewis added a basket to go back on top 81-77.

Regis came within 84-82, but Nichols made four free throws in the final 12.9 seconds to seal the win.

“I was pretty on fire with my other shots, but those last two free throws, I was nervous,” Nichols said. “Once the first on went it, I relaxed.”

Regis’ Eli Silbernagel hit a bucket at the buzzer for the final score. Silbernagel finished with a game-high 42 points, 12 rebounds, six steals and was a unanimous pick for the all-tournament first team.

“Eli has worked so hard,” Koehnke said. “He was kind of small his freshman and sophomore years. He has overcome a lot of adversity. I think he is hands down the best player in the state.”

The Rams outscored the Saints 20-17 in the second to pull within 47-34 at the half as Silbernagel had 15 points for the Rams.

Trinity Luthearn got its mojo back in the third, taking a 63-46 lead, but Chimi Gilbert picked up his fourth foul and went to the bench.

The Rams would score 13 points the final 2:29 of the quarter to trim the deficit to 69-63.

The Saints pushed their lead to 76-67 with 5:13 to play, and Regis took the lead less than two minutes to set up the dramatic finish.

Nichols finished with 26 points and five rebounds, while Quentin Romney had 23 points and five rebounds, Chimi Gilbert 16 points and four assists, and Austin Imhoff 14 points and 15 rebounds.

Gould added 19 points and four rebounds for the Rams, while Rook Smith had 11 points and five rebounds, and Lucas Koehnke four assists and three steals.