ST. CHARLES – Jorden Matlock grew tired of watching others celebrate district championships.
The Orchard Farm senior was on the losing end of three successive district title games in basketball and two more as a member of the Eagles’ football team.
“It’s just hard to get to this point and keep losing,” Matlock said. “I needed to win one before I left.”
Matlock was one of four Eagles in double figures as Orchard Farm shared the ball and then shared a championship celebration after an 83-55 victory over Lutheran St. Charles in the Class 4 District 7 title game Friday at St. Charles West High School.
Orchard Farm (22-6), which won its first district title since 2011, advanced to play Mexico (22-6) in a Class 4 sectional at 7 p.m. Monday at Orchard Farm.
“It’s the fourth year in a row we’ve got to this game, and to see them get over the hump, it means everything,” Orchard Farm coach Mike Hohe said. “It’s a really cool moment for the boys and the program.”
Lutheran St. Charles (10-16) dealt Orchard Farm one of those district championship game losses two years earlier, and the Cougars came hungry for a repeat performance.
Sophomore Phines Douglas IV connected on three long-range attempts, including a corner triple that he somehow kissed off the glass to give Lutheran St. Charles an early 9-7 lead.
But the Eagles had been through this crucible before and refused to melt under its pressure. Collin Sinclair, Madden Bohning and Max Dietrich absorbed contact and scored on strong drives to the basket as Orchard Farm grabbed a 21-17 lead early in the second quarter.
“My freshman and sophomore year, I feel like we all played timid. Today, we came out with confidence. We were ready to play this game,” Dietrich said.
Those effective one-on-one drives forced Lutheran St. Charles to slide defenders to help, and the Eagles were ready. Dribble penetration, kickouts and ball reversals allowed Dietrich and junior Will Wolf to drain back-to-back threes, as Orchard Farm exhibited a masterclass in sharing the ball during a 19-1 second quarter run.
“We were looking for the extra pass – keep moving it, keep moving it – and we got a better shot every time,” Wolf said.
Orchard Farm took a 17-point lead into halftime with Dietrich and Wolf leading the way. In the second half, new leading men took center stage.
First, it was Sinclair, who drove and kicked to Wolf for three, drove the lane for his own 3-point play, and then found Wolf in transition to complete an eight-point burst for the Eagles. Matlock took the baton from there, nabbing a steal at midcourt and soaring for a breakaway dunk, then setting up Wolf for his fourth three-ball of the game to give the Eagles a 67-42 lead after three quarters.
“That’s how we are. Every game there’s a new leading scorer. You never know who’s going to break out, but you know somebody will,” Matlock said.
Wolf and Dietrich led the way Friday with 23 points apiece, Sinclair added 11 and Matlock scored 10 as Orchard Farm kept the foot on the gas from start to finish.
“We played free, we did not play tight and that’s a huge thing,” Hohe said.
Jayden Woods scored a game-high 25 points and Tyler Stepney added 19 for Lutheran St. Charles, which began the season with a 1-9 record before stringing together a flurry of wins late in the season and during the district tournament.
The 22 wins for Orchard Farm are the most since the 2010-11 team went 24-5 and eventually lost in the sectional round to Cardinal Ritter.
With a win over Mexico on Monday, the 2024-25 Eagles would advance further in the MSHSAA postseason than any team in program history. But for now, Orchard Farm will enjoy the satisfaction of finally pushing the district championship boulder to the top of the hill.
“I finally got one, and it feels amazing,” Matlock said.
Photo Gallery at: https://benvessa.smugmug.com/Boys-Basketball-Photos/Boys-Basketball-2024-25/Orchard-Farm-vs-Lutheran-St-Charles-C4D7
