At this point in the season, teams that have qualified for the post season and still have regular season games to play are looking for tests. Coaches are hoping their teams get challenged in these remaining outings so they can see how their squads may react to high-stress environments.

Both Jim Thorpe's Jason McElmoyle and Marian's John Patton came away satisfied after Saturday afternoon's battle that went down to the wire, which saw Jim Thorpe prevail 54-49.Supporting cast players rose to the challenge, foul trouble provided some adversity in the form of pressure-filled foul shots, and running out the clock were among the 'situational scenarios' that plenty of coaches don't know how their team will react to, until they are faced with those situations."We found a way to win," McElmoyle admitted afterward. "It's great to have this type of confidence-booster going into playoffs. Our guys gutted this one out and we had guys step up for us, so it was definitely a good thing."The Olympians saw things 'click' for them early on, as they built an 11-7 first-period edge. In the second period, however, it was the Colts' turn to erupt offensively, as they outscored Thorpe 21-12 in the second frame for a 28-23 lead at intermission.John Woitko scored 10 in that period, while teammate Jake Paluck added seven.The absence of Olympian senior center Rayan Green allowed the Colts to force the issue and be more aggressive. The 6-7 Green needed to meet with the trainer to get his ankle re-taped, allowing the Marian guards to drive to the lane area to aid in their success.The Olympians stormed out of the locker room in the third and retook the lead 33-31 after a Green put-back. From there, the Colts finished the third on an 8-3 run to take a 39-36 lead, and the momentum, into the fourth frame.The final session saw the two sides battle evenly, as the score was tied at 45 apiece with 2:28 remaining. Jordan McElmoyle gave the Olympians the lead with a free throw, which his team never relinquished the rest of the way. Great defense and timely foul shooting iced the victory for the winners, as Chris Micciche and Brendan Carroll went a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe the remainder of the way."At that point of the game, I'm just thinking, 'I gotta make them," Micciche admitted. "Our defense came up big in the second half, I thought, and it's a great way to go into districts, getting the win."Junior Brendan Carroll, who came up with a crucial steal in the final minutes, added, "Whatever it takes to get the win, really. I knew I had to do whatever I could to help the team pull it out. With Marian being a big rival, and districts coming up, it's a huge win."BY THE NUMBERS... Green, Micciche and Matt Elmore all reached double figures in scoring, with 12, 11, and 10, respectively. Carroll's eight, along with seven from McElmoyle and six from Alec Lauer accounted for all of Thorpe's points. Meanwhile, Marian's Woitko led all scorers with 15, while Paluck's nine and eight apiece from Aaron Deangelo and Josh Inama followed.GLASS CLEANER... For the Olympians, Green had another strong inside effort, as he pulled down 14 rebounds, including seven offensive. Meanwhile, the Colts' DeAngelo finished with 11 boards.OLYMPIAN SWEEP... Zach Searfoss drilled five triples to lead the Jim Thorpe JV team to a 58-54 preliminary win. Chris Valdez added 12. DJ Mummey's 16 was tops for Marian, with Ian Myers adding 11.JIM THORPEElmore 4-2-3-10, Micciche 3-5-9-11, Green 3-6-7-12, Lauer 2-0-0-6, McElmoyle 2-2-6-7, Jefferson 0-0-0-0, Carroll 2-4-6-8. TOTALS: 16-19-31-54.MARIANCortese 0-0-0-0, Woitko 4-5-7-15, Puza 1-0-1-3, Karchner 0-0-0-0, Kuczynski 2-2-2-6, Deangelo 4-0-0-8, Paluck 4-0-0-9, Myers 0-0-0-0, Inama 3-2-4-8. TOTALS: 18-9-14-49.Jim Thorpe 11 12 13 18 - 54Marian 7 21 11 10 - 49Three pointers: JT - Lauer 2, McElmoyle 1; M - Woitko 2, Paluck 1, Puza 1.