Doddridge County’s Malachi Kelley (21) goes up for a shot against Parkersburg Catholic during the LKC Night of Champions Saturday at the Waco Center. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

GLENVILLE, W.Va. — A year after losing to Williamstown in the LKC Night of Champions, Doddridge County found itself back in the Waco Center.

This time, though, the Bulldogs earned the right to cut down nets. Doddridge defeated Parkersburg Catholic 69-53 Saturday to capture the league title.

“Praise the Lord,” said DCHS head coach Paul Burnside. “God blessed us with the opportunity, and that’s all you can ask for. My coaching staff did a great job on the scout to help us out. The guys put in the work and came out and played together as a team. Very proud of their effort all across the board.”

The Bulldogs nearly doubled up the Crusaders on the glass, finishing with a 45-23 rebounding advantage.

“We gave them probably 20 second-chance points,” said Catholic head coach Jim McLean. “When you’re working your tails off to get stops, and you give them easy putbacks, there’s no way you can win the game.”

Doddridge County’s Jaden Solomon, left, makes a move in the paint as Parkersburg Catholic’s Luke Anderson defends during the LKC Night of Champions Saturday at the Waco Center. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

Jaden Solomon, who scored a team-high 13 points, grabbed 10 rebounds for a double-double. Landon Thomas added 10 points and eight boards while Will Adams finished with eight points and seven rebounds.

“There’s huge emphasis for us to rebound the basketball,” Burnside said. “When we do that and limit teams to one shot and done, we’re pretty tough to beat.”

Heston Hayes tallied 12 points for Doddridge while Maddox Jones netted eight. Jerod Trent and Malachi Kelley contributed six points apiece, with Trent registering a game-high seven steals. Brysen Dixon chipped in three assists. Overall, 10 Bulldogs made it into the scoring column.

“God’s blessed us with that much talent, so we want to use it,” Burnside said. “They’ve bought into the system that we’re trying to run. When we have that many guys, we want to try to use them so we can wear down the other team. A lot of teams don’t have that kind of depth.”

Catholic, which made the Night of Champions a year after winning just seven games, got a game-high 18 points from Luke Anderson, who also put up eight rebounds, four steals and three dimes. Leonardo DeAngelo and Carter Nelson added 11 and 10 points, respectively, while Preston Randolph notched six points and a game-high seven assists.

Parkersburg Catholic’s Carter Nelson (3) handles the ball as Doddridge County’s Landon Thomas (2) defends during the LKC Night of Champions Saturday at the Waco Center. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

The Crusaders, who like Doddridge are now 16-3, are trying to get acclimated to playing under the bright lights.

“We still come out starstruck in these situations,” McLean said. “We don’t get settled in, and that’s my job as a coach to fix.”

As fans were still filing into their seats, the Bulldogs built a quick 13-0 cushion.

Anderson energized the Catholic faithful in the second quarter when he knocked down a 3-pointer, cutting it to 27-18, and then blocked a transition dunk attempt by Kelley. The Crusaders, though, were unable to capitalize as Doddridge took a 32-21 lead into halftime.

The Bulldogs opened the second half on a 13-5 run, and their lead ballooned to 18, 51-33, by the end of the third. Catholic clawed back in the fourth, twice getting within 11, but Doddridge finished strong. Aaron Glaspell, the 13th man to check in for the ‘Dogs, charted back-to-back assists to Hayes to close out the scoring.

Parkersburg Catholic’s Jeremiah Lewis (20) puts up a shot over Doddridge County’s Will Adams (10) during the LKC Night of Champions Saturday at the Waco Center. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

“I was very proud that every time they made a run, we settled down and made a counter run,” Burnside said. “Instead of getting punched and falling down, we punched back.”

One more week remains in the regular season. Both teams have three games to play before regionals begin.

“Our goal is to play for championships,” McLean said. “Tonight was one of those opportunities. We’ve got other opportunities coming up, so we need to learn from this. It’s our job as coaches to fix what we did wrong. We’ll get to work and prepare for regionals.”

Contact Jordan Holland at jholland@mariettatimes.com.