Boogie Fland probably didn’t expect that his season would last longer than that of his future college team, the University of Kentucky.

On Sunday night, five seniors — Johnuel “Boogie” Fland, Braylan Ritvo, Aamyr Sullivan, H. Eisley Jr., and Jordan Gabriel put on Archbishop Stepinac High School’s red and black one more time for a new boys’ basketball competition, the NYC: Public School Athletic League (PSAL) versus Catholic High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) Champions Challenge.

After the Stepinac Crusaders defeated the Diocese of Brooklyn’s Nazareth Regional High School to win their second consecutive CHSAA “AA” City Intersectional championship on March 10, the White Plains school now faced another Brooklyn opponent, the PSAL winner Eagle Academy at Ocean Hill. The Crusaders defeated Eagle Academy twice earlier in the 2023-24 season. 

With the game played at 8 p.m. on a Sunday night at Long Island University’s Brooklyn campus, the Eagles’ fan support outnumbered those making the trip from Westchester to support the Crusaders.

Stepinac jumped out to a 20-9 lead at the end of the first quarter. As the second period began, the Crusaders’ hottest hands, Fland and Ritvo, went cold, and over the next five and a half minutes, the Eagles chased down Stepinac and took a 27-26 lead with 2:24 remaining in the half. The two sides then exchanged leads, and were tied in the final seconds when Ritvo hit a three at the buzzer to send Stepinac into the locker room ahead 36-33. 

Ritvo opened the second half with his team’s first two points, and from that point on, Stepinac never trailed. The Eagles stayed within six halfway through the third quarter, but eight unanswered Crusader points in under two minutes put them out of the Brooklyn team’s reach. The third quarter ended 57-39. The fourth quarter saw both teams’ players shooting for stats, and some of Stepinac’s junior players getting some time on the court. The contest ended with the Crusaders victorious, 75-64.

It was a standout game for Ritvo, who had been a steady hand for Stepinac throughout the season. He took home the game’s Most Valuable Player award, leading the scoring with 23 points. Fland followed with 21. Eagle Academy senior Ajani Flemming topped his team with 20.

Stepinac’s season ends with a win in the new Champions’ Challenge competition; a second consecutive CHSAA “AA” City Intersectional championship; runner-up in the CHSAA “AA” archdiocese championship; CHSAA Coach of the Year for Patrick Massaroni; and CHSAA “AA” Player of the Year for Boogie Fland. Fland ends his high school career as Stepinac’s second all-time point scorer.

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