STEVEN BASSIN/STAFF

Red Bank Catholic tops CBA for first Founders Cup

The fourth time was the charm for the Red Bank Catholic High School boys’ basketball team in the Founders Cup series on Feb. 15 in Red Bank.

Red Bank Catholic battled to defeat Christian Brothers Academy for a 67-54 victory and  hoist the trophy for the first time.

Led by a career-high 31-point performance by senior Kevin Bauman, Red Bank Catholic used a 14-3 surge to begin the second half as the launching point to break its three-game losing streak and improve to 14-8 on the season.

Bauman was a machine in the Caseys’ impressive second half, when he delivered 23 of his game-high 31 points.

The senior recorded 11 of the team’s 20 points in the third quarter to help lead Red Bank Catholic come back from a 26-25 halftime deficit and take a 45-33 lead into the fourth quarter.

“It was the momentum we needed going into the Shore Conference Tournament and the state tournament,” Bauman said. “To score 31 points is a blessing and I couldn’t have done without my teammates.”

Sophomore C.J. Ruoff scored 20 points in the victory for RBC.

Senior Colin Farrell led the way for CBA by scoring a team-high 17 points in the contest, while teammate Ryan Mabrey finished with 12 points.

Junior Ryan Cremen recorded 11 points in the contest for CBA, which is 13-10 on the season.

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