Park Hill tried getting 18 points and a win better in a week, but came up short at the 810 Varsity Shootout on Saturday.

The Trojans, which lost 59-41 to St. Thomas Aquinas in the Liberty North Invitational a week ago, played toe-to-toe with the Saints, ranked No. 3 in the 810 Varsity Top 25.  But the Saints fended off Park Hill, 53-49, in the rematch on Saturday.

Aquinas looked to be on their way to another easy W, leading by eight early in the second half. After Park Hill cut the lead to 36-32, senior Phillip Bell hit a buzzer-beater on the baseline for a 38-32 Aquinas edge after three quarters.

But the Trojans kept clawing, including a steal and layup by sophomore Andy Ashley to trim the margin to 47-45.

Aquinas got back up 48-45 after a Bell free throw, but Drew Townsend later stole an Aquinas attempt to run out clock for a layup and a 48-47 margin with 1:08 left.

Aquinas again built a four-point lead until Christian Bradford hit a driving shot for a 51-49 margin. The Trojans looked to tie the score on the following possession, but missed an inside bucket in transition.

From there, Keeshawn Mason hit two free throws for a 53-49 lead with :10.7 left, and sealed the game.

Park Hill (49)
Ashley 1 2-2 4, Hall 1 4-4 6, Shareef 1 1-3 3, Bradford 6 5-9 17, Bryant 6 2-4 14, Townsend 2 0-0 4, Renton 0 0-2 0 Marshall 0 1-2 1. Totals 17 15-26 49.

St. Thomas Aquinas (53)
Bell 6 1-2 13, Navy 1 0-0 3, Gavin 3 0-2 6, Riedel 3 0-1 6, Maosn 4 6-8 14, Downey 2 3-8 7, Gavin 1 2-2 4. Totals 20 12-23 53.
Three-pointers: Navy

Park Hill 10 7 15 17 - 49
St Thomas Aquinas 16 6 16 15 - 53