PALOS HEIGHTS, Ill. — Trinity Christian College finished the regular season leading the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference in field goal and 3-point percentages. And in the final three-plus minutes of Monday’s quarter-final contest, the Trolls displayed their 3-point prowess for an 80-68 win ending the Peregrines’ 2008-09 season.

Peregrine center Kevin Thomas (Highland) scored off an offensive rebound, was fouled and finished off the 3-point play nailing the free throw bringing his team to within one, 64-63, with 3:44 left to play. That was as close as the Peregrines would get in the closing minutes of the game.

The Trolls connected on their next five possessions, including a pair of 3-pointers, while the Peregrines could only muster one field goal during two-plus minutes of action. That stretched the one-point lead to 76-65 Troll advantage with 90 seconds left.

Peregrine guard Robert Williams (Gary West Side) nailed a 3-pointer just beyond the top of the key to finish the scoring with 33 seconds left on the clock.

Antonio Hurt (Michigan City) led the Peregrines with 14 points, including two from the 3-point stripe. The sophomore hit 54 percent from the field and 66 percent from 3-point line.

Michael Patton (Gary West Side) hit 60 percent of his shots scoring 13 points. He led the team with a pair of shot blocks, had four assists and two steals in the loss.

Two seniors, Thomas and Vince Johnson (Bishop Noll) closed out their collegiate careers scoring 10 points each. Thomas was 4-of-8 from the field and grabbed seven rebounds, while Johnson grabbed five rebounds and had one shot block and one steal.

A third senior, Kris Krstevski (Lake Central) hit three 3-pointers for nine points and had four assists and three rebounds. Williams finished with eight points, five rebounds and four assists.

The Peregrines led at the intermission, 36-35, hitting 50 percent from the 3-point arc and 44 percent from the field overall. The two teams exchanged the lead 14 times and were tied six times during the tournament opener.

CCAC Player-of-the-Year Kurt Gruppen led all scorers with 24 points, including three from the 3-point line and two in the final three minutes of the game. Gruppen led the conference averaging 21.4 points per game, and hit 51 percent of his 3-point attempts.