OAKDALE – Ripon Christian’s Eli Terpsma knows how to kill an opposition rally.

Early in the fourth quarter Tuesday of opening-round action of the 50th Annual Oakdale Rotary Classic, Bret Harte had carried a 14-2 run into the final period to come within 10 points of the Knights.

Enter Terpsma – literally.

The 6-foot-2 junior came off the bench and promptly drained three 3-pointers to quell any hopes the Bullfrogs had of a comeback, and Ripon Christian walked away with a 65-48 win at Oakdale High.

“We subbed Eli back in at the right time,” Knights coach Mark Hofman said. “We didn’t close very well so. It got a little too close so we put Eli back in and he hit three 3s in a row. He’s a pretty good ball player. We ran some picks for him and that led to some confusion on Bret Harte’s part.

“I think we had some good stretches and some bad stretches. Our defense isn’t where it needs to be yet. We are allowing a lot of stuff that we normally don’t.”

Terpsma hit five 3-pointers in all and led all scorers with 25 points.

“I just felt pretty good,” Terpsma said. “It was just catch and shoot.

“You just have to keep it nice and smooth.”

Along with six assists and six steals, Griffin De Abreu had 12 points for Ripon Christian (5-5). “I think it’s important to move the ball and get it down low,” De Abreu said. “Because once you get it to the big man he can dish it to anyone and it helps the offense come together.”

One of those big men De Abreu liked to target was Thys Van Der Hoek who got nearly a third of 

the Knights’ 25 rebounds with eight of his own as well as six points.

Despite Bret Harte’s second-half run, the last lead for the Bulldogs (4-7) was at 4-2. Vincent Tiscornia led Bret Harte from Angels Camp with 14 points and Carston Weidmann added 12 points.

Ripon Christian faces either Bear Creek or Grace Davis tonight at 6:30 in a semifinal contest.