The Trinity Lutheran Tigers may have come up a bit short in their bid for a state title, but they sure got a nice consolation prize.
The Tigers fell just short in the Lutheran Missouri state championship game held March 3 at Helias, as they lost 34-33 in triple overtime to Christ Community Lutheran of Kirkwood.
But on Friday, the Tigers found out they had nonetheless been invited to participate in the Lutheran National Invitational Tournament, which will be held March 21-24 at Valparaiso (Ind.) University.
In the title game, Charlie Wehmeyer led the Tigers with 15 points, while Jacob Haenchen chipped in with 12.
The Tigers, who received a bye in the first round of the event, then beat Salem Lutheran of Blackjack 38-26 in the quarterfinals.
Then in the semifinals, Austin Siebeneck dropped in 15 points to lead the Tigers to a win over Immanuel Lutheran of St. Charles, beating the top-seeded Eagles 53-34. Haenchen added 13 points and Cal Kolzow had 12.
The Tigers will open play at Nationals at 4:25 p.m. March 22 against St. Paul's Lutheran of Westlake, Ohio.