The East Union Lancers erased a 13-point lead in the second half but saw their run to a Sac-Joaquin Section Division III title end Tuesday night in a 55-53 semifinal loss to Beyer of Modesto.

The sixth-seeded Lancers (23-8) spent most of the second half clawing into No. 7 Beyer’s big lead, and after a forced turnover from Salesi Toki (eight points, four rebounds), East Union found itself with the ball down 54-53 with just 10.2 seconds left.

Beyer fouled twice with fouls to give. On the Lancers’ third attempt to go ahead, junior guard James McGee stole the inbounds pass from Jackson Fay (nine points) and went the length of the floor before getting fouled. He’d make one of two from the line, and another stolen inbounds pass with two seconds left would seal the game for the Western Athletic Conference champions.

“Obviously, that is a heartbreaking way to end a game like this,” East Union head coach Dalton “Dutch” Ell said. “I called the wrong play by mistake, and then they made a play on the ball and that’s the game.”

The seventh-seeded Patriots (25-6) came into the contest riding a 17-game winning streak, led by long junior forwards Keimani Thompson and Curtis Harmon. Both Thompson (24 points, 11 rebounds) and Harmon (16 points, eight rebounds) found success inside early on helping Beyer get out to a 10-2 lead before the first timeout.

“We started really slowly tonight,” Ell said. “Maybe it was the environment, maybe it was because this was our first semi-final as a program since 1999, but we put ourselves in a tough spot, and in the end, it was too much to overcome.”

With Thompson in foul trouble for most of the second quarter, East Union capitalized with its smaller and deeper lineup. Leading scorer Zydell King (22 points) scored from behind the three-point line as well as driving to the basket helping the Lancers cut the Beyer lead at the half to 26-22.

Thompson returned to the game to start the third quarter, this time showing his versatility, as he knocked down a pair of 3-pointers in addition to a thunderous dunk after a steal to help grow the Patriots’ lead to double digits.

“When Keimani gets going like he did tonight, we are tough to beat,” Beyer head coach Kyle McKim said. “Obviously, it was good to see him get some easy ones, but the way he shot late was a huge difference in the game.”

After a timeout from Ell, the Lancers would show the offensive firepower they put on display during much of their run to the semis, going on a 12-0 run in less than two minutes to cut the Beyer lead to one.

Thompson answered yet again for Beyer with a 3 of his own to give the Patriots a four-point lead heading into the final intermission, 41-37.

“We knew what kind of a team they are,” McKim said. “During that timeout up 13, I told my guys they are going to make a run; we need to be ready. They are deeper than us, and the pressure and intensity when you are only six guys deep like we were tonight can get on you in a hurry.”

Thompson would start the fourth quarter the same way he ended the third, with his third of four 3-pointers to quiet the East Union supporters. King and the Lancers had an answer for each Thompson play late with a basket of their own.

King scored 11 of his 22 in the final frame, each shot bigger than the previous, keeping the East Union in reach of the Patriots. The senior guards biggest shot of the night came with just 52 seconds to go as his 3 cut the lead to one, sending the East Union student section into a frenzy.

“Zydell was so big for us down the stretch,” Ell said. “We made some adjustments based on how they were handling screens, and he was able to find success inside which opened things up for us outside as well.”

The Lancers would get the stop they so badly needed all night long after Harmon missed a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession. Ell elected to let his guys go rather than take a timeout. The decision proved to be a good one, as Toki found himself in space driving towards the basket, but the junior forward had the ball deflected by Thompson to turn the ball back over to the Patriots.

The Lancers would go scoreless the final 52 seconds of the game to drop the heartbreaker, 55-53.

East Union will now await its opponent in the first round of the NorCal playoffs next week.

“This is a really tough way for our section run to end,” Ell said. “But I cannot stress enough how proud I am of how they battled tonight, and I know we’ll bring that same fight against whoever we meet from here on out.”