St. Joe trio leading Benedictine in final stretch of their careers

Jacob Lang, St. Joseph News-Press, Mo.
·2 min read

Jan. 20—ATCHISON, Kan. — Every year, the careers of college athletes across the country come to an end. Very rarely do they get one last ride.

That's the reality for Benedictine's St. Joe trio, Matt Austin, Jaiden Bristol and Saxton Thuston.

"It's hard to beat playing another year of college basketball," Austin said, "because you just don't know when your last game's gonna be your last."

Last season should've marked the end for Austin and Bristol, but Covid granted them an extra year of eligibility. With Thuston already returning due to a redshirt, Austin and Bristol both decided to take advantage for one final season together.

"We've had pretty much the same or similar team for the past 3 or 4 years," Bristol said, "so the relationships we've built and things like that made it so easy to come back."

It's been an up and down season for the Ravens, though. After beginning the year nationally ranked, the team hit a skid in November and December.

Thuston said part of the team's struggles have come from tougher competition, as every team has players returning from last season.

"Every night, you just don't know who's gonna win because everybody has their players back and they have that chemistry that they didn't necessarily have last year, so they got it this year," Thuston said. "It's been fun because it makes the conference a little bit more competitive."

The Ravens have swung back around this month, winning four of their five games in the new year. That has pushed the Ravens to a tie for first place in the Heart Conference South Division.

Entering the final 10 games of the regular season, Austin said they are looking to work harder knowing it's the last stretch of their careers.

"You just have to leave it all out on the court," Austin said. "Not even that it's my last year, but national tournaments, it's gonna be so tough this year to make just because there's so many good teams."

As the trio looks to end their careers on a high note, Bristol said they will do all they can to make an impact before they part ways.

"Playing basketball all my life, I never really want it to be done," Bristol said. "Coach Moody always tells us try and leave the program better than you found it, so I'm gonna try and think about how I can do that as well in the last final stretch."

Jacob Lang can be reached at jacob.lang@newspressnow.com. Follow him on twitter: @NPNowLang.