The group of Warrenton seniors were still a few years away from kindergarten the last time a Warrenton boys basketball team beat St. Charles.

The same can be said about the last Warrenton boys conference championship.

Caleb Strauss, Randy McRoberts, Brenden Smith and Dylan Chandler put an end to one streak Tuesday night while giving their team a head start on breaking the other.

Warrenton outran and outplayed the Pirates on their home court on its way to a 54-47 win.

“We haven’t been the victors in this rivalry in a while, but it’s definitely a rivalry because every time we play these guys, we give our best effort and they give their best effort,” first-year Head Coach Mark Thomas said. “It was a battle tonight and we came out on top, so congrats to us.”

After taking a one-point lead at half, Smith scored six points in the third quarter to give his team a six-point lead heading into the final frame.

Back-to-back buckets from McRoberts and Chandler gave the Warriors a 47-38 lead, and the team weathered a St. Charles comeback bid for the final five minutes.

“I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t nervous,” Thomas admitted. “I was nervous the whole time. I know how hard our guys compete in practice with their free throws, so every timeout I told them they had this. I didn’t care who got the ball, I told them we were going to hit them. And when we did miss one, I was proud how nobody dropped their head and missed their assignment. They dropped back and played defense.”

When St. Charles cut the Warrenton lead to seven with four minutes left, Strauss broke out on a fast break and brought the Warrenton crowd to its feet with a one-handed dunk.

When McRoberts turned the ball over on a traveling call with his team up six, he responded with a defensive rebound that eventually led to Warrenton points.

“We just executed our game plan and stuck to what we were trying to do most of the time,” Thomas said of his team’s second-half perfornance. “We were strong with the ball and we played for each other, and those are concepts we’re trying to instill this year. When you hit buckets and get stops, it makes the game a little easier for you. Once we got on top late, I got a little comfortable, although I was never too comfortable because it was such a high-intesnsity game. But once we got that lead I liked our chances.”

St. Charles continued to chip at the lead, but eventually ran out of time.

Pirate guard Cameron Teson cut the lead to 54-47 with 10 seconds left, but Warrenton junior Jake Tonioli answered with two free throws to seal the game.

Warrenton improved to 6-2 overall and 1-0 in the Gateway Athletic Conference North.

The team faces Boonville Dec. 30 at Moberly Area Community College, and returns to GAC North action Jan. 16 at Winfield.

“I take it one game at a time,” Thomas said. “The next game’s not a conference game, so it’s not a conference race for me right now. I’m looking to Boonville in the holiday shootout.”