Adding a high-profile transfer can have its plusses and minuses.
But the addition of Charles Barnes Jr. from De La Salle has been nothing but positive for Marist.
The RedHawks embraced his addition and used a team retreat to Indiana to prepare for the ride.
“We talked a lot about this,” Marist coach Brian Hynes said after a 76-64 win over Homewood-Flossmoor in the Class 4A Joliet West Sectional final on March 6. “We are a talented team and it’s going to take a mature kid to sacrifice time.”
“That experience really brought us together,” Barnes said. “We had some conversations, talked about our goals for this year and overall, and it was just very special.”
The sacrifices and determination paid off as Marist beat H-F for its first sectional title since 1981.
“It was a huge success,” Barnes said. “We were looking at the banner and it had an ’81’ on there and the coach told us that we’re turning it to ’26’ this year.”
Hynes, a 1986 Marist grad, was in seventh grade when the RedHawks won the ’81 sectional and one of his assistant coaches was born that year. So he knows how much of a deal this is for not just for his team but all RedHawks.
“It’s great for the school,” Hynes said. “It’s great for Marist alum that have brought us to this point. Marist has had some great teams who just couldn’t break that door down.”
Barnes scored 31 points to lead the way for the RedHawks. North Carolina State football recruit Stephen Brown added 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
“He’s a quiet assassin,” Hynes said of Barnes. “I didn’t even know he had 30 points.”
A player set to break into the starting lineup this season for Marist was junior Kendall Meyers. Instead, he played the sixth-man role, owned it and delivered 10 crucial points in the win over H-F.
“We had a kid come into a starting spot, and I am sure someone was looking for that spot and that kid had a monster night,” Hynes said. “He handled it like a man. We told him life works out and now he had a huge night in the sectional final.”
The game was not without nerves for the RedHawks. The Vikings pulled with three points late in the third quarter. A big Marist crowd helped keep the team on track.
“Marist did a great job of getting buses here, and I can’t thank the students enough, ” Hynes said. “Having all the Marist kids behind you, and my family was even behind me — it relieves a lot of stress.”
“It’s beautiful,” Meyers said. “We live for moments like these, and we worked hard for this.”
Seems like a big achievement for Marist! How did Charles Barnes Jr. help turn things around after so long?