CADE — Episcopal of Acadiana let a 5-point, second-half lead slip away in a 36-30 loss to visiting Class 4A Teurlings Catholic on Wednesday.

The Falcons (8-6) got themselves in an early bind when guard Adam Sabbaghian picked up his third foul midway through the first quarter.

“That was big,” ESA head coach Jason Fatheree said. “He’s our primary ballhandler. He does a great job and is also probably the best player on our soccer team.”

Sabbaghian, who nailed a three-pointer to put the Falcons ahead 20-16 at the 4:46 mark of the third, eventually fouled out.

“His defense is what we missed a lot in that situation,” Fatheree said. “He plays with a lot of confidence. He’s just a competitor. He loves to compete. He doesn’t care who we’re playing. He’s going to go at it.

“Sometimes, his aggressiveness gets him into foul trouble. Last year was his first year playing basketball for us. He’s still learning the game. He’s picking up fouls 90 feet away from the rim.”

6-foot-4 senior center Luke Legoullon led ESA with 10 points.

“Luke grew a little bit over the last year,” Fatheree said. “He added two inches or so. He’s been working hard. He’s put on some weight and is embracing the role of taking over and trying to fill that void left by Henry Schuffler’s departure.”

Last year, the 6-foot-7 Schuffler led the Falcons to the Division V semifinals.

“It’s been tough with losing somebody who brings that much offense,” Fatheree said. “That’s especially tough. He was good for 24 points per game every night.

“But I like the way we’re moving the basketball this year. I like the way this team shares it. The shots just haven’t been falling early this year so we need to get back in the gym and get more shots in.”

Teurlings, which improved to 6-1, sank 12-of-14 free throws in the fourth quarter.

“We have to score,” Fatheree said. “I thought our defense played well enough to keep us in the game. Our defense gave us chances, and we didn’t capitalize on some easy ones. We missed some opportunities in transition. We didn’t shoot free throws well.”

Ian Allum, a 6-foot-1 sophomore, added eight points for ESA.

“We might have had a different leading scorer every night,” Fatheree said. “It’s been anywhere from Adam to Luke to Ben Romero, who wasn’t here tonight. We missed him. He was at his sister’s graduation.

“Alex Koval, who came off the bench tonight, had 19 in one game. We have depth and capable bodies. We’re just not putting it all together on the same night, and that’s been a struggle for us. We’ve also had too many fouls.”