Blog
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Rough Riders rein in win
KENT: Kent Roosevelt controlled the ball and tempo all night, defeating Cuyahoga Falls at home 61-45 Monday.
The Rough Riders forced 27 turnovers and 18 in the first half, many of those coming before Cuyahoga Falls could get across midcourt.
Thats just something weve been doing all season because were a very good defensive team, Roosevelt coach Craig Foreman said. Its kinda what we have built our season on this year, and I told them, Every little thing we can do tonight, lets step it up, and they did.
Roosevelt also got the most out of every possession, only turning the ball over seven times in one of the most efficient games of the year for the Rough Riders.
Only turning the ball over seven times, thats key, Foreman said. This is what we needed, to pull together a full, complete game.
Roosevelt was led by senior Abby Wemhoff, who scored a game-high 21 points and brought down five rebounds.
Wemhoff opened an eight-point lead midway through the first quarter. Wemhoff nailed a 3-pointer from the corner. After senior Daniella Rice stole the in-bounds pass, Wemhoff added a nice reverse layup for a quick 5-point swing.
Its great for [Wemhoff] to score 21, she only averages around 10, Foreman said. Shes very unselfish and the neat thing is that she doesnt care about scoring that much. Shes happy, but doesnt think about that stuff.
When in the half-court offense, Wemhoff was often the first option on offense and was granted more shot attempts than usual. Thats a trend Foreman hopes to continue.
Its great that Abby got more shots, definitely a good thing, he said. Shes a very good scorer, so its great that we can get the ball in her hands more often.
Senior Christine Keener scored 13 points. Junior Courtney Olesh played well inside the paint for Roosevelt, finishing the night with 12 points and five rebounds.
Cuyahoga Falls never gave themselves a chance. The Black Tigers scored a combined five points in the first four minutes of the first and second quarters. By midway through the second quarter, Roosevelt had built a 27-12 lead. The closest Falls would get would be 10 points just before halftime.
The Black Tigers had more turnovers (27) than field goals made (17).
Cuyahoga Falls was led by senior forward Logen Breehl, who recorded a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Breehl served as the only consistent force for the Black Tigers as they struggled to piece together any offensive rhythm.
Senior Calli Neumann added 11 points and seven rebounds in the loss.
Read the high school blog at www.ohiomm.com/blogs/varsity_letters/. Follow ABJ sports on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sports.abj.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Wadsworth 53, Green 50: Grizzlies rally past Bulldogs
GREEN: Mike Schmeltzer Jr. kept reminding his Wadsworth players it had been seven years since the Grizzlies had won at Green.
The seven-year itch is over.
With clutch foul shooting from Jack Snowball and Kyle Pound, the Grizzlies stunned the Bulldogs 53-50 with a come-from-behind victory Friday night at Green.
It has been a long time since we won here, Schmeltzer said. We talked to the players about that and they really played well down the stretch.
Snowball, who scored all eight of his points in the fourth quarter, was instrumental in the waning seconds of the game. A senior, Snowball made one hustling play to save a ball from going out of bounds then made the defensive play of the game.
Andrew Pratt of the Bulldogs grabbed an offensive rebound after a missed shot and tried to put the ball back up, but Snowball knocked the ball out of his hands, grabbed it and was fouled with 6.9 seconds left in regulation.
After a timeout by the Bulldogs (10-6, 8-3), Snowball made two free throws and the Grizzlies withstood a last-second 3-point-shot attempt by Austin Marciniak for the win.
First of all, Pound made some big foul shots for us, Snowball said. When you are at the [foul] line, you just have to let your mind go blank. With the tournament draw coming up, you have to play your best ball. It has been a good week for us beating Copley and Green.
The Grizzlies (9-7, 7-4) were trailing 50-49 when Pound sank two free throws with 47.4 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to put Wadworth ahead for the first time since late in the first quarter.
I am just in shock. I have never been in that situation before, Pound said. All I could think was I have to make those free throws.
Schmeltzer and Snowball were happy that Pound delivered in the clutch.
Im just so proud and happy for him. He works so hard every day, Schmeltzer said.
There were numerous heroes for the Grizzlies.
Josh Kipfer was an obvious star. Kipfer, who averages 19.5 points per game and 11 rebounds, had 19 points, six in the final quarter. The Grizzlies outscored the Bulldogs 19-8 in the final quarter.
Josh was a big reason we were in the game, but the biggest reason was our team defense, Snowball said.
With the Grizzlies struggling to start the game, junior guard Ryan Sheppard made three 3-point shots in the first quarter.
Ryan came off the bench to knock down those threes for us or it might have been a different game, Schmeltzer said.
The loss was stunning for the Bulldogs. With a quick 5-0 run to open the third quarter, Green had a 33-19 lead.
We stopped executing our offense, Bulldogs coach Mark Kinsley said. Give them credit. What impressed me is the way Josh Kipfer has improved his game. Last year, he had to be on the block to score, but this year after working hard last summer he moves well to the basket and can go outside and hit the three.
Dan Fanelly led the Bulldogs offense with 18 points, Evan Keeslar had 15 points and Pratt had nine.
Nordonia defeated Copley on Friday night to clinch at least a share of the Suburban League championship with three games to play leaving the Bulldogs a faint hope to gain a share of the title.
Read the high school blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/varsity_letters/.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Division I sectional diving: Hudson's Obendorf claims title
There was little suspense in figuring out who the top divers would be at Thursdays Division I boys diving sectional at the University of Akrons Ocasek Natatorium.
But that didnt stop Hudsons Alex Obendorf and Nordonias Stephen Romanik from providing a little of their own drama.
The two sophomores, both top-five finishers at state last year, entered the meet as the clear favorites. Just 2.5 points separated the two entering the final round, but Obendorf managed to hold off Romanik, outscoring him 57.35-49.50 on their final dives, to claim the sectional title.
Obendorf finished with 527.30 points, which is a personal and school record. Romaniks 517.40 is also a personal best. Lakes Jon Schlafer (499.20) was third, the same spot he was in last year.
But this time, it was Obendorf on top, instead of Romanik.
I didnt think I would do this well, said Obendorf, who was third at state last year. When Stephen took over in the middle rounds, I thought, I better win this now.
Obendorf was the leader after the first round, and led the chase going into the first cut following the fifth round. Schlafer trailed by 9.70, and Romanik by 11.5. But Romanik was about to make his move.
Obendorf earned his lowest score of the night on his seventh dive, opening the door for Schlafer to first take the lead, followed by Romanik, who scored a meet-best 66.00 on his seventh dive. That gave him a 22.5-point lead.
That was the one that really set me up, said Romanik of the reverse two-and-a-half tuck.
But Romanik didnt break 50 points the rest of the meet, as Obendorf rallied back, taking a 2.5-point lead after his tenth dive, and taking the meet after his eleventh.
[Romanik] is my main competition, but I just wanted to do better than last year, said Obendorf. And I have improved a lot since last year.
Obendorf and Romanik were the only non-seniors to finish in the top five at least years state meet. In fact, they were just two of four underclassmen in the top 16.
[Obendorf] is the top state finisher coming back, so if I had to guess, right now, if hes not favored, hes in the top two, said Hudson diving coach Dan Miller. So its exciting. We are definitely hoping for big things over the next few weeks and this is a good building block.
With two more years left, the battle between Obendorf and Romanik hasnt even reach halftime, but the swimmers are not heated rivals. In fact, they both train at the Ocasek Natatorium and are close enough friends to carpool on occasion.
Weve known each other for about five years now, said Romanik. We push each other. If somebody is having a bad day, we try to cheer them up.
Rounding out the top five at Thursdays meet was GlenOaks Austin Baad (431.40) and Canton McKinleys Jackson Gray (378.90).
The top 16 divers advance to next weeks district meet at Cleveland State University.
Read the high school blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/varsity_letters/
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
East 68, Kenmore 60: Dragons hold off Cardinals at free-throw line
East seniors Davonte Brunson, Nate Gibson and Mycle Shadie each stepped to the free-throw line during crunch time Tuesday night.
The three guards took turns standing 15 feet from the basket.
They stayed composed as they measured their shots and came through in the clutch to lead East to a 68-60 City Series victory over host Kenmore.
Brunson, Gibson and Shadie combined to make 10-of-12 free throws in the final two minutes and 58 seconds, and Shadie added a jumper to give the Dragons (15-1, 11-0) a 12-4 run to conclude the game and finish off the Cardinals (8-7, 6-5).
The win is the Dragons 11th in a row and earned them the City Series regular-season title.
Brunson led East, the No. 7-ranked team in the Associated Press Division II state poll, with 18 points and six rebounds.
This turned out well, Brunson said. The first half, we played horrible. Im playing on two strained calfs and our team, I guess they were just going off my energy because it looked like everyone was injured out there at times. We all picked it up in the second half and we got the victory.
East will host Firestone (13-3, 9-2) at 7 p.m. Friday in the City Series regular-season finale. The two teams will meet in the league playoff title game at 7 p.m. on Feb. 17 at Firestone. The Dragons won the first game 100-97 in double overtime at Firestone.
Kenmore led 14-13 after one quarter Tuesday and 33-27 at halftime. East rallied and led 48-46 after three quarters.
Brunson scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half.
Junior forward Brandon Townsend scored 16 points for East.
In the first half, our defense was terrible and we rushed some stuff a lot on offense, Townsend said. We have a lot of determination and I think that is what pulled us through. We dont give up. We dont quit.
Shadie scored 13 points and Gibson finished with 11 points and nine rebounds.
Dragons senior forward Sir Charles Travis contributed eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds.
Kenmore senior guard Antonio Hearn scored a game-high 19 points and also had seven rebounds and six steals.
It is always good to win, East coach Ross Fiorello said. Kenmore has a nice team and any time Hearn is on the floor, you know he is a threat.
I wasnt really pleased with our performance tonight. I wasnt really pleased with our lack of intensity and our lack of urgency. For a team that is on a winning streak like that, you have to come a little better prepared to play, and that starts with me and then on down.
Sophomore forward Oshay Vinson and senior guard Dierre Brown both scored 12 points for the Cardinals. Vinson also had eight rebounds and three blocks.
Down the stretch we did not make enough plays, Kenmore coach Brian Dawson said. We turned the ball over a few times and East played some real good defense on us.
Brunson said he expects a sellout crowd Friday at East for the game with Firestone.
It is going to be a real hard game, Brunson said. They will be coming to get us because we beat them last game in double overtime [on a banked-in 3-pointer from near midcourt by Shadie]. They want to get the win to set the tone for the City Series championship and we want to do the same thing as well. Both teams will come to play hard.
Michael Beaven can be reached at 330-996-3829 or mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the high school blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/varsity_letters/. Also follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/MBeavenABJ. Follow ABJ sports on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sports.abj.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Copley 82, Woodridge 54: Fast-paced Indians run past Bulldogs
COPLEY: Copley is the kind of team that forces opposing teams to bring their A game.
If they dont, they will leave with another letter of the alphabet, an L.
The Indians style of play can produce a lot of points as demonstrated in their 82-54 victory over visiting Woodridge on Tuesday night.
Woodridge coach Brian Fantone had warned his team about the Indians up-tempo style of play.
They were like sharks with blood in the water. You cant expect to play an athletic team like Copley and win with that many turnovers, Fantone said. We did not come to play tonight.
We talked about squaring up and looking for the guy in the middle of the court. How many times did we throw to them?
Copleys dizzying pace confused the Woodridge players and coaches to such an extent that the Bulldogs came out of one timeout with just four players on the court and later six players were on the floor in the third quarter.
That is exactly what Indians coach Mark Dente wants to do to teams.
Our rotation was good and we got turnovers and more importantly we got points off turnovers, Dente said.
With the seeding meeting coming up this weekend, Dente wanted to not only show that the Indians deserve a good seed, but also get their defense to a tournament level.
One of the things we worked on in practice is our trapping defense and our backside rotation. Our rotation tonight was better, and if we do that we will be tough in the tournament, Dente said.
The Indians (10-6) used their full-court press to force 11 turnovers in the first quarter. Copley led 27-8 at the end of the period.
The scoring seemed to come from everywhere on the court in the first quarter.
Alex Kormushoff made three 3-pointers and finished with 16 points, Devon Reif had six of his nine points and Jalyn Tyler had six of his game-high 19 points.
The Indians extended the lead to 46-24 at halftime.
For players like Kenny Paramore, who had nine points, playing a defense that creates fastbreaks and scoring opportunities is a lot of fun.
We practiced real hard and worked on our rotations. Coach tells us if we have a chance to go for the ball dont hesitate, go for it, Paramore said. We want to win districts and get to regionals this year.
The defensive mindset preached by Dente is part of how the Indians compensate for their lack of size. That requires a lot of energy and Dente has made some changes in his approach.
We had talked to the players about fast starts and we also talked to them about playing fresher, Dente said. I subbed more frequently in the first quarter, using nine players. We have talked about being unselfish and creating more opportunities to score.
Dente said their run-and-stun style also calls for the players to use the right judgment as to when to run, drive to the basket, take a 3-pointer or pull the ball out.
Sometimes we take bad shots because of the speed I want us to play, Dente said.
Tyler said the Indians enjoy forcing teams into turnovers.
We were definitely in the defensive zone, he said.
Fantone said the game was important for another reason.
When you step up to play a Division I team this helps us get ready for the postseason. We can learn from playing a team like Copley because we will see other teams that press like they do, Fantone said.
The Bulldogs (10-6) were led in scoring by Shane Roberts, a 6-2 senior forward, with 17 points. Anthony Mong came off the bench to score eight points.
Read the high school blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/varsity_letters/
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Copley beats Northwest 68-54
CANAL FULTON: There is a lot of change going on at Northwest High School.
By next year, indoor sports will move from the gym at the middle school to the 5-year-old high school building where a gym is being constructed.
Northwest is in its first year of not playing in a league. Scheduling is a big obstacle, and that means playing larger schools like Copley, which defeated Northwest 68-54 Tuesday night in a nonleague battle of the Indians at tiny Northwest Middle School.
Northwest has played several Division I schools, one reason its record is 6-6.
Coach Mike Lower has the players hustling and refusing to back down from playing such competition.
Weve had some exciting games against some exciting opponents. It is a challenge every night, Lower said. This is a stretch of six or seven Division I teams that, if we are willing to compete, we will get better.
Northwest has applied to join the Portage Trail Conference in lieu of the impending departures of East Canton and Windham, but so far, has not been accepted.
Kenny Paramore, a 6-foot-1 junior who led Copley with a game-high 22 points, hopes his Indians (8-4) can still get a piece of the Suburban League title, where they are 5-2. League leader Nordonia has not lost.
We came in here playing hard because we want to win out, Paramore said.
Copley coach Mark Dente said: It was a great game for us for a nonleague game. They are extremely well-coached and mixed up their zone defenses against us, which is what we normally see. Our quickness seemed to overcome that.
Copley wanted to use its speed and quickness to force Northwest into an up-tempo game that would make the hosts panic and either make errant passes or take quick shots.
A putback rebound basket by Paramore gave Copley a 17-16 lead after the first quarter.
At halftime, Copley went into the locker room up 35-31 following two 3-point shots by Brandon Gathagan.
Mike Riley, a 6-foot-4 center who led Northwest in scoring, made 14 of his 21 points in the first half.
We should have gotten him the ball with the advantage we had in height, Lower said.
The lack of size is something Dente and the team have talked about this season. They are averaging 68 points in the past 10 games.
Our defense is our offense. We are an undersized team and we press for 32 minutes; they present matchup problems, Dente said. One of the things I told them tonight weve seen that [bigger players] before; it is irrelevant. Our kids are starting to believe.
Ryan Brotherton had 15 points for Northwest and Dan May added 10.
Jayln Tyler, a 6-2 junior who scored 17 points, likes the hectic, in-your-face, pressing defensive style that Copley plays.
We come out here and play with energy and we have the heart to play against bigger players, Tyler said.
Lower said: Weve played Kenmore, Jackson and a few others. The thing that impressed me more is not only that they play quick, but they play hard.
They played harder than any team weve faced this season and that was key. We have another one Saturday night at home against GlenOak.
Read the high school blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/varsity_letters/
