QUAKERS FIND A WAY TO GET THE EDGE

/in /by

SALEM, OH- The Heartland Christian Lions traveled to take on the Salem Quakers, in what was a close matchup all the way to the end.

Drew Gault and Jake Walker led the Lions in scoring as Gault had 12 points and Walker finished the night with 10 points.

Salem was led by Lance Bailey, who dropped 20 points, Trent Fink and Cam Sampson finished the game with 12 points each.

The Quakers went on to win 61-59 and will look to keep their momentum going when they take on Hubbard on Friday. Heartland Christian will travel on the road to take on Valley Christian on Friday.

*Contributed By YSN’s Matt Morrison

MASSUCCI AND HER TIGERS TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS

/in /by

HOWLAND CENTER, OH – The Howland Tigers got the right rhythm into play in their final regular season contest against Lakeview. They needed to show the community what kind of team they would become. The Tigers would jump out to a big lead and never looked back as they downed the Bulldogs at home 62-32.

 

The Bulldogs kept it competitive in the first quarter, with the bulk of the load coming from senior Maggie Pavlansky. She picked up all of Lakeview’s shots from downtown with six three-pointers, as in the first and second half, she picked up three each. Her night finished with her leading the team with 22 of their 32 points.

 

Howland had a deadly shooter of their own in junior Alyssa Massucci. She picked up five 3’s alone in the second half. She would also cash in 21 points in the final two quarters, including 12 points in the third, en route to a game-high 29 points on the night. Massucci’s efforts were good enough to earn her our YSN Live Player of the Game.

 

Howland ends the regular season at 10-12 as they will now prepare for their Sectional Semifinal matchup next Wednesday at home against Notre Dame Cathedral Latin (NDCL). The Tigers will look to defend their sectional title from a year ago with a 7:00 P.M. tip. Lakeview will also end the regular season at 10-12 as they will have a first-round bye in the tournament. Next Saturday on February 18th, they will either travel out to Brookfield or play host to Cardinal Mooney in a Sectional Final. Tip-off is slated for 1:00 P.M.

 

You can watch interviews with Howland head coach Aaron Pounds and our Player of the Game Alyssa Massucci by clicking on the videos provided below.

*Contributed By YSN’s Noah Ricks

BROOKFIELD CREATES A LOG JAM ATOP MVAC

/in /by

LORDSTOWN, OHIO- The Brookfield Warriors and the Newton Falls Tigers met in Lordstown to take on each other with big league implications on the line. In what was another close game at the finish, Brookfield cause a huge log jam at the top of the league with a 53-50 win.  

The Warriors were led by Matteo Fortuna and Donovan Pawlowski with 17 points each. Isaiah Jone also added another 11 points.

Alex Pennington led the way for the Tigers with 15 points and Dom Greathouse also added another 10 points, but the Warriors would sneak away with the win.

The Warriors will be back in action when they take on the Garfield G-Men on the road on Friday. Newton Falls will travel to take on Campbell Memorial on Friday.

*Contributed by YSN’s Matt Morrison

POTTERS VAULT INTO OVAC TITLE GAME

/in /by

EAST LIVERPOOL OHIO – The East Liverpool boys basketball team got a big, 53-38 victory over in-conference rival Indian Creek Tuesday night.

Preston Kerr headlined the scoring department for the Potters scoring 19 points, helped out by teammates Cohen Pease who had 11 points and Jake Smith who had 10 points. Those three Potters were the three players to reach double figures with four other players contributing in the overall team tally.

With the win, the Potters improved their season record to 13-6 as the team will now begin to prepare for Saturday’s matchup against the Weir Red Raiders at 2 p.m in the OVAC 4A title. That game will be at Harrison Central High School. 

*Contributed By YSN’s Michael Wolfgang

 

GREGORY GOES OFF IN WARRIORS WIN

/in /by

AUSTINTOWN OH- In what was the final game of the basketball regular season, The Austintown-Fitch Falcons hosted The West Branch Warriors on Wednesday night for girls basketball night on the network. Both teams went into Wednesday with a 10-11 record and looking for a little momentum to take into the tournament. Game #22 swung heavily in-favor of the home team off the opening tip. With Austintown finding their shot from distance, a trio of Zayda Creque, Kylie Folkwein and Rachel Spalding knocked down shots from the arc.  On the other side, Livvie Showalter was establishing her shot early and contributed a number of early buckets for The Warriors, while girls like Mikalyn Fitts came off the bench and knocked down big shots to keep the offense afloat. However, the offensive flow was in rhythm for Fitch through the first eight minutes, as they held a 25-16 lead after one quarter of play.

Starting off the second quarter and West Branch started to settle in and find an optimal comfort level to operate their offense out of. With a ton of offense coming from Sophie Gregory, scoring 13 points in the second quarter alone! While simultaneously leading all scorers with 15 points in the first half. As Gregory got hot, The Warrior defense clamped up! Despite trailing by double digits at one point in the game, West Branch continued to battle all the way back until they took a lead, 33-31 at halftime. With The Warriors holding Fitch to just 6 points in the second quarter. 

The offensive drought continued into the second half for The Falcons, with Fitch calling on Creque along with Jocelyn Jourdan from distance in an effort to break Austintown out of their funk. Gregory continued to place West Branch on her back offensively, chipping in 8 of her team’s 11 points in the third quarter. Finishing at the rim effectively and efficiently with both hands, she left many in Austintown wondering “Is this girl ambidextrous?” 

Credit The Falcons, as they showed fight through four quarters of play, while fighting an uphill battle for the better part of three of those quarters. Getting others involved down the stretch, Fitch was looking to chip away the deficit; however, time would not be on their side. Pair that with a locked-in West Branch squad that had Hannah Egli taking cold-blooded three point shots down the stretch and it spelled goodnight for Austintown. The junior and YSU commit, Sophie Gregory, scored 8 more points in the fourth quarter as a part of a 31 point performance on the night! As a matter of fact, Gregory equaled the amount of points scored from the entire Fitch team (29) from quarter two onward! Her performance, paired with a great defensive adjustment from West Branch, led to a Warrior winner 62-54. 

Following the loss, The Falcons will have to focus up for the tournament following the conclusion of the regular season. As #22 Fitch (10-12) will head to #16 Boardman (13-9) on Saturday, February 11th, slated for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off. With the win, West Branch (11-11) will start their tournament run at home, hosting The Ravenna Ravens (3-16) on Wednesday, February 15th at 7:00 p.m. for the tip! Interviews with winning Head Coach Walt DeShields and Player of The Game Sophie Gregory can be found below! 

 

Scoring (West Branch)

Sophie Gregory: 31 PTS. (Player of The Game)

Livvie Showalter: 12 PTS.

Cami Campbell: 7 PTS.

Hannah Egli: 6 PTS.

Mikalyn Fitts: 4 PTS. 

Chloe Dennison: 2 PTS.

Scoring (Fitch)

Zayda Creque: 15 PTS.

Kylie Folkwein: 12 PTS.

Destanie McCullough: 8 PTS.

Rachel Spalding: 7 PTS.

Jocelyn Jourdan: 7 PTS.

Ayla Ray: 3 PTS.

Lannie Henning: 2 PTS. 

 

Scoring by Quarter

Q1: West Branch 16 – 25 Fitch

Q2: West Branch 17 – 6 Fitch

Q3: West Branch 11 – 8 Fitch

Q4: West Branch 18 – 15 Fitch

Final: West Branch 62 – 54 Fitch

*Contributed By YSN’s Ty Bartell

 

HOBAN FIGHTS THROUGH THE BULLDOGS BITE

/in /by

AKRON OH- With the days of high school basketball’s regular season fading, many teams have various goals during the final games of the season. Some are looking to rest their starters prior to the tournaments, others are in the midst of a conference championship and then some are just looking to prepare themselves with tough competition. On Tuesday night, much like the entirety of the season, The Archbishop Hoban boys basketball teams chose the latter! Welcoming fellow 15 win team at the time, The Green Bulldogs, into The Castle for a premier bout! 

Last season saw the two programs meet twice on the court, with Green taking the regular season home contest and Hoban knocking The Bulldogs out of the tournament in an overtime thriller! Thus leaving plenty of animosity between the two strong schools, adding plenty of intrigue and entertainment value to the matchup. The Knights wasted little time jumping ahead, as Jonas Nichols was finding his shot, propelling Hoban to a 10-1 lead on an impressive first quarter run. However, The Bulldogs stayed calm through the early deficit, as superstar scorer, Brady Rollyson started to will Green back into the game by trimming the deficit to just a possession after a quarter. 

With Hoban leading 19-16 after a quarter, they looked to create some distance once again from The Bulldogs. Green trimmed their deficit to just a single point at the start of quarter number two; however, The Knights armor held up! Joey Hardman made use of his minutes, hitting a three, and separating Hoban from Green once again. Nick Bundalo started to find his shot in the second, creating an effective one-two offensive punch with his teammate Brady Rollyson. The combination of Rollyson (15 PTS) and Bundalo (9 PTS) made up all the first half scoring for The Bulldogs, but The Knight still led 30-24 at the half. 

The battle continued in the second half, with Green continuing to try and get over the hump and Hoban fending off hungry Bulldogs in an effort to maintain their lead. Green once again battled to within a point, but once again were pushed back, this time by sharpshooter Logan Vowles finding a distance shot, putting his team right back up by two possessions. William Scott helped space the floor, while finding his own shots, especially in the second half to keep The Knights in front 43-37 after three. 

In the final eight minutes of play, with a rocking crowd behind them, The Hoban Knights started to put the finishing touches on a game that, despite being a battle, they never trailed in. Salting the game away, out-scoring Green 12-6 in the fourth quarter claiming a 12 point win 55-43 over The Bulldogs in Hoban’s sweet 16th victory of the season. Green (15-5)(8-3) will keep their talents on the road, traveling to GlenOak (16-4)(8-3) as they will try to separate themselves in the three-way tie in The Federal League, also with Massillon Jackson, on Friday, February 10th. Also on Friday, The Archbishop Hoban Knights (16-3) will stay home and entertain The Cornerstone Christian Patriots (16-3) in another premier matchup on YSN! Interviews with winning Head Coach T.K. Griffith and Player of The Game Jonas Nichols can be found below! 

 

Scoring (Hoban)

Jonas Nichols: 21 PTS (Player of The Game)

William Scott: 13 PTS.

Logan Vowles: 11 PTS.

Sam Greer: 7 PTS.

Joey Hardman: 3 PTS.

Scoring (Green)

Brady Rollyson: 21 PTS.

Nick Bundalo: 13 PTS.

Lucas Bitong: 4 PTS.

Mark Danner: 3 PTS.

Anthony Fortunato: 2 PTS.

 

Scoring by Quarter

Q1: Hoban 19 – 16 Green

Q2: Hoban 13 – 8 Green

Q3: Hoban 11 – 13 Green

Q4: Hoban 12 – 6 Green

Final: Hoban 55 – 43 Green

*Contributed By YSN’s Ty Bartell

ROCKETS FLY AWAY WITH CONFERENCE CROWN

/in /by

LOWELLVILLE OH- Lowellville beat Mineral Ridge 81-53 in their 9th straight win to get the season sweep on the Rams and clinch the MVAC-Scarlet title Tuesday night. Lowellville advances to 18-1 and is 13-0 in conference play this season.

Both of Lowellville’s 1000 point-scorers led the way, as Anthony Lucente had 26 points and Vinny Ballone finished with 14. Brady Bunofsky also had 9, and Lowellville had 11 different scorers in what was a great team effort offensively.

Lowellville will continue their league schedule on Friday as they host Waterloo. Mineral Ridge will get back to work on Friday as well as they host Jackson Milton.

RAIDERS BACK IN THE PICTURE

/in /by

CANFIELD OH- The NE8 has been wild this season, and with every team in the conference so close together it makes every night important.  South Range came in to Tuesday night just 1 game back of first place in the NE8. They trailed both Jefferson and Girard. Because of that, it became supremely important for the Raiders to win league games to stay on pace.  They welcomed in Hubbard looking to do just that. After a close 10-10 first quarter, the Raiders took control of the game and never really let go.  After the Raiders got their lead up to 17, the closest Hubbard could get was 9. The Raiders won by a final score of 50-40.  Little did they know that while they were winning their game, Poland was busy knocking off Girard. This puts the Raiders right back in the picture of the NE8.  They will play Jefferson next Tuesday and if the Raiders win, they could tie the Falcons for first place.

Leading the way for the Raiders on this night was Landon Moore who matched his jersey number with 15 points.  Luke Rohan was also in double figures for the Raiders scoring 13 points.  Dylan Turvey added 9 points, while Ayden Leon celebrated his senior night with 8.

 

The Eagles tried hard to come back, and that effort was led by a great push from off the bench from Kenyen Franklin. He finished the night with 11 points, he tied the team lead with Javon Greene who also put in 11.  Gavin Rybicki was able to add 7 points as well.

The Raiders finish up their regular season Tuesday at Jefferson with a spot in first place on the line.  Hubbard will stay on the road Friday with a non conference match up with Salem.

EAGLES GET BRAGGING RIGHTS IN BACKYARD BRAWL

/in /by

HOWLAND CENTER, OH – The John F. Kennedy Eagles are a high-scoring unit that averages around 75 points a game. Despite first half struggles at rival Howland on Tuesday, the Eagles showed exactly why. The third quarter was monstrous as they outscored the Tigers 33-9 in the period and held off a late rally to take a 58-56 victory.

 

JFK was aggressive on defense all night, hustling to the ball carrier and being in places where the Tigers offense would least expect it. That would set up opportunities for their best scorers in Michael Condoleon and Nick Ryan to unleash their will. Driving guard play by Condoleon and Ryan picked up the hot hand from downtown to embolden the third quarter streak. On the night, Condoleon cashed in 15 points while Ryan contributed 13.

 

Howland saw themselves down 49-31 in the third as they would try to push with a 25-9 rally, but would get no closer than a two-point deficit. Three players scored in double figures to help the Tigers, a charge that was led by junior Alex Henry. The fourth quarter would be his shine as he helped push the team on his way to a 20-point night. 

 

Foul shots in the waning minutes helped JFK maintain two-possession leads. They would force the Tigers to quick fouls to help send shooters like Nick Ryan and Devonte Taylor to the line. The Eagles would hit four shots in the final 50 seconds to silence Howland.

 

Warren JFK (15-3) has now won two of their last three meetings with the Tigers as they will travel to St. Thomas Aquinas on Friday for the second game of a five-game roadstand to end the regular season. This will be the second meeting as the Eagles fell short to the Knights back on January 6th 67-54. Howland (9-10) will look to snap a two-game losing streak on Friday when they travel to Canfield for a rematch with the Cardinals. Canfield was victorious back on January 17th by a narrow 54-51 margin. 

 

YSN’s Noah Ricks got a chance to speak with JFK coach Mark Komlanc following the rivalry victory. The full interview can be watched below.

*Contributed By YSN’s Noah Ricks

 

TIGERS ON THE HUNT

/in /by

NEW MIDDLETOWN, OH- The Waterloo Vikings went on the road to take on the Springfield Tigers. The Tigers were led by Nico Servedio, who dropped 17 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks. Seandelle Gardner also contributed 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals.

The Vikings kept up for most of the way as Anthony Podojal dropped 13 points, but the Tigers snuck away to win 57-44 to secure 2nd place in the MVAC Scarlet Division.

The Tigers will finish the season with a three game home stand that starts Friday when they take on Mcdonald. The Vikings on the other hand will finish the season with a three game stand on the road starting when they take on Lowellville this Friday.

*Contributed by YSN’s Matt Morrison