IRISH DOMINATE DOWNTOWN RIVAL

By Tim Corso

YOUNGSTOWN OH- Ursuline rolled past Youngstown East 82-57 in its Steel Valley Conference and home opener Friday Night.

Keith Gunther’s Fighting Irish entered Friday night winning 21 straight games inside the Cafaro Gymnasium and on the hardwood of the Lyden Family Court.

They were looking to make it 22 tonight and improve to 5-0; they did just that.

The Irish got out to a fast start that included a 19-6 lead and finished up 27-8 after the first eight minutes. Freshman Noah Bell was the player to spearhead that start with 7 points.

Bell wasn’t the only freshman to pull his weight (and then some).

Jaylen Gunther and Jace Riccardo showed why the trio of Gunther, Bell, and Riccardo headlines what is regarded as one of the best freshman classes in Northeast Ohio.

Gunther finished with 14 points and 7 assists, while Riccardo added 7 and hauled in numerous clutch rebounds.

It was all gas and no brakes going into the intermission for Ursuline as they led 49-16.

However, the Golden Bears wouldn’t go away.

East scored 16 in the third quarter, already matching its first half total.

That scoring spark in the third sparked a team comeback that got the Irish lead down to just 16 halfway through the fourth, in thanks to Isaiah McCoy’s hot shooting and Tyris Davis’ thunderous slam that almost blew the roof off the building.

McCoy and Davis paced the Golden Bears with 18 and 13 points, respectively.

The fight the Bears showed wasn’t reflected in the final score as Ursuline went on a 14-5 run from that point to put the game to rest.

Two other Irish players reached double figures, in Junior Jared Klucinec (10) and Sophomore Myles Miller (15).

Miller hounded the boards for double-digit rebounds for the game.

Seniors Jayden Payne and Geno Lucente added 9 points each in the effort as well.

East’s Kevin Pullen reached double figures in the setback with 10.

Ursuline (4-0) will travel to Massillon Washington (2-0) on Tuesday, December 19 to take on the Tigers at 7:30 p.m.

For East (3-2), they’ll also be back in action on Tuesday when they host Howland (3-3) at 7 p.m.

Game Photos HERE: https://ysn.smugmug.com/12-15-b-bb-ursuline-east/12-15-b-bb-ursuline/103EOS1D/