BERLIN, Ohio—Six more games and day two of the 12th annual Classic in the Country is in the books. The day had it all starting with a double overtime thriller followed by another two point nail biter. Things got sloppy with back to back 30 plus point blowouts but a four pointer in the day’s fifth game got things back in line with the competition the Classic in the Country is noted for. The day’s final contest saw another big margin at 28 to bring the day’s average margin to an uncharacteristic 15.1 points per game.
Scoring aside, some top tier talent was on display once again and the recruiters, fans and media got more than their money’s worth before all was said and done. Monday’s lineup features seven more contests to wrap up the event with all the action getting underway at 10 a.m. Here’s a quick look back at the day two results and some of the top performers.
Follow the link below for coverage of day one games and performances.
You couldn’t have asked for a better way to start the day than a double overtime battle between the two Notre Dames. Notre Dame Academy out of Toledo and Mt. Notre Dame from Cincinnati went toe to toe for 40 minutes before Toledo bound post Kaayla McIntyre converted a game winner off a baseline inbounds pass with the horn sounding as the ball passed through the net. Teammate CJ Jefferson nailed a three at the end of the first overtime to necessitate the second extra period after both teams finished regulation knotted up at 47.
McIntyre led the Eagles with 21 points and 15 boards. The impressively improving senior was 9 of 15 from the floor and chipped in three assists as well off some sharp high post passing. Sophomore guard Mariah Copeland added 16 more, 13 of which came in the first half before being effectively shut down by the MND defense. Michigan signee Naomi Davenport once again paced the Cougars with her own double – double of 22 points and 18 rebounds. Davenport was 6 of 18 from the floor and 10 for 11 at the line and added three assists as well in the loss.
In the win Notre Dame Academy shot 52.6 percent from the field to MND’s 32.7 effort. The Cincinnati folks won the glass 30 to 25 and had three less turnovers giving it up just six times on the night. The Cougars offset their poor shooting with a 15 of 19 free throw total while the Eagles were fortunate to still grab the win with their frosty 7 for 17 production at the line.
The day’s second game didn’t make it to overtime but it did go down to the wire with Tippecanoe edging Carrollton 47 – 45. Things were all tied up at eight after one but the Red Devils opened up a six point margin at half, 22 – 18. They added two more to the lead in the third before Carrollton made their run in the fourth coming up just short at the buzzer.
Junior forward Aubree Cox had 14 in the win while classmate Carly Codfelter added 11 more and senior Halee Printz chipped in nine. Cox and Printz pulled 7 rebounds each and Printz contributed three assists as well. Kelsey Voll, a senior, led Carrollton in the loss with 12. Long and lanky junior backcourt prospect Ali Poole finished with 10 more and demonstrated some promising instinctual play.
Both teams shot 42 percent from the floor with Carrollton actually outscoring the Red Devils 40 – 35. However, their lowly 10 for 22 effort from the line was enough to outdistance Carrollton and their limited 5 of 6 freethrow total. The Warriors also controlled the boards by four but Tippecanoe had just nine turnovers to the losers 14.
Things got ugly fast in game three of the day as Lakota West jumped out 12 – 6 on Wadsworth and never looked back as they claimed a 62 – 30 win with ease. Even with his subs playing extensive minutes Andy Fishman’s Firebirds shot 45.5 percent for the game while the Grizzlies were feeling the winter cold connecting on just 23.3 percent of their attempts.
Three players reached double digits for Lakota West with Dayton bound Lauren Cannatelli setting the pace with 17 followed by 14 from junior West Virginia commit Nia Staples and 12 from junior post Lexi Wasan. The three were a combined 17 for 32 from the floor. Wadsworth had no players in double figures and after an 8 of 21 first half shooting could muster just 2 for 22 across the final 16 minutes. Freshman Lexi Lance had some moments worth noting in the loss. Lakota West controlled the boards 33 – 26 and forced 16 Wadsworth turnovers while committing just 10 of their own.
The ugly got uglier in the day’s next game with Archbishop Alter jumping out 29 to 6 after one period on Pickerington Central. Things got no better for the Tiger’s in the next three quarters as they fell to the Knights by a final score of 64 – 31.
Senior Emma Bockrath led the way once again with 15 while classmate Maddie Bazelak added 12 more. The two also combined for 5 of 8 shooting behind the arch. High profile freshman Bexley Wallace struggled throughout finishing with six points on 3 of 6 shooting and grabbing three rebounds. Fellow post Kennedi Jones was also 3 of 6 from the floor for Pickerington Central.
The Knights blistered the nets at 51.6 percent in the first half but cooled considerably in the second finishing at 39.3 for the game to Central’s final 28 percent. Alter also dominated rebounding finishing with a 42 – 26 margin and committed 13 turnovers to the Tiger’s 15.
Mason and Solon offered up a slugfest in the 6:40 game with the battle of the Comets going to northern Ohio and Solon. Despite trailing 38 – 32 after three, Mason could only make up two in the final period to come up short by way of a 57 – 53 score. A tougher pill for Rob Matula’s squad to swallow was the fact they had one more field goal than the “other” Comets and they absolutely dominated the glass by 15 in a losing effort.
Solon got 14 from play making sophomore guard Dee Bekelja. Senior sister Jordan added 13 more and promising 2017 wing Alexis Stover contributed 12. Junior forward Lauren Van Kleunen led Mason with 17 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore Sami Mowbray continues to impress and added 12 more on 4 of 8 shooting.
A promising finale for day two turned into a rout as Toledo Rogers discovered their “game” and used it to take down North Canton Hoover by a 58 – 40 count. A 23 – 16 lead at the half grew by five in the third and six more in the fourth for the surprising final score.
Rogers got balanced scoring from their talented lineup with junior forward Keasja Peace leading the way with 13. Fellow 2016 Akienreh Johnson followed with 11 while classmate Tanaya Beacham added 10 as did sophomore Breelynn Hampton-Bey. Peace, Johnson and Hampton-Bey are verbals for Michigan while Beacham has committed to Xavier. Another forward, Cincinnati verbal Sydney Petty, contributed nine more. Allie Farina led the Vikings with 13 points and seven rebounds. Farina, a senior, is headed to West Liberty next year. Hoover also got some sharp backcourt play from skilled junior point guard Lexi Manos who added 12 points in the loss.
Rogers shot 40 percent from the floor while Hoover struggled at 28.8. The Rams owned the boards as well 46 – 30 including 18 on the offensive end of the floor. Rogers did turn it over three more times trailing 16 – 13 for the game.
