Berlin, OHIO-Mother Nature continued her full court press on northwest Ohio as day two of the 16th annual Classic in the Country unfolded. Snow showers and 20 mile per hour winds were forecast throughout the day as temperatures ultimately dove into single digits by early evening across Berlin and Holmes County. Things were much warmer inside the Perry Reese Center with five games to take the edge off the shivering chill of fans, recruiters and media.
Of the ten teams taking the floor Sunday, four (Hamilton Heights, Lakota West, Mason and Mt. Notre Dame) were playing their second game of the “weather adjusted” schedule. Mt. Notre Dame captured a big win on day one getting by nationally ranked Hamilton Heights while both Lakota West and Mason claimed solid victories in their respective openers. To see a quick synopsis of the first day of action from the Classic in the Country, follow the link below to our coverage on Blue Star Media.
https://www.bluestarmedia.org/16th-annual-classic-in-the-country/
Today we take a look over our shoulder at results from day two. On tap Monday is a full slate of eight games as we continue to honor the legacies of both Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coach Perry Reese Jr. While no doubt Dr. King’s achievements and impact are well documented, many outside of northwest Ohio may not know the incredible story of Coach Reese. Do yourself a favor and spend a few minutes with Gary Smith’s 2014 Sports Illustrated article by following the next link. It will be time well spent.
https://www.si.com/high-school/2014/12/12/higher-education-perry-reese-jr-gary-smith
Sycamore kicked off day two with a 19 to 3 explosion on Tri-Valley. Unfortunately for the Aves they had to play three more periods. Tri-Valley knocked seven off the deficit by half and seven more in the third to trail just 36 – 34 entering the final period. A 10 – 7 run wrapped up the comeback and sealed the win for the Scotties 44 – 43. Juniors Audrey Spiker and Kyndal Howe led the scoring with 13 apiece while Howe made it a double-double with her team leading 11 rebounds. Impressive freshman guard Leah Riley led Sycamore in the loss with 18 shooting 6 for 9 from the floor including 3 of 5 from deep. Sophomore Brianna Counts contributed 10 rebounds in the loss for the Aves.
Mt. Notre Dame came into their second game riding the momentum of a Saturday win over nationally ranked Hamilton Heights. The Cougars picked up right where they left off jumping out 23 to 5 after one and never looking back. It was 43 – 13 at the half and before all was said and done the subs had plenty of minutes and the deficit read 59 – 32. Freshman KK Bransford led three MND players in double figures with 14 points on 7 of 13 shooting. Sophomore Laila Phelia added 11 and junior Makira Cook chipped in 10 more. Cornerstone failed to place anyone in double digits thanks, unfortunately, to 12 of 49 shooting for 24.5 percent as a team.
Hamilton Heights was anxious to get back on track after their tough opening day loss to Mt. Notre Dame but Lakota West wasn’t about to just hand the win over to them. It took two overtimes to get it done but the Hawks prevailed in the end 61 – 59 holding their breath as the Firebirds had one last possession to change the outcome. Hamilton Heights had four players in double figures. Senior Trinity Brady and sophomore Tineya Hylton paced the scoring with 16 apiece. Junior post Kamilla Cardoso added 14 and classmate Ruth Balogun finished with 11. Cardoso added 14 rebounds to her final stats while Balogun got 13 on the glass, both finishing with double-doubles in the hard fought win. Lakota West had three of their own hit double digits. Freshman Chance Gray once again led the way with 16 while aggressive sophomore wing Kailyn Dudukovich added 15 of her own. Senior Dominique Camp had 13 on 6 of 9 shooting in the loss.
In a game expected to be a back and forth affair, Newark jumped out early on Mason 20 to 12 after one and extended the lead to 32 – 17 at the half. The Comets scrambled and competed throughout but their shooting percentage (24.1 FG%) wasn’t any higher than the temperature outside ultimately leading to a 52 – 39 loss following their day one win. Newark placed four in double figure scoring led by sophomore Emma Shumate’s 13. Seniors Morgan Sharps and Katie Shumate added 12 each while junior Gabby Stare chipped in 11 more. Katie Shumate led the way on the glass finishing with 11 and the double-double in the win. Sammie Puisis had 17 to pace Mason but the normally sharpshooting senior was emblematic of the entire Comet team going just 5 for 20 from the floor including 2 of 10 from three point range.
Loudonville has seen plenty of success recently but Sunday evening they ran into a storm from Kettering Fairmont that froze their progress, at least for 32 minutes. The Firebirds led 22 to 5 after the first period and 40 – 11 at the break. It was 56 – 22 after three before the final horn and a deficit of 69 – 37 ended the tough night for the Redbirds. Fairmont Senior Mali Morgan-Elliott led the way with 21 points on a 9 for 18 shooting effort. Junior post Madison Bartley had 17 more on a 7 for 9 effort of her own from the floor. High profile junior Madeline Westbeld finished with a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds adding four assists for good measure. Senior point guard Celeste Ryman led Loudonville in the loss with 14 while junior Emily Seboe added 11 more.
