Talented freshman comes to the rescue for VASJ: High school roundup

There are high school freshmen and then there is DeMonte Flannigan.

Flannigan, Villa Angela-St. Joseph's 6-7, 220-pound ninth-grader, played more like a senior Tuesday when he led the top-seeded Vikings to a 54-47 comeback victory over fourth-seeded and upset-minded Kirtland in a Division III district semifinal game at Painesville Harvey.

Flannigan, 14, scored 15 points, had 14 rebounds and blocked seven shots as VASJ (15-7) rallied from an 11-point deficit in the first half to advance to Friday's district championship game against reigning state champion ClevelandCentral Catholic.

The Vikings (15-7) received an emotional boost when forward Jermaine Williams sank a 40-foot shot at the buzzer to end the first half, cutting their deficit to 26-22. Williams, a 6-4 senior, finished with 12 points, six rebounds and four steals.

"Jermaine's shot gave [us] a huge lift," VASJ coach Dave Wojciechowski said. "Our kids felt they didn't play very well in that first half, that they didn't compete."

VASJ needed all the heroics it could gather in order to turn back the Hornets (13-9). Senior Anthony Ritossa was nearly unstoppable for Kirtland as the 6-4 forward poured in 24 points, pulled down 21 rebounds and had four steals.

The victory sets up a rematch of last year's district final with Central Catholic at Lakeland Community College, which the Ironmen won, 46-34.

Cleveland Central Catholic 46, Hawken 39: The Ironmen have gotten healthy just in time. Guard Chall Montgomery scored a game-high 18 points and had eight rebounds and junior Anton Grady had 13 points, 12 rebounds, nine blocked shots and four assists as the reigning Division III state champs (12-11) steadily pulled away in the second half.

Both players were sidelined by injuries at one point this season. Second-seeded Hawken (17-5) did not go quietly as forward John Weiss scored 14 points and had eight rebounds and just as many steals and guard JohnWilson had 12 points, four rebounds, two steals and two assists.

St. Peter Chanel 59, Dalton 43: Sixth-seeded St. Peter Chanel used a strong first-half defensive effort to post its second straight postseason victory and set up a rematch with Lutheran East in Thursday's Division IV district championship game at Garfield Heights.

St. Peter Chanel, which knocked off top-seeded Richmond Heights in its sectional opener, held No. 2-seed Dalton to 10 points in the first half.

The sixth-seeded Firebirds (11-11) scored their second upset of the postseason with a strong first half and were led by guard Anthony DeBaltzo, who had five 3-pointers on his way to a 19-point performance. St. Peter Chanel lost to Lutheran East in last year's district championship game, 76-64.

Lutheran East 63, Martin Luther King 53: The fourth-seeded Falcons made sure the eighth-seeded Crusaders did not match St. Peter Chanel's upset mode. Sophomore center David Gary scored 13 of his game-high 21 points in the first half and senior guard Marlin Pickens scored 15 of his 19 in the second for the Falcons (13-9).

Vienna Mathews 76, Windham 42: The Bombers (12-11) put together a nice run with two victories during the Division IV sectional at Warren Howland, but it came to an end in the second quarter of the district semifinals when they were outscored, 20-9, by the top-seeded Mustangs (20-2).

There is hope for the future, however, as freshmen Tyler Pennington and Matt Knight were the team's most productive players. Pennington, a forward, finished with 15 points, four rebounds and two steals and Knight, a guard, had 12 points, four steals and three rebounds.

Talented freshman comes to the rescue for VASJ: High school roundup

There are high school freshmen and then there is DeMonte Flannigan.

Flannigan, Villa Angela-St. Joseph's 6-7, 220-pound ninth-grader, played more like a senior Tuesday when he led the top-seeded Vikings to a 54-47 comeback victory over fourth-seeded and upset-minded Kirtland in a Division III district semifinal game at Painesville Harvey.

Flannigan, 14, scored 15 points, had 14 rebounds and blocked seven shots as VASJ (15-7) rallied from an 11-point deficit in the first half to advance to Friday's district championship game against reigning state champion ClevelandCentral Catholic.

The Vikings (15-7) received an emotional boost when forward Jermaine Williams sank a 40-foot shot at the buzzer to end the first half, cutting their deficit to 26-22. Williams, a 6-4 senior, finished with 12 points, six rebounds and four steals.

"Jermaine's shot gave [us] a huge lift," VASJ coach Dave Wojciechowski said. "Our kids felt they didn't play very well in that first half, that they didn't compete."

VASJ needed all the heroics it could gather in order to turn back the Hornets (13-9). Senior Anthony Ritossa was nearly unstoppable for Kirtland as the 6-4 forward poured in 24 points, pulled down 21 rebounds and had four steals.

The victory sets up a rematch of last year's district final with Central Catholic at Lakeland Community College, which the Ironmen won, 46-34.

Cleveland Central Catholic 46, Hawken 39: The Ironmen have gotten healthy just in time. Guard Chall Montgomery scored a game-high 18 points and had eight rebounds and junior Anton Grady had 13 points, 12 rebounds, nine blocked shots and four assists as the reigning Division III state champs (12-11) steadily pulled away in the second half.

Both players were sidelined by injuries at one point this season. Second-seeded Hawken (17-5) did not go quietly as forward John Weiss scored 14 points and had eight rebounds and just as many steals and guard JohnWilson had 12 points, four rebounds, two steals and two assists.

St. Peter Chanel 59, Dalton 43: Sixth-seeded St. Peter Chanel used a strong first-half defensive effort to post its second straight postseason victory and set up a rematch with Lutheran East in Thursday's Division IV district championship game at Garfield Heights.

St. Peter Chanel, which knocked off top-seeded Richmond Heights in its sectional opener, held No. 2-seed Dalton to 10 points in the first half.

The sixth-seeded Firebirds (11-11) scored their second upset of the postseason with a strong first half and were led by guard Anthony DeBaltzo, who had five 3-pointers on his way to a 19-point performance. St. Peter Chanel lost to Lutheran East in last year's district championship game, 76-64.

Lutheran East 63, Martin Luther King 53: The fourth-seeded Falcons made sure the eighth-seeded Crusaders did not match St. Peter Chanel's upset mode. Sophomore center David Gary scored 13 of his game-high 21 points in the first half and senior guard Marlin Pickens scored 15 of his 19 in the second for the Falcons (13-9).

Vienna Mathews 76, Windham 42: The Bombers (12-11) put together a nice run with two victories during the Division IV sectional at Warren Howland, but it came to an end in the second quarter of the district semifinals when they were outscored, 20-9, by the top-seeded Mustangs (20-2).

There is hope for the future, however, as freshmen Tyler Pennington and Matt Knight were the team's most productive players. Pennington, a forward, finished with 15 points, four rebounds and two steals and Knight, a guard, had 12 points, four steals and three rebounds.

Twinsburg wins a thriller to set up Division I regional final vs. McKinley

Twinsburg's Hillary Southworth jumps into the arms of teammate Malina Howard after Howard's game-winning layup defeated Brush, 53-51, in Tuesday night's Division I regional semifinal in Canton. - (Joshua Gunter / The Plain Dealer)

CANTON, Ohio -- Twinsburg's Malina Howard said it was just like any other shot she has ever taken. But it was a lot more.

The shot was a layup with one second left. It gave the Tigers a 53-51 victory over Brush Tuesday night in the Division I girls regional semifinals at Canton Memorial Civic Center.

Brush's Natachia Watkins hit a short jump shot to tie the game with 10 seconds left. Without a timeout, Twinsburg alertly moved the ball up floor. Leah Fechko zipped a pass from the left side to Howard under the basket for the game-winner.

"Every shot I take I'm trying to make," said Howard, a 6-4 sophomore center. "It was just in the flow of the game. It was all about keeping our composure and getting a good shot."

Twinsburg improved to 23-1 and advanced to Friday's championship against Canton McKinley (22-3).

"That was just our transition," Twinsburg coach Julie Solis said. "It was good execution. [Howard] was awesome. She was going to do what she had to do. I wish we would have gotten her the ball more in the second half, but credit Brush's defense for that."

Howard finished with 16 points and nine rebounds. Freshman Ashley Morrissette scored 14 points for Twinsburg and Jenn Mohney scored 11.

Howard's heroics were necessary because Brush battled its way back from a 10-point deficit in the third quarter. Watkins, an Eastern Michigan recruit, led the Arcs' comeback. She finished with 26 points and 12 rebounds.

"She's a great player," Brush coach Chuck Collins said. "She's worked hard her whole career and she deserves everything she's gotten."

Brush, making its first regional appearance, finishes 20-5.

"They made one more play than we did," Collins said. "They're a great team and we think we're right there with them."

Twinsburg led by two points after one quarter, seven at the half and 43-34 going into the fourth quarter. Watkins scored the last six points for Brush. She had nine points in the fourth quarter.

"She did a phenomenal job for them," Solis said. "She really kept them in the game."

McKinley 82, Green 53: The regular season probably seemed a distant memory for Green in the early game. The Bulldogs took McKinley to overtime early in the season, but the regional matchup was all but over in the first quarter.

Green turned the ball over nine times as McKinley built leads of 6-0, 13-2 and 20-8 at the end of the quarter on freshman Aaliyah Dotson's foul-line jump shot at the buzzer.

Melissa Weinsz scored the first six points for Green. She finished with 11. Kelsey Corle led Green with 12 points. Green had a 20-game winning streak snapped and finished at 21-4.

"Our passes weren't very crisp and our screens weren't very crisp," Green coach Tony Whitmer said. "And they were allowed to play physical with us and we reacted poorly to it."

Green cut down its turnovers after that, but McKinley continued to pull away. Sydnee Penn led McKinley with 18 points. Laneisha Lennon scored 17, Ameryst Alston had 11 and Dotson had 10.

"The girls are disappointed," Whitmer said. "It's not that we lost the game, but we wanted to make things a little more enjoyable for our fans."

Bob Migra is a free-lance writer in Westlake.

Twinsburg wins a thriller to set up Division I regional final vs. McKinley

Twinsburg's Hillary Southworth jumps into the arms of teammate Malina Howard after Howard's game-winning layup defeated Brush, 53-51, in Tuesday night's Division I regional semifinal in Canton. - (Joshua Gunter / The Plain Dealer)

CANTON, Ohio -- Twinsburg's Malina Howard said it was just like any other shot she has ever taken. But it was a lot more.

The shot was a layup with one second left. It gave the Tigers a 53-51 victory over Brush Tuesday night in the Division I girls regional semifinals at Canton Memorial Civic Center.

Brush's Natachia Watkins hit a short jump shot to tie the game with 10 seconds left. Without a timeout, Twinsburg alertly moved the ball up floor. Leah Fechko zipped a pass from the left side to Howard under the basket for the game-winner.

"Every shot I take I'm trying to make," said Howard, a 6-4 sophomore center. "It was just in the flow of the game. It was all about keeping our composure and getting a good shot."

Twinsburg improved to 23-1 and advanced to Friday's championship against Canton McKinley (22-3).

"That was just our transition," Twinsburg coach Julie Solis said. "It was good execution. [Howard] was awesome. She was going to do what she had to do. I wish we would have gotten her the ball more in the second half, but credit Brush's defense for that."

Howard finished with 16 points and nine rebounds. Freshman Ashley Morrissette scored 14 points for Twinsburg and Jenn Mohney scored 11.

Howard's heroics were necessary because Brush battled its way back from a 10-point deficit in the third quarter. Watkins, an Eastern Michigan recruit, led the Arcs' comeback. She finished with 26 points and 12 rebounds.

"She's a great player," Brush coach Chuck Collins said. "She's worked hard her whole career and she deserves everything she's gotten."

Brush, making its first regional appearance, finishes 20-5.

"They made one more play than we did," Collins said. "They're a great team and we think we're right there with them."

Twinsburg led by two points after one quarter, seven at the half and 43-34 going into the fourth quarter. Watkins scored the last six points for Brush. She had nine points in the fourth quarter.

"She did a phenomenal job for them," Solis said. "She really kept them in the game."

McKinley 82, Green 53: The regular season probably seemed a distant memory for Green in the early game. The Bulldogs took McKinley to overtime early in the season, but the regional matchup was all but over in the first quarter.

Green turned the ball over nine times as McKinley built leads of 6-0, 13-2 and 20-8 at the end of the quarter on freshman Aaliyah Dotson's foul-line jump shot at the buzzer.

Melissa Weinsz scored the first six points for Green. She finished with 11. Kelsey Corle led Green with 12 points. Green had a 20-game winning streak snapped and finished at 21-4.

"Our passes weren't very crisp and our screens weren't very crisp," Green coach Tony Whitmer said. "And they were allowed to play physical with us and we reacted poorly to it."

Green cut down its turnovers after that, but McKinley continued to pull away. Sydnee Penn led McKinley with 18 points. Laneisha Lennon scored 17, Ameryst Alston had 11 and Dotson had 10.

"The girls are disappointed," Whitmer said. "It's not that we lost the game, but we wanted to make things a little more enjoyable for our fans."

Bob Migra is a free-lance writer in Westlake.

New Jersey Girls Basketball: Buzz-beaters, overtime, overdrive and intrigue

Last night is just that night that you want to be in our office (that said, I wasn't even there). But, on a night like the one that unfolded, there is an added buzz in the air as the writers get back and share a quick recap from the game he covered.

But, the downside to hoops season for me is I wanna be at every game at this time of the year. I want see Theresa Krawiec scramble for a loose ball and put up a desperation shot at the buzzer that sends Salem to a victory.

I wanna cling to the edge of my seat during an overtime period, when senior Terry Ely rediscovers a silky touch from the foul line, the same one that was nowhere to be found during an uncharacteristic stretch, and propels Pascack Valley by Teaneck for its 12th sectional title.

And, can you imagine the suspense at New Providence? Clinging to a lead against a University team that gave at least me the impression it had all the trimmings to win a Group 1 state title, New Providence never cracked. Instead, it galvinized, even upon the late-game insertion of Laurin Mincy, the three-time Star-Ledger All-State and two-time state Player of the Year, whose 3-point attempt at the buzzer was off the mark, confirming New Providence had scored one of the biggest triumphs in the program's history.

Don't you wanna be there for those moments? I love when I stumble into one of them, like I did Monday night, when Chatham put together a comeback that no one associated with the program will soon forget, rallying from six points down with 1:41 left to play to pull out a 47-46 victory. Those are the ones you don't forget and I don't care who your rooting affiliation is with.

I was fortunate to catch Trenton Catholic's Briyona Canty at her finest last night. Her quickness was so excessive going to the basket, it was a miracle she wasn't ticketed for speeding in a school zone. And, her wonderful unselfishness got everyone involved, including sophomore Marquasia Aiken, who lit it up for 24, highlighted by six 3-pointers. Canty's speed was revealed in so many areas...on the boards where she went up and got two touches on the offensive glass before anyone else came back to Earth from trying to grab the first rebound. Her lateral movement on the ball is just unfair when you consider her size and strength. Watching her defend Cardinal McCarrick's guards, Canty looked like she was on roller skates, sliding back and forth and rarely allowing access into the lane. And, her thought process on the ball is utterly ridiculous. She envisions her decisions a good 15-to-20 feet away from where she will eventually act upon it. Roll all those traits up into one, and you can understand how she finished with 21 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 73-54 victory.

Rocky River, Walsh Jesuit dazzle in advancing to Division II regional final

ONTARIO, Ohio -- Northeast Ohio certainly flexed its muscles Tuesday in Division II girls regional basketball.

Despite having worse records and lower rankings than their opponents from Northwest Ohio, Rocky River and Walsh Jesuit rolled up big leads and then cruised their way to Friday's regional final at Ontario High School.

In a matchup of teams ranked 1-2 in the state, Walsh Jesuit thoroughly dominated top-ranked and previously unbeaten Tiffin Columbian, 75-34. In the opener, unranked Rocky River used a dominant second quarter to take down 11th-ranked Wauseon, 57-49. The winners meet at 7:30 Friday with a berth in the state's final four at stake.

The 22-2 Warriors, whose only losses are to highly-regarded Twinsburg and Regina, jumped on top right from the start, opening a 10-2 lead as sophomore Rachel Theriot had three baskets and assisted on the other two. The quarter finally ended with Walsh holding a 25-8 lead and the rout was on.

"We wanted to get off to a good start," Walsh coach Pete Zaccari said. "We knew what a good team Columbian was and we didn't want to get into a halfcourt game with them. We felt if we could get the lead we could play our game."

Walsh used a diamond press that hounded Columbian into 27 turnovers and fell back into a 2-1-2 zone the Tornadoes never could solve. BowlingGreen recruit Jill Stein ended the night with just five points on 2 of 11 shooting and teammate Megan Miller hit only one of 15 shots.

The Warriors were led by Theriot with 19 points, but the team's leader is senior point guard Kara Goliat, who had 17 points, 10 steals, five assists and three rebounds. Ariel McNair had 13 points off the bench.

"We stress being aggressive and working hard on defense," Goliat said. "We were able to put it all together tonight and get a win."

A timeout with 3:29 remaining in the first quarter turned out to be the key for Rocky River (21-4). Down 8-3 and having already committed six turnovers, coach MichaelMurray pulled his troops together and got them to settle down. There were no major changes in strategy, just execution.

The timeout was effective, as the second quarter was a runaway for the Pirates. They outscored Wauseon, 15-1, to take a 22-11 halftime lead and built the margin to as many as 19 in the third period.

Hannah McCue made her presence felt in the second period, scoring seven of her 18 points. In the meantime, the Indians made only three of 20 shots in the first half and missed all of their field goal attempts in the second quarter.

"That timeout was key for us," Murray said. "We only gave up three points in the rest of the half. What we said was, 'Let's just do what we do in practice.' It was simple, basic things--taking care of the ball, hitting the open pass and the open shot; and getting stops on defense."

Despite holding the Indians to 25 percent shooting on the night, the Pirates still found themselves clinging to an eight-point lead, 50-42, with more than two minutes to play. That's when Murray drew up a play designed to get a three-pointer for Molly McNally, who drained it for the last of her game-high 19 points.

"I knew it was in," McNally said. "I'm confident in my shot and we really needed it."

Wauseon never got closer than eight the rest of the way.

Joe Magill is a free-lance writer based in University Heights.

Rocky River, Walsh Jesuit dazzle in advancing to Division II regional final

ONTARIO, Ohio -- Northeast Ohio certainly flexed its muscles Tuesday in Division II girls regional basketball.

Despite having worse records and lower rankings than their opponents from Northwest Ohio, Rocky River and Walsh Jesuit rolled up big leads and then cruised their way to Friday's regional final at Ontario High School.

In a matchup of teams ranked 1-2 in the state, Walsh Jesuit thoroughly dominated top-ranked and previously unbeaten Tiffin Columbian, 75-34. In the opener, unranked Rocky River used a dominant second quarter to take down 11th-ranked Wauseon, 57-49. The winners meet at 7:30 Friday with a berth in the state's final four at stake.

The 22-2 Warriors, whose only losses are to highly-regarded Twinsburg and Regina, jumped on top right from the start, opening a 10-2 lead as sophomore Rachel Theriot had three baskets and assisted on the other two. The quarter finally ended with Walsh holding a 25-8 lead and the rout was on.

"We wanted to get off to a good start," Walsh coach Pete Zaccari said. "We knew what a good team Columbian was and we didn't want to get into a halfcourt game with them. We felt if we could get the lead we could play our game."

Walsh used a diamond press that hounded Columbian into 27 turnovers and fell back into a 2-1-2 zone the Tornadoes never could solve. BowlingGreen recruit Jill Stein ended the night with just five points on 2 of 11 shooting and teammate Megan Miller hit only one of 15 shots.

The Warriors were led by Theriot with 19 points, but the team's leader is senior point guard Kara Goliat, who had 17 points, 10 steals, five assists and three rebounds. Ariel McNair had 13 points off the bench.

"We stress being aggressive and working hard on defense," Goliat said. "We were able to put it all together tonight and get a win."

A timeout with 3:29 remaining in the first quarter turned out to be the key for Rocky River (21-4). Down 8-3 and having already committed six turnovers, coach MichaelMurray pulled his troops together and got them to settle down. There were no major changes in strategy, just execution.

The timeout was effective, as the second quarter was a runaway for the Pirates. They outscored Wauseon, 15-1, to take a 22-11 halftime lead and built the margin to as many as 19 in the third period.

Hannah McCue made her presence felt in the second period, scoring seven of her 18 points. In the meantime, the Indians made only three of 20 shots in the first half and missed all of their field goal attempts in the second quarter.

"That timeout was key for us," Murray said. "We only gave up three points in the rest of the half. What we said was, 'Let's just do what we do in practice.' It was simple, basic things--taking care of the ball, hitting the open pass and the open shot; and getting stops on defense."

Despite holding the Indians to 25 percent shooting on the night, the Pirates still found themselves clinging to an eight-point lead, 50-42, with more than two minutes to play. That's when Murray drew up a play designed to get a three-pointer for Molly McNally, who drained it for the last of her game-high 19 points.

"I knew it was in," McNally said. "I'm confident in my shot and we really needed it."

Wauseon never got closer than eight the rest of the way.

Joe Magill is a free-lance writer based in University Heights.

Palisades Park 80, Bogota 39 (High school Boys Basketball scores and results)

Bogota 39
Name                          2-pt.   3-pt.   FT   Total

        Totals:                         0       0      0   

Palisades  Park  80
Name                          2-pt.   3-pt.   FT   Total

        Totals:                         0       0      0   

Palisades  Park  (21-5)         18   24   20   18   80
Bogota (12-13)                13   15     3     8   39

Rebounds:

Assists:

Blocks:

Steals:

Northfield Mount Hermon beats Notre Dame in quarterfinal at boys hoop prep national championship

NJ boys basketball: Shabazz, Science Park earn sectional titles

BOYS STATE TOURNAMENT ACTION

MARCH 9

NORTH JERSEY, SECTION 1

GROUP 4
East Orange Campus at Paterson Kennedy, 7

GROUP 2
Pequannock at Indian Hills, 7

NORTH JERSEY, SECTION 2

GROUP 4
Hillsborough at Plainfield, 7

GROUP 2
Science Park at Garfield, 7

CENTRAL JERSEY

GROUP 4
North Brunswick at Montgomery, 7

GROUP 2
Shabazz at Willingboro, 6

SOUTH JERSEY

GROUP 4
Shawnee at Cherokee, 7

GROUP 2
Haddon Heights at Collingswood, 7

SECTIONAL SEMIFINALS

NON-PUBLIC B

SOUTH JERSEY

At Jackson Liberty
Trenton Catholic vs. Cardinal McCarrick, 6:30

WEDNESDAY'S SCHEDULE

SEMIFINAL ROUND
GROUP 3
At EastOrange Campus
Mendham vs. Old Tappan, 7:30

At Winslow Twp.
Kingsway vs. Lakewood, 7

GROUP 1
At EastOrange Campus
University vs. Cresskill, 5:30

At Robbinsville
Woodbury vs. Asbury Park, 7

SECTIONAL FINAL
SOUTH JERSEY
NON-PUBLIC A
At Jackson Liberty
St. Augustine vs. Camden Catholic, 6:30