Blanchard River Buzz

Don't hang your heads L-B and H-L

By Jamie Baker
Liberty-Benton and Hopewell-Loudon’s football teams shouldn’t be hanging their heads after losing in this weekend’s OHSAA state finals.
Only 12 of 716 Ohio high school football teams were still playing ball this weekend in Massillon and Canton and to be one of those elite 12 teams is an accomplishment in itself.
Here are the complete offensive and defensive stats on the game from the OHSAA.
http://www.ohsaa.org/sports/ft/boys/2008/d5stfinal08.htm
Mark Heiman and I dissected Liberty-Benton’s 21-0 loss to Youngstown Ursuline the entire way home from Massillon to Findlay last night and here’s what we came up with...that was a heckuva game and much, much closer than the final score indicated.
The Eagles’ defense allowed only 152 yards of total offense. That’s an amazing stat considering too that Ursuline got 59 yards on one play in the second quarter on Allen Jones’ touchdown run.
On most days a defensive performance like the Eagles has yesterday would have been good enough for them to take home the championship trophy.
Unfortunately, Ursuline’s defense, while giving up nearly 100 more yards, made the plays they had to to keep the Eagles out of the endzone particularly when they stopped Aaron Craft on a 4th-and-1 keeper on the 3 yardline.
It was certainly a championship performance by both defenses.
I think Ursuline’s speed on defense was the decisive factor in the game. Craft was pressured on a consistent basis for the first time this year and Ursuline’s defensive backs were lightning quick stepping up and keeping the Eagles from getting outside.
It was one hell of a ride this season and to give Ursuline, who many considered to be one of the top three teams in the state regardless of Division, a run for their money is a tribute to the coaches and players at L-B and to the hard work they put in to get there.
Any other thoughts on Saturday’s game, I’d love to hear some feedback.

Division V State Finals: Ursuline vs. L-B

By Jamie Baker
HIT REFRESH FOR LATEST UPDATES!
We’re here at Massillon and we’re getting ready for football on a bright, sunny day here at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
Liberty-Benton’s Jacob Miller, Brandon Pickett, Andy Gerth, Nate Aydt and Justin Hyde have made their way to midfield for today’s coin toss.
Liberty-Benton won the coin toss and will receive the football to start the game.
I’ll be back online once the game gets underway.

First Quarter
-- L-B gets a first down on their opening drive but Craft gets sacked for an 11-yard loss to put them in a 3rd and 18 hole. The Eagles can’t convert on third down as Craft gets a couple before being taken down. A 32-yard punt gives Ursuline the ball at their own 35 yard line.
-- Liberty-Benton defense steps up big on Ursuline’s first series. They set the Irish back a couple of yards on running plays before forcing an incompletion out of bounds on third down. So far so good for the Eagles as they take over at their own 26 yard line after an Ursuline punt.
-- Liberty-Benton gets 5 yards and Craft drops back to punt. He got the snap and ran right right up the middle on 4th and 5. He’s stopped for a 1-yard gain, not sure if it was a designed fake punt or a broken play, but it gives L-B the ball on the Liberty-Benton 32 yard line.
-- Ursuline moves the ball, Jones gets a first down, barely as the Irish were aided by an L-B offsides penalty. L-B’s defense is solid so far stopping the run. Irish facing a situation from L-B’s 22 yard line. This is shaping up to be a defensive struggle with 2:39 left in the first quarter.
-- Ursuline drive stlls and Kevin Patrick's 39-yard field goal isn't even close. L-B takes over on their own 20.
-- L-B is on the move, Aaron Craft completes a pair of passes to Brett Pasche. Then Craft takes the ball across he midield stripe on a keeper. Craft calls time out with 49 seconds left in the first quarter facing 3rd and 7 on Ursuline's 49 yard line. Long pass to Cook is through his hands he crashed onto the old track and is being attended to.
-- Craft is sacked again, this time for 12 yards. He looked to get face masked on the STO replay, but there’s no call. L-B fans are upset . End of the quarter and we’re scoreless.
Second Quarter
-- Liberty-Benton booms a 50-yard punt. Backing Ursuline up at the 10. Craft intercepts Ursuline’s first play from scrimmage giving L-B the ball at Ursuline’s 45. Craft is sacked for the third time.
-- Some kind of commotion up in the stands, Someone is down here on the L-B side of the stands and they are calling for paramedics/
-- L-B goes 3 and out but Craft’s punt flies into the end zone. And Ursuline goes on offense. The Irish just can’t get anything going against the Eagles’ defense and they’ll have to punt. Eagles ball on their own 48 with 7:52 left until halftime in a scoreless game.
-- During this time out, CPR is still being performed on someone in the stands it appears. In the meantime, Ryan Cook has been helped off he sidelines and is being taken back to the lockerroom.
-- Eagles have something cooking on offense they’ve been able to string together a couple of first downs and the ball is sitting just outside the 20 yard line. A Craft pass to Hyde takes the ball to the 13 yard line. The Eagles are facing a 4th and 1 on the 3 yard line. Decision time.
-- Craft takes it up the middle on a keeper but ends up a couple of feet short of the first down. Ursuline takes over at its own 3 with 2:30 left until halftime.
-- Ursuline has slugged its way out to its own 20 yard line. A 23-yard screen pass to Akise Teague moves the ball to the 43 yard line. He’s fast as lightning. Miller sacked Dawalyn Harper for a 4-yard loss with 49 seconds left and the Irish facing a 3rd and 14 on their own 39.
-- L-B gets its second pick, this time by Pasche with 37 seconds left until halftime. L-B is set up at Ursuline’s 38 yard line. Craft to Hyde for 5 yards, Cole knocks down Craft’s next pass, Ursuline‘s Justin Austin picks off Craft and returns it 44 yard to L-B‘s 29 with 4 seconds left. Pickett luckily knocked him out of bounds. Last second pass falls incomplete and it‘s scoreless at halftime here at Massillon.
-- The L-B fan down in the stands has been whisked away by ambulance to the hospital. People were yards per carry.performing CPR as he or she was taken out of the stands.

HALFTIME UPDATE
-- Ryan Cook probably won’t be back for the Eagles, according to Mark Heiman. He cut his leg open when he landed off the field and has been taken to the hospital to get stitches.
Both teams have struggled moving the ball. Liberty-Benton has 20 rushes for 14 yards and Craft is 8-of-11 passing for 77 yards and a pick. Youngstown Ursuline has 13 yards on 15 carries and quarterbacks Paul Kempe and Dawalyn Harper are a combined 1-of-7 passing for 24 yards and 2 interceptions.
-- The Eagles may need to give Brett Pasche the ball more. He has 15 yards on 3 carries, averaging 5 yards per carry.

Third Quarter
-- Ursuline gets the ball to start the second half.
-- It will be interesting to find out why L-B didn’t try a field goal on the 4th and 1 from the 3 yard line. It would have been a relatively easy field goal for Justin Hyde, who is an outstanding kicker.
-- Mark Heiman here thought this could be an offensive shoot out. But it seems like this is going to end up a defensive slugfest. He admits he’s been wrong about things all weekend, why stop now :)
-- Ursuline begins at their own 26 yard line. Teague turns the corner for 5 yards on a direct snap. Teague gets 9 again on a direct snap this time to the other side of the field. Allen Jones bounces it out around the right end for a 59 yard touchdown run. Once he got clear of the linebackers, no one was going to catch him.
Ursuline 7, L-B 0, 10:49 left in the third quarter
-- Russell returns the kickoff to the 30 and that’s where L-B will start. Craft gets 2 and then 5 more to bring up 3rd and 3. Long ball to Hyde falls just incomplete. A 26 yard punt gives Ursuline the ball back at its own 26 yards line with 9:05 left in the third quarter.
-- Ursuline fakes a punt and throws deep ball is incomplete but pass interference was called on L-B, giving Ursuline a first down at midfield. The penalty seemed to fire up the Eagles on defense, who force the Irish to punt yet again. L-B takes over on its own 13 yard line with 5:46 left in the third quarter.
-- Lieb hauls in a 9 yard pass on first down, Pickett finds a hole up the middle for a first down, the Eagles’ first of the second half. … A quick out pass to Hyde advances the ball 11 yards to the L-B 40, good for another first down. … Lieb catches a 10 yard pass good enough for a first down and into Ursuline territory at the 49. Craft gets 5 more, the Irish defense is softening up a bit.
-- A personal foul penalty on Ursuline. Moves the ball inside he 20. Pasche makes a terrific catch on a tipped ball at the 9-yard line. Craft avoids a sack by shoveling the ball to Pickett for a 4-yard loss. Craft gets 5 on a keeper and takes the ball to the 8. Craft finds Hyde on a curl in the end zone for an apparent touchdown. The score was waved off because Hyde touched the out of bounds line before catching the football. Hyde then misses a 25-yard field goal try wide right.
Liberty-Benton takes the ball 79 yard in 11 plays but comes up empty. That’s twice they’ve failed to score inside of the 10 yard line,
Ursuline still leads 7-0 at the end of the third quarter.

Fourth Quarter

-- Eagles force another Ursuline punt and take over at their own 40 yard line with 11:36 left in the game. A pass to Lieb nets 16 yards and takes the ball to the Ursuline 41. Jeff Podolsky sacks Craft for the fourth time today. It’s 3rd and 13 from the Ursuline 44. Craft lets it fly and Ursuline’s Dale Peterman picks it off and returns it 40 yards back to the L-B 45 yard line. Allen Jones runs for 10 yards and a first down to the L-B 35. The clock is ticking and under 8:30 now.

-- Akise Teague runs for 5 yards on a 3rd and 2 play to take it to the 22 yard line for the first down. The clock is down to 6:30 and running. L-B must stop Ursuline on this drive to keep their championship hopes alive. L-B forces a 4th and 10 from the 21 yard line. Big play coming up with 5:02 left.

-- Ursuline tries a 39-yard field goal but its wide left so L-B has another chance starting at its own 20 yard line.

-- L-B is moving the football and is out to its own 40 yard line. But Peterman gets another interception and dances down the sidelines 44 yards for a touchdown for Ursuline. Patrick hit’s the PAT kick and it looks like this one is probably over with Liberty-Benton trailing 14-0 with 4:20 to play.

-- The crowd was announced at 5,997 fans here today.

-- Craft is picked again this time by LaVance Turnage for a 40 yard touchdown return to make it 21-0 with 2:57 left to play.

-- This one is over, I’m signing off to get down to the field. Congrats to the Eagles and their fans they’ve had a helluva season. One to remember.

We’ll post our stories when we get them done here in Massillon.

Division V Championship: L-B vs. Ursuline pregame

By Jamie Baker
The sun is shining here in Massillon and we’re a little more than 80 minutes from the kick off of today’s Division V state championship game between Liberty-Benton and Youngstown Ursuline.
Liberty-Benton got here at about 11:30 a.m. and did a little walk through out on the field just about the time we heard that Ursuline was leaving Youngstown to head here for the game.
I haven’t has the opportunity to see the Eagles in action this season so I’m looking forward to this game.
When you look at the game on paper, all of the cards seemed to be stacked in favor of Ursuline.
They’ve rolled through an extremely tough schedule that’s included the likes of Warren Harding, Massillon and Youngstown Mooney.
Liberty-Benton hasn’t been challenged this season. Playing in the BVC, doesn’t compare to the schedule that Ursuline has faced. That’s no dig on the BVC, it’s just reality.
Still the Eagles have been dominant in the playoffs and last week’s beating of Marion Local makes me think they have an excellent chance to win today.
I just don’t know what to make of this game.
I’ll go out on a limb and the team that wins the turnover battle and commits the fewest penalties will win today.
 I’ll be blogging and writing a sidebar on today’s game so check back here closer to game time for the cointoss and more.
Anyone out there have any thoughts or predictions, let us hear them.

Getting ready for championship Saturday

By Jamie Baker
That Division II final between Sylvania Southview and Cincinnati Anderson was one helluva game last night.
The final was 29-25 Southview as the Cougars drove the length of the field in the final 3 minutes for the game-winning touchdown.
We put a little something in the notebook for today’s paper about Cory-Rawson graduate Todd Smith being an assistant coach for Southview this season.
At any rate, Mark Heiman and I will be leaving Wooster in a few hours and heading back to Massillon to hopefully watch Liberty-Benton during their walk-through practice this morning at Massillon’s gorgeous indoor practice facility that’s adjacent to Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
We’ll be back with more posts later this afternoon. If you are stuck at home watching the game on STO this afternoon. Pull up the laptop and put it on the coffee table and check back here at The Buzz for updates and analysis from today’s Division V state final between Liberty-Benton and Younsgtown Ursuline.
Looking forward to a good game.
In the meantime, here are some stories from yesterday’s Division VI and Division II title games from newspapers across Ohio
Division VI Final Stories
Hopewell-Loudon runs out options
http://www.thecourier.com/Issues/2008/Nov/29/ar_sports_112908_story1.asp?d=112908_story1,2008,Nov,29&c=s
H-L loses the lead, then its rhythm
http://www.thecourier.com/Issues/2008/Nov/29/ar_sports_112908_story2.asp?d=112908_story2,2008,Nov,29&c=s
14 H-L seniors end their careers
http://www.thecourier.com/Issues/2008/Nov/29/ar_sports_112908_story3.asp?d=112908_story3,2008,Nov,29&c=s
Slippery QB leads St. John’s past Hopewell-Loudon
http://www.reviewtimes.com/Issues/2008/Nov/29/ar_sports_112908_story1.asp?d=112908_story1,2008,Nov,29&c=s
Hopewell-Loudon seniors leave large legacies
http://www.reviewtimes.com/Issues/2008/Nov/29/ar_sports_112908_story2.asp?d=112908_story2,2008,Nov,29&c=s
Hopewell-Loudon is repeat runner-up
http://www.advertiser-tribune.com/page/content.detail/id/510820.html?nav=5012
Delphos St. John’s disproves doubters
http://www.advertiser-tribune.com/page/content.detail/id/510820.html?nav=5012
Delphos St. John’s wins fifth state title
http://www.limaohio.com/news/state_31422___article.html/john_title.html
MAC schedule toughened Blue Jays for playoff run
http://varsity.limaohio.com/articles/run_632___article.html/blue_schedule.html
Defense shines in win over Hopewell-Loudon
http://varsity.limaohio.com/articles/defense_631___article.html/john_shines.html
Ulm, Blue Jays rip through Hopewell-Loudon
http://varsity.limaohio.com/articles/championship_629___article.html/state_updates.html
Hopewell-Loudon is runner-up again
http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081129/SPORTS12/811290410
Delphos St. John wins another state title
http://timesbulletin.com/main.asp?SectionID=3&SubSectionID=6&ArticleID=149324&TM=90.649
St. Johns runs to fifth title
http://www.indeonline.com/sports/x415857551/St-John-s-runs-to-fifth-title
Ulm lifts Delphos St. John’s victory
http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?ID=443809&originalStoryID=443821&r=

Division II Final Stories
Southview rallies in the final minutes to win
Southview wings it for a victory in Division II
http://www.cantonrep.com/index.php?ID=443821&Category=17&subCategoryID=29
Southview parties like its 1999
http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081129/SPORTS12/811290424/-1/SPORTS
Anderson can’t pull off repeat
http://www.indeonline.com/sports/x776464510/Anderson-can-t-pull-off-repeat
Anderson falls to Southview
http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20081129/SPT030101/811290378

Division VI Finals: H-L Wrapup

By Jamie Baker
We’re back in our room at the Super 8 Motel here in Wooster.
Actually, I always thought the Amish were a simple, peaceful folk but our motel room door here is riddled with 15 bullet holes that have been repaired.
But I digress.
Mark Heiman and I have had a chance to digest this afternoon’s game between Hopewell-Loudon and Delphos St. John’s (along with digesting an excellent meal at Wooster‘s Olde Jaol Brewery) and here‘s what we have come up with.
-- The Chieftains couldn‘t make an adjustment on defense to help them stuff the St. John‘s option game. Specifically keeping DSJ quarterback Wes Ulm from killing them with the keepers.
-- H-L tried a couple of bubble screens, and had a little bit of success with them. I think they could have tried a few more of those and gotten into a bit more of a flow.
-- H-L senior quarterback Tyler Brown just never got in a good rhythm and at one point I think he missed five or six straight passes. His timing with his receivers was off and he just didn‘t have that touch with his passes he had in other tournament games.
Actually the game pretty much transpired the way Hopewell-Loudon coach Brian Colatruglio thought it might.
 “I thought the keys to the game were going to be turnovers, special teams and third downs and I think we pretty much got handled in all of those areas,” said Hopewell-Loudon coach Brian Colatruglio.
“When you are playing a great football team you can’t turn it over and you have to get off the football field on third down. If you’re going to win a game against a great football team like this you have to win two of those three areas and we went o-fer.”
Delphos did have an advantage over the Chieftains in all three of those areas…the result was a 20-point win.
I really thought the way Hopewell-Loudon was playing, they were going to win the game. But they just didn’t have it today. Anyone else who went to the game have a take?
Let’s see how Liberty-Benton does on Saturday.

Live from Massillon: H-L vs. St. John's

By Mark Heiman

MASSILLON - H-L was making a drive, but Jay Yost was drilled after a catch and coughed up the ball. Joel Coleman recovered for DSJ, who is up 34-14 with 6:30 left. Blue Jays will run and run and run some more.

Game, set, match to St. John's. Wes Ulm got drilled but threw a 53-yard catch-and-run TD to Jordan Leininger. DSJ is up 34-14 with 8:08 left. The fans that aren't part of either team's following are flowing out of the stadium as things have clouded up in the sky and for the Chieftains.

Tyler Brown is not having a good game. He was just picked by A.J. Klausing. DSJ is gonna try to run the clock with the ball near midfield. DSJ is up 27-14 with 9:03 left.

Andrew Brickner came up and made a big stop on Jordan Leininger to stuff him for a loss. St. John's punts from the end zone to the 50. H-L's Spencer Kirby has block in the back on return, so H-L back up 15 yards. First down at the Chieftains' 41. 10:21 left in the game DSJ up 27-14.

H-L's Tyler Brown locked in on Jay Yost on a deep pass. Pass was tipped by DSJ's Tyler Bergfeld and intercepted by Brad Hoffman. Yost got held up about 15 yards from the line of scrimmage, but there was no flag. Going into the fourth quarter with DSJ up 27-14.

Jordan Leininger just backed into the end zone for a 6-yard touchdown. The Blue Jays used the first 8:55 of the third quarter on their 15 play 77 yard drive. H-L's Matt Brickner blocked the extra point, so DSJ is up 27-14 with 3:05 left in the quarter. Chieftains have to stop the running game, especially the option.

H-L got stopped and Yost cranked out a 62 yard punt. DSJ at its own 20 with 19 seconds left. Tyler Brown is just one of his last 9 passing and is not sharp like he has been the rest of the playoffs. St. John's will go into the half up 21-14 and getting the second-half kickoff. When I get stats, I'll post them ASAP.

44 seconds left. first and ten for HL at its 38.

Wes Ulm just used a play action pass that froze H-L's secondary and then tossed a 26-yard TD pass to Jay Leininger. Leininger had gotten behind Yost for the score. It looks like DSJ goes into the half with a 21-14 lead and Blue Jays get the ball to start the second half.

Nate Webb just dropped H-L QB Tyler Brown on third down. H-L will punt from the 20 with 1:26 left in the half. Yost shanked the punt. First down at H-L's 31 for St. John's.

2:06 left in the half. The Chieftains stopped St. John's, who twice threw for some reason. H-L ball at its 4. Tied 14-14.

After getting H-L on a three and out, St. John's is driving. The Blue Jays have moved to near midfield. H-L time out to settle the defense. 4 minutes left in the half and we're tied 14-14.

Despite getting hurt at the end of the first quarter, DSJ's Wes Ulm is not afraid to run the option. He just went 26 yards for a touchdown with a quick cut around right end for a touchdown. We're tied 14-14 with 7:16 left in the half.

H-L went for it on fourth-and-3 at the 40. Looked like Aaron Arbogast possibly snapped the ball early and Brown ran, but was dropped for a 2-yard loss. St. John's ball at its 42. H-L up 14-7 with 9 minutes left in the half.

H-L's  Justin Hohman just picked off a floating pass by Ulm and returned it 3 yards. Chieftains in business again at the St. John's 47. H-L 14-7

St. John's quarterback Wes Ulm just walked off the field on his own after being hit by Hudson Smith on an option. Didn't look like a big hit, but he was down for a while. End of quarter. Now 14-7 H-L.

Brown tosses a 12 yard pass on a slant to Jay Yost for a TD. With 33 seconds left in the first quarter its H-L 14-7. Yost has 5 catches for 81 yards. Drive was 9 plays for 52 yards.

Miles Chapman came from the corner and got together with Aric Hoover to stop Jordan Leininger on a fourth and inches. Chieftains take over near midfield and are on the move again.

 It didn't take the Chieftains long to counter. Six plays and 65 yards later and Aaron Kapelka ran in from 9 yards out. 7-7 with 7:40 left in the quarter. Jay Yost came up big on the drive. He caught a bubble screen for 16 yards, breaking two tackles and then hauled in a juggling catch of 30 yards to the nine. Good start for Yost. Chieftains followed a season-long string of coming back to score after the first-team defense had given up a score.

Jordan Leininger just took a pitch left, cut inside and wasn't touched in running between guard and tackle for a 9-yard touchdown. Leining wasn't touched and St. John's is up 7-0 with 9:44 left in the first quarter. It only took the Blue Jays 5 plays to go 50 yards. Chieftains need a good drive here. Remember last year they fell behind 28-0 in losing the state title game to Newark Catholic.

Hopewell has its first possession starts at the 20 after Andrew Brickner slipped on the kickoff return. Three and out for the Chieftains. Brown almost picked off. St. John's will start its first possession at the 50.

As Jamie Baker already stated, Hopewell-Loudon will receive and defend the north end zone. It's about 35 degrees, but the sun is shining bright. We're 10 minutes away from kickoff. Keep hitting refresh.

Division VI Pregame from Massillon

By Jamie Baker
Mark Heiman and I are here at Masillon's Paul Brown Tiger Stadium ready for today's Division VI championship game between Hopewell-Loudon and Delphos St. John's.
Mark Heiman will be blogging live from the game in just few hours.
We'll be here for today's game and tomorrow's Division V championship game between Liberty-Benton and Youngstown Ursuline.
In the meantime, we'll give you some predictions.
Mark's prediction is: Hopewell-Loudon 35, Delphos St. John's
Jamie's prediction is: Hopewell-Loudon 28, Delphos St. John's 21
Mark's headed down to the field to get a lttle inside info from the Chieftains.
We'll be back shortly.
The coin toss has taken place and Delphos St. John's has won the toss but has deferred their choice to the second half. Hopewell-Loudon will receive the ball and defend the East goal to start the game.
With 20 minutes to go until kickoff, there's sunshine and blue sky overhead with a few puffy clouds.

Breaking down the Oilers

By Brian Lester
It was good to see the University of Findlay men's basketball team put away a team early Tuesday night. The top-ranked Oilers used a backbreaking 18-4 run in the first half to bury any hope Lake Erie had of pulling off an upset in Croy Gymnasium.
UF led the game 52-30 at halftime and went on to win easily, 84-55, as it stretched its regular-season home win streak to 61 games.
Several things stick out about the game.
First, the Oilers (3-0) were more consistent shooting the ball, connecting on 51.8 percent of their shots from the floor, marking the first time they have shot over 50 percent all season. You have to love the way UF worked the ball around, too, as it dished out 18 assists. Junior point guard Marcus Parker finished with 6 and senior forward Josh Bostic tallied 5 assists to go along with his 21 points and 8 rebounds.
Anyone out there who still doesn't think Bostic is a go-to guy or worthy of national player of the year recognition might want to think before they speak. I'd love to hear someone give me five reasons why Bostic isn't the most complete NCAA D-II player in the country.
Something else worth mentioning is the play of senior center Lee Roberts. He had his foot on the accelerator Tuesday night, scoring 9 points in the first seven minutes of the game and setting the tone with his aggressive play in the paint.
Roberts has clearly developed into one of the best centers in D-II hoops and I have a feeling the best is yet to come from him.
The other thing to note is that the Oilers only turned the ball over 6 times.
Sure, the Oilers still have plenty of work to do. They are nowhere near to playing up to their full potential and every player I've talked to as told me as much.
But UF made strides Tuesday and it will continue to do so as the season continues.
Props to the UF Women: You have to give a lot of credit to UF's women's basketball team. The Oilers are off to a 3-0 start and seem to have found a little consistency under third-year head coach Kate Cummings.
The Oilers were lights out from 3-point land against Lake Erie Tuesday, nailing a school record 17 treys in a 97-63 victory. Junior guard Maggie Gompers buried 7, which is a record as well.
Junior guard Audra Mihalic continues her steady play as well, scoring 17 for the second time this season on Tuesday. Mihalic grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 6 assists as well.
The key for the Oilers is to build on the momentum they have gained and take their game to another level when they begin Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play next week.
I have a feeling this team isn't going to lose the games it should win this year as it has in the past and it will give the good teams in the GLIAC a run for their money. If UF can take care of business at home and find a decent amount of success on the road, it should be in a position to reach the conference tourney.
Tough Region: Have you seen how tough the Great Lakes Region is?
As of Thanksgiving, the Oilers are one of three Top 10 nationally ranked teams, joining fifth-ranked Northern Kentucky and No. 9 Grand Valley State.
Kentucky Wesleyan (17th) and Drury (21st) are in the national poll as well. That is amazing. I would dare to say that whoever wins the regional tournament this year is likely to play for a national championship in Springfield, Mass.

An all-Ohio level rant

By Jamie Baker
Time to rant.
I don’t know why I bother to complain because it happens every year at this time.
As usual the linemen, not just a certain lineman, but all linemen got shafted as the Associated Press released it’s all-Ohio football teams for the 2008 season.
So how did the linemen get screwed you ask?
Take the Division IV selections as an example.
There are five linemen listed on the first team all-Ohio list. Fine. Every offensive line I’ve seen always has two tackles, two guards and a center.
Guess how many first team all-Ohio quarterbacks there were?
One? Two? Four? Nope seven. Yup, there are seven first team quarterbacks.
There are another six second team all-Ohio quarterbacks in Division IV while six linemen made the second team.
As they say on those commercials for all of those crappy products “As Seen on TV”...but wait there’s more!
It’s even worse in Division VI.
Actually only four linemen were selected for first team all-Ohio honors, someone should throw a flag for illegal procedure on the Associated Press for not even being able to fill out a starting line for its small-school first team. But then, there were five quarterbacks picked for the Division VI first unit.
To add insult to injury there were only THREE lineman selected for the all-Ohio second team in Division VI while there were three quarterbacks picked.
Look, I’m kind of an insider. I know how it works and I work with Dave Hanneman, who chairs the AP board for the Northwest District.
But as a staffer at an AP member newspaper I am embarrassed by these selections.
The only explanation I can offer is that maybe AP’s sports editor in Columbus Rusty Miller, the man who makes the final all-Ohio selections, did the divisions in order and simply ran out of gas by the time he got to the last three divisions.
Either that, we he just hates linemen...just kidding.
What’s your take on the all-Ohio picks.

H-L's amazing return

By Jamie Baker
I’ve got to say when you realize how much talent Hopewell-Loudon lost to graduation last spring it’s amazing they’re back playing for the Division VI state title Friday in Massillon.
“We really had to replace a good portion of our team we had four starters back on offense and only 3 on defense. There were five first or second all-Ohio seniors we had to replace,” said Hopewell-Loudon coach Brian Colatruglio.
“Coming into this year we knew we were going to be solid but we had a lot of holes where we needed guys to step up and fill in.”
Guys certainly not only stepped in to fill the shoes of those graduating players who helped the Chieftains reach the Division VI championship game, they‘ve stepped up their game too.
Take for example, offensive linemen like Ian Clouse, Aaron Arbogast and Hudson Smith, who gave up their shots at glory running in the Hopewell-Loudon backfield as fullbacks to move into vacated slots on the offensive line.
There’s no glory playing on the offensive line, only tough dirty work played in relative obscurity. But they did it and didn’t complain because it was what was best for the team.
And now they get another bite at the apple and a chance to win a state title.
Last year’s loss to Newark Catholic in the championship game set the tone for the offseason and stoked a fire in everyone’s belly at Hopewell-Loudon to get back to the title game again in 2008.
“As far as last year, I think it (making the state finals) had a big part of spring boarding us into our offseason. I think that's the one thing we took from last year's game. Our young guys got to experience the pinnacle of high school football in Ohio,” Colatruglio said.
“They got to play and be a part of the big stage there and once you get there it's an awesome experience and you're going to do whatever you can to try and do that again.”
They’ll get their shot at 11 a.m. Friday at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.

Wanna know what's new?

By Jamie Baker
We’ll have plenty of football this week in The Courier and here online at The Buzz with Hopewell-Loudon and Liberty-Benton both playing for state championships this weekend in Massillon.
In the meantime I’ll give you a little heads up on what we’ve been working on last week,
We’ve got a complete composite boys basketball schedule for the Northwest District posted online. Just click on the link and you can download the entire schedule in a Microsoft word document.
There is also a composite girls basketball schedule for all of the conferences we have schools in.
If you are a wrestling fan, I’ve also uploaded a file with a bunch of schedules from teams throughout NW Ohio.
All can be found at this link.
Still want more basketball information?
Capsule previews on 52 boys basketball teams from NW Ohio can be found here.
We also have a page with capsule previews on 54 NW Ohio girls teams which you can access here.
If it’s wrestling info you want we have several updates previews on NW Ohio squads on our NW District Wrestling Blog here.
Of course, we also have our playoff football stories update page. You’ll find links to stories about NW Ohio’s playoff football teams updated daily here...
http://thecourier.typepad.com/blanchard_river_buzz/ohsaa-nw-ohio-football-to.html
You’ll get more information on prep sports in NW Ohio here than anywhere else.

Football: That's right a 93-68 score

By Brian Lester
I must have missed the memo that the NCAA Division II men’s basketball tournament started on Saturday afternoon.
Oh wait, my mistake. Abilene Christian and West Texas A&M weren’t playing hoops. They were playing football in the second round of the D-II playoffs and you might want to brace yourself for this final score...a 93-68 record-setting win for Abilene Christian.
You read that right. 93-68. Ridiculous. We can only hope Barack Obama is as productive when he takes over as President of the United States in January.
Abilene ran 56 plays and finished with 810 yards, setting an NCAA record in points despite having the ball for only 23 minutes and 12 seconds. A&M ran 94 plays and churned out 721 yards.
It was probably an exciting games for fans to watch because most will take a fireworks display of offense over a defensive battle any day of the week.
As high scoring as the game was, you can at least say that both teams kept up with each other from an offensive standpoint and were equals when it came to defense because neither one could play it.
But if you look at several of the scores in the second-round matchups, they weren’t close at all, including the one featuring the two Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference playoff entrants.
Top-ranked Grand Valley State had its way with Ashland, slapping them around to the tune of 40-7 in Allendale, Mich. That final was somewhat surprising.
A little over a month ago, AU went into Allendale, Mich. and put up a heck of a fight, falling 48-42 to the Lakers.
I figured AU would show up ready to go after gaining confidence in a 48-42 road loss to GVSU back on Oct. 25, and at least put up a fight.
Granted, it’s great two GLIAC teams made the playoffs because it helps the reputation of the conference, but you have to wonder if the Eagles really had any business being in the playoffs in the first place. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic GLIAC fans.
Meanwhile, North Alabama drilled Valdosta State 37-10, and VSU was the preseason No. 1 team in the nation.
The other ugly score of the day was the beating California (Pa.) put on Seton Hill in a 48-7 win.
I expect the remainder of the playoffs to be a little more competitive and I can only imagine what it would be like if GVSU and Abilene Christian met for the national championship.
The two teams might combine for 200 points and for once, a coach could say offense, not defense, wins championships.

Live from Donnell: L-B vs. Marion Local

By Mark Heiman

It's a balmy 27 degrees here at Donnell Stadium as Liberty-Benton prepares to play in its second Division V state semifinal in three years. The Eagles will put their 13-0 mark up against Marion Local (11-2), which won the Division VI state title in 2006 and the Division V last year. Despite the cold, a nice crowd is starting to filter into the grand old stadium. The teams are warming up and we're about 35 minutes away from the kickoff. Check back after the coin flip.

Liberty-Benton won the toss and will receive the ball at the north end of the field. One good thing is that there is no breeze as the flag is hanging limp.

L-B's Aaron Craft just called timeout with 10:06 left in first quarter. Eagles have moved from their own 18 to Marion Local's 25 in 6 plays.

That was quick. Aaron Craft went 25 yards on a QB draw right after the timeout for a touchdown. Seven plays, 82 yards and the Eagles are up 7-0 with 9:57 left in the half. Craft ran 3 times for 55 yards and completed 2 of 3 passes for 19 yards.

Aaron Craft is just a yard shy of 100 yards for the game after he just broke off a 44-yard run to put the ball at Marion Local's 36. He got a beautiful block from Shawn Linhart on the end to go off the right side. Eagles are rolling so far.

Marion Local brought he blitz on third and goal at the four and sacked Craft for a 7-yard loss. That turned into a 29 yard field goal by Justin Hyde with 3:02 left in the first quarter. L-B 10-0

SECOND QUARTER

L-B has the ball to start the second quarter at their own 15. L-B still up 10-0

Nine minutes left in the half and L-B burns its final timeout as Aaron Craft didn't like the setup. Eagles are threatening once again as they have driven to the Marion Local 25. L-B up 10-0

Justin Hyde just got all of his left foot into the ball and nailed a 42 yard field goal. No wind at Donnell, so that helped, but that baby was good from over 50 yards as it easily cleared the cross bar. 8:43 left in half, L-B up 13-0.

Marion Local just threw a Hail Mary into the end zone that Justin Hyde picked off. I'll be right back with the halftime stats. Halftime score is 13-0 in favor of Liberty-Benton.

Liberty-Benton is up 13-0 at halftime. The Eagles have 232 yards of offense. Aaron Craft has completed 5 of 14 passes for 73 yards. He's also ran for 125 yards on 17 carries, while Brandon Pickett in his first carries since week 7 has 5 rushes for 21 yards. The Eagles' defense is getting the job done once again, allowing 72 total yards. Ben Smith came in with 1,520 yards and has been limited to 30.

THIRD QUARTER

L-B allowed Marion Local a first down, but then slams the door to start the second half. Then Craft leads the Eagles on a 7-play, 84-yard drive for a score. Craft hooked up with Justin Hyde on a 45-yard pass and threw another to Brennan Lieb for 9 yards. Craft ran for the 32 yards, including a 6-yard scoring run. Six minutes left in the third quarter and it's 20-0 L-B over Marion Local.

4:39 left in the third and L-B goes up 27-0 after an Aaron Craft 11-yard TD run. The score was set up when L-B's Korey Bogard intercepted a Jerren Griesdorn pass.

Liberty-Benton is only 12 minutes from making its first state final appearance and it looks like it's a done deal. The Eagles have the ball and a 27-0 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Who'd have thought another shutout?

FOURTH QUARTER

Nate Aydt just stepped in front of a Jarren Griesdorn pass and returned it 75 yards for a touchdown. Two-point conversion from Craft to Brandon Pickett good for a 35-0 lead with 11:20 left. Make the reservations for Massillon. Eagles playing at 3 p.m. next Saturday for a state championship against either Youngstown Ursuline or Baltimore Liberty Union.

Live From Ashland: H-L vs. Malvern

By Jamie Baker
So here I am in beautiful but snowy Ashland for tonight’s Division VI state semifinal game between Hopewell-Loudon (13-0) and Malvern (13-0).
It’s a little after 4 p.m. and they are shoveling out the home grandstand at Ashland Community Stadium.
They’ve had maybe an inch or two of snow here today but the field is completely cleared and ready for football. Kudos to the folks at Ashland City Schools for getting everything ready here on a very cold November day.
Expect snow squalls to move in and out during the game. This will be quite a test for the Chieftains' passing game as it's going to be a tough night to throw and catch a football because of the cold.
We’ll be blogging with updates live from the game tonight as long as I have power and an internet connection. So check back later and see how the Chieftains are doing.
The teams are out on the field warming up. Not sure if you can see it in my cell phone photo. But Malvern, who is the home team tonight, already left their mark on the field.
Some of their players scraped away the snow to spell: THE VERN! in big letters down the sidelines along the home stands.
It’s cold with a light breeze. Just an hour before kickoff the air temperature here is 22 degrees but the snow has stopped.
Back in a little bit with the cointoss.
COINTOSS
Malvern won the toss and deferred to the second half. Hopewell-Loudon will receive the ball and defend the north goal here at Ashland Community Stadium.
On a side note, Malvern’s band has only 7-10 kids I’ve been told so Hopewell-Loudon’s band will perform the Star Spangled Banner, which is usually played by the band of the home team on the scoreboard.
First Quarter
It takes Hopewell-Loudon 9 plays to cover 60 yards for a touchdown on its opening drive. Brown was 3-of-3 passing for 40 yards and Aaron Kapelka capped the march with a 3-yard touchdown run.
H-L 7, Malvern 0, 8:33, 1st quarter
Chieftain defense forces Malvern 3-and-out. The H-L offense is driving again thanks to the hard inside running of Aaron Kapelka, who has runs of 14 and 24 yards on the Chieftains’ second possession. A pass from Brown to Matt Brickner takes it down to the 1 yard line. Kapelka who has 65 yards on 9 carries takes it into the end zone from 1 yard out.
H-L 14, Malvern 0, 3:41 1st quarter.
Hopewell-Loudon puts another on the board. It went 60 yards in five plays capped by Tyler Brown’s 30 yard touchdown pass to Matt Brickner on an inside screen. Brown is 8-of-10 passing for 132 yards in the first quarter.
H-L 21, Malvern 0, :23.1 seconds, 1st quarter
Second Quarter
Malvern finally gets it going. They march 67 yards in 10 plays. Fullback Jesse Locke capped the drive with a 1-yard touchdown plunge.
H-L 21, Malvern  7, 8:22, second quarter
The Chieftains are 4-for-4, four possessions and 4 touchdowns. This time they travel 70 yards in 8 plays. Andrew Brickner takes a reverse handoff inside for a 6-yard touchdown run. The Chieftains were helped by a pass interference penalty on  3rd and 5 play near midfield.
H-L 28, Malvern 7, 4:20 second quarter
Brown is intercepted at the end zone by Malvern’s Vince Larson. But on the Hornets’ ensuing possession Tucci coughs up the ball. Hopewell-Loudon’s Miles Chapman recovers at the 9 yard line. Two plays later  Yost gathers in an 8-yard touchdown pass from Brown with just  49 seconds left.
HL 35, Malvern 7, halftime
Hopewell-Loudon’s Tyler Brown has been stellar hitting 14-of-17 passes for 202 yards with a pair of touchdowns. Kapelka has 81 yards rushing on 14 carries.
Malvern’s high-flying offense which averaged more than 47 points per game has been held to just 19 yards rushing and 44 passing.
Third Quarter
Malvern tries an onside kick, after a scramble for the ball, HL recovered. Six plays later Hopewell-Loudon caps a 6-play 44 yard scoring drive with a 2-yard touchdown run by Kapelka and the rout continues.
HL 42, Malvern 7, 9:25 3rd quarter
It’s blizzard like conditions on the field right now.
Another drive, another touchdown for the Chieftains. Hopewell-Loudon goes 65 yards in 9 plays capped by a 25-yard touchdown run by Kapelka up the middle.
HL 49, Malvern 7, 3:01 third quarter in the swirling snow
HEADING INTO THE FOURTH QUARTER

Brown hits Tyler Ardner with a 15-yard touchown pass with 8:07 left making it 55-7. The kids with the clean shirts are coming in and Hopewell-Loudon is back in the state finals for the second straight year.

Congrats Chieftains.

I'm signing off here in Ashland.

HOOPS BLOG: UF vs. U of NW Ohio

By Brian Lester
Tonight's Game
Matchup: UF (1-0) vs. Northwestern Ohio (2-3)
Series: This is the first meeting between the two teams.
UF Notes: UF is ranked No. 1 in the nation and has won 59 consecutive regular season games at Croy Gymnasium...Six players scored in double figures for the Oilers in their win over Indianapolis, including 14 points from senior center Lee Roberts...UF shot only 20 percent (3-of-15) from 3-point land against Indy but forced 19 turnovers.
UNO Notes: Racers lost 66-61 to Malone, their second consecutive loss...Junior guard Josh Vorst, a former Ottoville standout, leads the team in scoring, averaging 15 points per game...Racers are shooting 41.2 percent from the field.UNO has turned the ball over 114 times on the year.
My Take: The University of Findlay is hosting Northwestern of Ohio at Croy Gymnasium tonight, and truthfully, I don't expect it to be much of a game. The Oilers have too much depth and too much talent...I imagine the starters will get quite a bit of rest in the second half as the bench players will have a chance to get valuable playing time that should prove beneficial in the long run.
Check back later for live updates on the game.

The Oilers may not get a lot of rest in the second half, at least the early going, as UF leads 42-30 at halftime. Computer problems at Croy are not allowing Brian Lester to blog from the site.