SPORTS ROUNDUP: Cuyahoga Falls Highlights

Who says March Madness is confined to college basketball.

In the past week, we’ve seen state high school championships crowned in wrestling, bowling, and gymnastics. And, by week’s end, ice hockey will name its victor and the girls basketball “Final Four” will be set.

Our student athletes continue to play a huge role in these high school state championships, and Patch.com will do our part to report on and highlight their progress.

Below is a brief recap of how our Patch high schools fared this past weekend, and what is on the horizon for them in the upcoming days.

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BOWLING

Both Cuyahoga Falls and Woodridge ended the OHSAA State Bowling Championships this past weekend (March 4-5) at Wayne Webb’s Columbus Bowl with five girls who finished in the top-60 in the individual standings.

Lady Tigers’ senior Raelyn Roxbury led with a three-game pin total of 550 (194-206-150), good enough for 30th place. Senior teammates Justine Anderson (547, 211-154-182) and Becca Watkins (535, 149-190-196) finished in 31st and 42nd place, respectively. Other Lady Tigers’ contributors include sophomores Paige Timmons (166, 97th place) and Kari Cradlebaugh (132, 102nd place), and junior Sarah Smith (518, 54th place).

Lady Bulldogs’ junior Arielle Chopka finished 35th overall of 109 bowlers with a three-game score of 544 (199-198-147). Coldwater senior Crystal Boyer won the individual title with a score of 661 (233-206-222). The field average was 173.82.

In team competition, Cuyahoga Falls finished 10th of 16 teams, falling short of the top-eight field to advance to the finals. Memorial (St. Mary’s), who tied with Beavercreek for the last finals slot and won the roll-off, topped Hubbard 3-1 in a best-of-five matches to win the state crown.

Walsh Jesuit junior Josh Byczek finished 59th of 117 bowlers with a three-game score of 535 (168-177-190). Byczek’s average (178.33) was slightly below the field average of 185.47. Struthers’ junior Corey Bayus won the boys individual event with a score of 697 (212-227-258).

Troy Trojans, which finished third in boys team qualifying, topped Wapakoneta 3-2 in a best-of-five matches to win the team title.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

In the Division II Uniontown District held at Lake High School last week, fourth-seeded Walsh Jesuit (11-13 record) topped both three-seed Marlington and top-seed Ravenna to win the district crown. The Lady Warriors topped Marlington by 14 points (69-55) on March 4 and, in a huge upset, stopped Ravenna (21-2) by eight points, 47-39, on March 5.

Sixth-seed Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy (13-10), also playing in the Uniontown District, had advanced to the third round after posting wins over Akron Springfield and Aurora in the first two rounds. The Lady Royals lost in the semifinals to Ravenna, 64-57, on March 3.

Walsh Jesuit advances to the Division II Ontario Regional Tournament and plays undefeated Clyde (23-0) tonight at Ontario High School. Game time is 8 p.m.

BOYS BASKETBALL

In the Division I Copley District held at Copley High School last week, Cuyahoga Falls lost their opening game to Nordonia, 58-44 on March 1. The Black Tigers ended their season with a 7-14 record.

In the Division II Stow District held at Stow-Munroe Falls High School, Woodridge and Walsh Jesuit both received first-round byes. The Bulldogs, however, lost their lone tournament game to fourth-seeded Benedictine. The Bengals (12-10) defeated Woodridge, 76-45, on March 4 to end the Bulldogs season. They finished with a 7-14 mark.

Walsh Jesuit’s hot play during the regular season continued into district competition as the second-seeded Warriors (18-2) toppled Warrensville Heights, 66-46, on March 5 to advance to Wednesday’s district semifinals against University School (17-5). Game time is 7:30 p.m.

In the Division III Painesville District held at Painesville Harvey High School, fourth-seeded Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy has advanced to the district semifinals against top-seeded Villa Angela-St. Joseph. The Royals (13-8) beat Brooklyn, 55-54, on March 4 to move onto today’s semis against VASJ (14-7). Game time is 6:15 p.m.

WRESTLING

DIVISION I

Cuyahoga Falls, coached by Craig Wilson, fielded a lone grappler at this past weekend’s (March 3-5) OHSAA Division I State Wrestling Championships and came away without a top-eight finish.

Junior Colin Taylor (36-8 record entering state) faced stiff competition in the 145-pound weight division with standout seniors Ty Davis of West Chester Lakota West (42-1) and Cody Shivener of Springboro (39-2), and junior Nick Barber of Lakewood St. Edward (17-6) vying for the state crown. Taylor opened on the losing end, dropping his match with Davis by a 12-2 major decision. Taylor, in the consolation bracket, rebounded to top Westerville North senior Stephen Alger by a 9-3 decision. The Tigers’ junior, however, would end up losing his next – and final - match to Medina senior Mike Griffith via pin at 3:38.

FINAL DIVISION I TEAM RESULTS: 1. Lakewood St. Edward 187 points; 2. Massillon Perry 109; 3. Wadsworth 96; 4. Cincinnati Elder 72; 5. Cincinnati Archbishop Moeller 66; 6. Solon 57; 7. Medina 51; 8. Twinsburg 50; 9. Mayfield 45.5; 10. Springboro 43.5.

OTHER NOTABLES: 11. Cleveland St. Ignatius 37; 14. Copley 34; 16. Elyria 26.5; T17. Lyndhurst Brush 26; 20. Mentor 22; T27. Brecksville-Broadview Heights 17; T30. Maple Heights 15; T33. Lakewood 14; T35. Cleveland Rhodes, Macedonia Nordonia, North Canton Hoover 12; 39. Stow-Munroe Falls 11; T44. Chardon, Olmsted Falls 8; T46. Willoughby South 7; T50. Midpark, North Royalton 6; 55. Lorain 5.5; T56. Shaw 4; T62. Westlake 3; T68. Brunswick, Euclid 2; T73. Cuyahoga Falls, Strongsville 1.

DIVISION II

In Division II championships, six of Walsh Jesuit’s seven wrestlers placed and two won individual crowns as the Warriors finished second overall to team champion St. Paris Graham Local.

Walsh Jesuit, who scored 108 points, finished runner-up to the Falcons (230.5). Oak Harbor (96.5), Padua (55), and Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary (53) rounded out the top five.

Champions for the Fred Daugherty-coached Warriors were senior Johnni DiJulius and junior Nate Skonieczny. The 130-pound DiJulius (40-3 record entering state) dominated in his four matches, winning his first and last by pin.

In his first match, DiJulius pinned senior Kevin Lee of Dayton Oakwood in 2:33, then stopped Lewis Center Olentangy senior Al Caserta via a 14-3 major decision to advance to the championship semifinals.  DiJulius would stop Lexington senior standout Nick Hile (46-1) by a 16-1 tech. fall to move onto the championship match. The Warrior senior then pinned senior Alex Benedict of Canfield (32-4) at 3:19 to win the title.

At 135 pounds, Skonieczny opened strong – pinning his first two opponents. The Warrior junior pinned seniors Pataskala Licking Heights Josiah Dunlap (1:33) and Padua’s Collan DaFonseca (4:13) to move onto the semifinals. In the semis, Skonieczny earned a 20-5 tech. fall win over junior Anthony Fosco of Lewis Center Olentangy to advance to the finals to face junior Case Garrison of St. Paris Graham Local. Skonieczny stopped Garrison (37-6) by a 3-1 sudden victory decision to win his crown.

Junior Cory Stainbrook (38-9), at 112 pounds, won his first three matches for Walsh Jesuit without allowing his opponent to score a point. Stainbrook stopped Sandusky’s Nathan Salmon (12-0 major decision), Carrollton’s Joey Miller (7-0 decision), and Padua’s Bobby Mason (5-0 decision) to advance to the finals. Junior Ryan Taylor (41-2) of St. Paris Graham Local ended Stainbrook’s streak, edging the junior via a 6-3 decision.

Junior Nic Skonieczny (20-8) won four of his five matches at state, all by hard-fought decisions. His first two bouts – against Highland’s Colin Rininger and Uhrichsville’s Kyle Warner – were 5-4 and 2-1, respectively. Skonieczny dropped into the consolation bracket when St. Paris Graham Local senior Nick Brascetta (43-1) pinned the Warrior junior at 1:11. Skonieczny followed up with wins over Alex Bergman of Oak Harbor (7-4) and Padua’s Andrew Romanchik (3-2) to earn third place.

Senior John Novak (17-7), after winning his first two bouts to advance to the championship semifinals, lost to Avon junior Zane Zeman (40-2) by a 13-6 decision to drop into the consolations. Novak would advance to the third/fourth place bout, only to be shutout by Holy Name junior Jim Klosz (44-2), 3-0.

At 119 pounds, freshman Mike Kostandaras (27-9) faced an uphill battle in a talented weight class that featured five wrestlers with 40 or more wins on the season. After losing his opening bout, Kostandaras won his next three – all by decision – before losing in a 7-3 decision to Gnadenhutten Indian Valley junior Darran Warner (29-3).

Junior Trevor Fiorucci of Lewis Center Olentangy (43-5) edged Kostandaras in a 2-1 decision to drop the freshman to sixth place. Senior Anthony Melchiorre (19-9) lost two of his three bouts by one-point decisions. In his lone win, Melchiorre scored a 1-0 decision shutout over senior Zeke Eier (33-8) of New Carlisle Tecumseh.

FINAL DIVISION II TEAM RESULTS: 1. St. Paris Graham Local 230.5 points; 2. Walsh Jesuit 108; 3. Oak Harbor 96.5; 4. Padua 55; 5. Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary 53.

OTHER NOTABLES: T11. Medina Highland 37; 14. Aurora 32; 23. Avon 19.5; 24. Kenston 19; T30. Holy Name 15; T48. Lake Catholic 9; T56. Ravenna 5; T61. Streetsboro 4; T70. West Geauga 2.

DIVISION III

In Division III championships, five of Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy’s six wrestlers placed and two won individual crowns as the Royals finished second overall to team champion Bedford St. Peter Chanel.

CVCA, who scored 92.5 points, finished runner-up to the Firebirds (99 points). Monroeville (80), Milan Edison (57.5), and Mechanicsburg (56) rounded out the top five.

Champions for the Don Lorence-coached Royals were undefeated sophomore Nathan Tomasello (39-0 record entering state) and senior Alex Utley (37-2).

The 103-pound Tomasello dominated in his four matches, winning his first by pinning sophomore Damon Outward of Martins Ferry at 2:28. Tomasello next decisioned Mechanicsburg freshman Austin Reese (39-3) and previously unbeaten junior Zon Fields (39-0) of Marion Pleasant by scores of 8-4 and 6-1, respectively, to advance to the championship finals. Tomasello stopped sophomore Aaron Assad (42-3) of Bedford St. Peter Chanel by decision, 7-4, to win the state crown and remain undefeated.

Utley started off his quest for the 189-pound title with opening pins against New Lebanon Dixie junior Kaleb Campbell (time 3:30) and North Baltimore sophomore Dalton Ishmael (1:10) to advance to the semifinals. In the semis, Utley stopped senior Cody Rodgers of Mechanicsburg by a 6-2 decision and moved onto the title match, shutting out West Salem Northwestern senior Kurt Schaefer, 4-0, to win first place.

More impressive for Utley was his road to the title. The combined record of the four wrestlers he defeated was 166-24.

Both sophomore Matt Dobben (28-8) and junior Matt Meadows (37-6) finished in third place, winning four of their five bouts.

Dobben, at 140 pounds, split his first two bouts, then won three straight bouts – one via a pin - to put him into the third/fourth place match against Bluffton sophomore Zach Wilson (37-2). The Royals’ sophomore scored a 5-3 sudden victory decision over Wilson to earn third place.

Meadows, at 215 pounds, also split his first two bouts, dropping himself into the consolation bracket. The junior rebounded, winning the next four matches – the last a 17-4 major decision over Defiance Tinora senior Marc Moser (47-4) to CVCA another third-place winner.

Sophomore Josh Decatur (125 pounds) earned sixth place for the Royals, losing his last two matches by one point. In the consolation semifinals, Decatur (28-8 record) lost to Edgerton sophomore Jared VanVleet (46-4) by decision, 9-8. In the fifth/sixth place match, North Jackson Jackson-Milton senior Tim Wiseman earned a narrow 3-2 decision win over Decatur, dropping the CVCA underclassman to sixth place.

Seth Powers, wrestling at 135, lost his only two bouts by narrow decisions.

The championships, held at the Jerome Schottenstein Center at The Ohio State University in Columbus, enjoyed a five-session attendance total of 61,856. In the championship finals, over 14,000 (14,121 actual) saw 14 wrestlers crowned champion.

In total, 305 schools (100 in Division I, 95 in Division II, 110 in Division III) and 672 wrestlers (224 each Division) competed in 14 weight classes.

FINAL DIVISION III TEAM RESULTS: 1. Bedford St. Peter Chanel 99 points; 2. Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy 92.5; 3. Monroeville 80; 4. Milan Edison 57.5; 5. Mechanicsburg 56.

OTHER NOTABLES: 8. Beachwood 40.5; T33. Villa Angela-St. Joseph 19.