CLARION, Pa. (EYT/D9) — With eight of the nine players scoring, one could say Clarion-Limestone’s 68-54 District 9 Class 2A championship victory over Otto-Eldred was a total team effort on Saturday evening at Tippin Gym.
(Clarion-Limestone players celebrate after winning the District 9 Class A title/photo by Diane Lutz)
“Starting out this season with the type of team we had I felt we should be around a .500 team,” said C-L head coach Joe Ferguson. “This is all a credit to these kids and the hard work they put in day in and day out and how they worked together. We went nine deep by the end of the season and we were able to wear a lot of teams down because of that depth.”
Riley Klingensmith led the way with 16 points while grabbing four rebounds. Jordan Hesdon added 11 points with eight rebounds, five assists, and five steals. Jack Craig scored nine points, while Jase Ferguson and Jack Callen each adding eight points. Ferguson added nine assists and four steals. Callen grabbed seven rebounds.
Both teams struggled offensively in the first quarter with Otto-Eldred holding the biggest of lead of three points at 9-6 before ending the quarter with a one-point 11-10 lead.
(Riley Klingensmith was named the Hager Paving Incorporated Player of the Game)
C-L opened up the second quarter on a 9-3 run to take a 19-14 lead. Otto-Eldred fought back to tie the game at 21-all with 3:02 to play in the half. C-L then closed the half on a 12-4 run to take a 32-25 halftime lead.
“I felt we hadn’t really played our best ball over the last week or so,” said Ferguson. “The kids came out and gave a great team effort tonight. Otto is a very good team, and it shows by their record they have. Our depth compared to theirs is what made the difference tonight.”
C-L built a 12-point lead of 46-34 with just over two minutes to play in the third before the Terrors trimmed the lead down to nine at 49-40 by the end of the third.
Klingensmith started the fourth with a 3-pointer, extending the lead back to 12. A 7-0 run by Otto-Eldred trimmed the lead down to five at 52-47 with 5:58 to play. However, another 9-0 run by the Lions pushed the lead back to 14 at 61-47 with 3:30 to play. The Lions held a 4-2 edge the rest of the way to set the final score.
“When they cut the lead down to like four or five in that fourth quarter, I thought about calling a timeout,” said Ferguson. “But I had confidence they could turn things around, plus I kind of wanted to save that timeout in case it stayed close toward the end of the game. We then made a little run to get that separation again and I felt more comfortable.”
Ray’Shene Thomas paced Otto-Eldred with 22 points while Landon Francis added 14 and Manning Splain chipped in with 11.
KARNS CITY 36, RIDGWAY 33
Jacob Callihan scored 13 points, including six in a key fourth quarter, to lead the Gremlins to a win in the third-place consolation game in Class 2A and a spot in the PIAA playoffs.
Micah Rupp added 11 for Karns City, which led 11-6 after the first quarter and 14-8 at the half in a typical low-scoring game for Ridgway.
Aaron Sorg led the Elkers with 19 points — 12 coming in the fourth quarter. Jack Benninger added 10 for Ridgway.
