COLUMBUS - For the 1st time since the Dover Class A District Tournament the Midvale Blue Devils will be meeting a team which is almost even with them in every department when they square off with the Ayersville Pilots at 1:30 Friday in the semi-finals of the State Tournament at St. John Arena in Columbus. Head Coach Ralph (Pete) Hilliard's cagers played the Adena Golden Wave in the Dover District Tournament and the 2 teams were even on height and in scoring and the difference between their offensive output and opponents points scored about even.
Next Friday afternoon when Mighty Midvale takes on Ayersville (27-1) the situation will again be on even terms. In sweeping through the County Sectional, District and Regional Tournaments the "Cinderella" team of Tuscarawas County was required to battle teams having superior height and several times a defensive advantage, but came through with flying colors. The Pilots have done the same all season.
The Airmen, which lost only one game in 28 outings and that to the Miller City Wildcats, a Class A State Champion in 1949-50, in an overtime by the score of 60-57. The loss came on the 13th game of the regular season. The Cloudbusters, under the tutorship of Head Coach Lee Himmeger in his 1st year at the helm of a high school basketball team, played in 3 overtime games including the Miller City fracas. Against the Edgerton Bulldogs they won a 63-57 verdict in an overtime in the Ayersville Sectional Tournament on their home floor. Then against the Deshler Pirates, they took a 69-64 victory in the Defiance District Tournament on the Defiance High School hardwood.
The Ayersville Pilots, which is located in Defiance County of which Defiance is the county seat, had several other close ball games during its campaign. It copped 2 close decisions over the Continental Pirates winning the 1st game of the season 59-56 and then midway in the season defeated the same team by a 69-63 count. Their next closest encounter was with Ottaw St. Peter and Paul, a parochial school at Ottawa, in the Lima Regional Tounrament which they won 63-58.
Over the span of the 28 games the Pilots have scored at an average of 72.1 points per game, while they have held their opponents to a 51.7 output in scoring 2,021 points. Their foes have tallied 1,450 points, while the Diablos on the other hand, has tallied 2,309 points in 30 games for a 76.9 per game average and their opponents have accounted for 1,802 points or a 60 point average per game. But included in those points scored by the Devils' foes are 9 losses, 8 in the regular season and one in the County Tournament. After hitting the tournament trail the Blue and Gold of Midvale disposed of every team which defeated them in the regular season. Their worst defeat came at the hands of the Stone Creek Golden Panthers, an 11-point spread, by a 69-58 count.
Size has meant nothing to the Midvale Blue Devils, which has 111 boys in the high school making them the biggest Class A Team of the 4 finalists. The starting array averages 5-11 1/4 per man. Ayersville will be the 1st team since Midvale played Adena that will be even in this department. The Pilots have a team averaging 5-11 1/2, only one quarter of an inch better per man than the Blue Devils.
Marvin Hohenbreger, 6-1 Senior has been the big gun for the Airmen. A top rebounder, Hohenberger is also the high scorer with an average of 22 points per game at a forward post. At the other forward will be Jim Hammersmith, 6-0 Senior, who is the 2nd high scorer with a 15 point average per game. John Zimmerman, 6-1 Senior, is the top rebounder. Although he is not unusually tall, he does a bang-up job under the boards using his broad frame in jockying for position. Two 5-10 guards round out the starting array. Jim Martin, the only Junior on the 1st five, is the 3rd high scorer and is noted for his jump shots. He has tallied at an average of about 14 points per contest, most of his points coming from out front. Larry Meyer is the other guard and is labeled as the playmaker of the team.
The Cloudbusters, which has 56 boys in the top 4 grades, likes to fast break and plays almost the same brand of ball that Coach Hilliard's combine uses. They take advantage of well-rounded scoring and a fast moving ball club in overcoming their inferior height. Actually, Hohenberger is the main cog in the offense. He drives, shoots jump shots and is a very good set shot. He can drive from either side of the basket for layups. Hammersmith is also noted for his jump shots, most of them on long shots. He is also a good driver and can shoot set shots.
The Bethel Blackhawks (27-1) which will meet Gratis (26-1) in the 2nd game of the semi-finals at 3:00 is the tallest team of the 4, boasting 3 boys stretching the tape at 6-2 and one at 6-3. They also boast the highest scoring ouput, hitting over 88 points per contest, going over the century mark 8 times this season. Its only loss came at the hands of River Local, the team's archrival, by a 74-69 count. The Blackhawks revenged that defeat though in the Monroe County Tournament by a 73-70 count. Bethel, the smallest school of the 4, boasts only 18 boys in the high school, 16 of them out for basketball. The population of Marr, in which Bethel Township High School is located, is only 8. They draw the other 24 students from surrounding areas. It is located in Monroe County at the Southwestern tip of which Woodsfield is the county seat. The team is coached by Richard Potts, his 6th year.
Gratis, located in the southwestern corner of Preble County of which Eaton is the county seat, boasts a population of 500 people and has 90 boys in the top 4 grades. The Trojans, coached by John Buriff for the past 3 years, all the longer the schools has been in existence, has a well-rounded scoring attack and has the one big man needed for rebounding strength who is 6-3. They also have dropped only one game and that on the 6th game of the season to Dixie by a resounding 82-65 score. But the Trojans revenged the loss whipping the same team to the tune of 84-68 in the Preble County Tournament.
The entire county has become excited over the prospect of the Midvale Blue Devils copping the State Championship. Supt. J.F. Zack announced this morning that all of the 1,203 Reserved Seat tickets allotted to the school were sold by 7:00 last night. The tickets, which are good for only the Ayersville-Midvale game, cost the buyers $1.50. There will also be about 1,000 standing room tickets sold at each of the 4 games of the tournament. They may be obtained at the fieldhouse doors.
AYERSVILLE PILOTS (27-1)
Continental Pirates 59-56
Oakwood Bobcats 75-56
Florida 54-41
Jewell 79-49
Ney 91-75
Mark Center 73-34
Stryker Panthers 65-56
Continental Pirates 69-63
Farmer 70-49
Holgate Tigers 62-38
Sherwood Apaches 95-34
Jewell 64-56
Miller City Wildcats 57-60 DEFEATED
Ney 64-49
Hicksville Aces 71-47
Mark Center 74-58
Farmer 64-37
Paulding Panthers 76-40
Sherwood Apaches 96-33
DEFIANCE COUNTY TOURNAMENT
Jewell 79-40
Mark Center 80-58
Ney 67-53
AYERSVILLE SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT
Grover Hill Hornets 82-69
Edgerton Bulldogs 63-57
DEFIANCE DISTRICT TOURNAMENT
Deshler Pirates 69-64
Fayette 65-49
LIMA REGIONAL TOURNAMENT
Ottawa St. Peter and Paul 63-58
Holmes-Liberty 94-71
Tuesday, March 19, 1957
Jim De Mello, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporte
Dover, Ohio
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