43 - RIGHT DOWN THE LINE

Friday, March 12, 1948
Dover, Ohio


IT PROBABLY SHOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED, but it did and the reign of the Strasburg Tigers is at an end, putting the burden of carrying the Tuscarawas County colors into the Regionals on the Midvale Blue Devils who engaged the giant-killing Dillonvale Night Riders Saturday night.

Strasburg's defeat cannot be explained by any one factor.  First and foremost they were toppled by a team which, Thursday night, was able to keep a step ahead of the Bengals almost everywhere on the court.  The Night Rider's pressing defense throttled the effectiveness of All-County Senior center Clarence Yackey and Senior guard Tom Haswell and it also worried the other Tigers to a point where they were uncertain at times.

Probably Strasburg has had nights when they hit a greater percentage of their shots and repeated misses took their toll of Tiger confidence.  Yackey's misfortune (he had 3 personals midway in the 2nd period) helped mold the disaster.  Also, when he left the game with 4 minutes remaining, it would still have been very possible for the team to have pulled the battle out of the fire.  You must give the big boy credit for a grand job of sportsmanship.  His last 2 fouls drew raised eyebrows and protests from the Tiger fans, but Yackey shook hands with the Night Riders' captain and calmly walked off the court.

No matter what the reason for the defeat, it is final and Strasburg now joins Newark, Akron Garfield, New Knoxville and others who had title aspirations and were thwarted in the stretch.  The old adage "watch our strides in March," applies particularly to tournament play.  They are all blazing hot for these events.  That's why they hold them in March.

A PROGRAM giving all Tuscarawas County teenage boys through 18 years of age an opportunity to, participate in the Junior American Legion baseball setup, which will soon be launched.

The program, headed by Babe Ruth in conjunction with the Ford Motor Company and the American Legion, will get underway next week when the American Legion will contact all posts in Tuscarawas County, urging them to boost a team in their town.  The city of Coshocton will be included in the setup with this county under present plans.

It is the plan of the recreation department, American Legion and Fred P. Potachner, Dover Ford dealer, to have every town in the county entered in the Junior American Legion League.  League play will start as soon as the schools dismiss this Spring and the program will include high school baseballers if they meet the age requirements.  Following the completion of League play, the loop will hold playoffs with the winners advancing to a District Tournament.  Once by the District meet, the victors go to a State tournament and on to the National joust.  Plans have been made to hold a meeting for the organization of the League in this county in the near future.

Ford Motor Company dealers will supply the uniforms for the various teams, while the manager, coach and transportation facilities will be taken care of by the American Legion posts.  Trophies will be awarded to the winners following the playoffs.

THREE STRASBURG REGULARS, Seniors Clarence Yackey, Tom Haswell and Roland Malcuit, ended their high school basketball careers last night when the Dillonvale Night Riders ended the Tiger hopes for a Championship.

48 - Strasburg Tripped-Up By Dillonvale 51-48 (3-11-48)

STEUBENVILLE - Strasburg's hopes for a 3rd consecutive District basketball title and a berth in the Youngstown Regionals, last stop before the State finals in Columbus, lay shattered on the hardwood of Steubenville's Big Red Gymnasium today as a result of a shocking 51-48 upset administered by the Dillonvale Night Riders in the 2nd round of District play on Thursday night.  The Midvale Blue Devils, conquerors of the Belmont Flying Eagles 54-45 Tuesday night, stood today as the sole remaining Tuscarawas County contender for District honors and will collide with Dillonvale Saturday night at 7:45PM in the finals at Steubenville.

With their powerful offensive guns partially throttled by the Dillonvale Night Riders' (22-7) pressing defense and unable to cash in on scoring opportunities, the Strasburg Tigers (6-1) (27-3) saw their coveted crown slip through their fingers as the Night Riders' fast break erased an early 1st period deficit and proved the deciding factor in the battle.

All-Ohio Senior center Clarence Yackey, spearhead of the Tiger offense, drew his 3rd personal foul midway in the 2nd period and Head Coach Emmet Riley was forced to remove his ace for the remainder of the quarter, further handicapping a team which had become a little shaky after seeing the Riders knot the count at 15-15 in the 1st quarter after trailing 9-1 in the early minutes.  Yackey was sent back into the game in the 3rd stanza, but was ejected with 4 minutes remaining of the final canto when it seemed that the Bengals might move out in front for the 1st time since the initial quarter.

In the early stages of the 1st quarter it appeared that Strasburg was going to win as predicted over the highly-regarded Night Riders as Yackey, Senior forward Roland Malcuit, Senior guard Tom Haswell and Sophomore guard John Haswell poured points through the nets and gave the Bengals a 9-1 advantage.  Midway in the quarter; however, the vaunted Rider offensive came to life and forwards Harold (Powder) Henry and Jim Jelnick paced a Dillonvale attack which closed the gap.

Strasburg defenses faltered before the withering fire of Henry's deadly long range marksmanship in the 2nd period and Dillonvale surged into a 31-27 halftime lead.  Field goals by Malcult, Junior forward Jim Weber, Yackey and John Haswell were not sufficient to match Henry's 8 point splurge and the Tigers relinquished their hard-earned 1st quarter margin.

In a furious 3rd stanza, each team counted twice from the field and an equal number of times from the free throw line and Dillonvale still held its 4-point margin 37-33 at the end of the canto.  The Night Riders' press was holding Yackey out from the Tiger nets and staving off thrusts by Tom Haswell.

At the start of the final quarter, guard Jack Olzeski of Dillonvale, whose brilliant defensive play bracketed Yackey on numerous occasions, netted a charity toss to make it 38-33, but Sophomore forward John Reiger made up part of the deficit with a doubledecker.  Night Riders center Earl Thompson matched this and the Riders again led by 5 points, 40-35.  Reiger meshed another fielder, but Jelnick made it 41-37 with a charity toss.  Yackey was fouled and netted a pair from the gift lane to bring the count to 41-39, but this was the towering center's last contribution as he left the game via the foul route with 4 minutes remaining.

Jelnick upped the count with a free throw toss and Weber raised Strasburg hopes as he whipped 2 successive field goals through the nets to give the Bengals a 43-42 lead with 3 minutes to go.  After Henry and Jelnick had sparked Dillonvale to a 46-43 lead seconds later, Tom Haswell knotted the count at 46-46 with a field goal and a free throw.  This proved to be Strasburg's last bid as guard Gus Holubeck and Jelnick caged field goals under the nets to give the Riders a 50-46 margin.  A charity shot by Henry and a final doubledecker by Reiger proved to be incidental as the time ran out on the desperate Bengals.

Henry led both teams in scoring with 18 points and game honors, while his mate, Jelnick, collected 16.  Tom Haswell garnered 13, while Yackey and Weber harvested 9 points each.  Both teams were even in field scoring with 18 each.  Dillonvale counted 15 times from the free throw line with Strasburg getting 12.

DILLONVALE NIGHT RIDERS - 51

Harold (Powder) Henry F 8-2-18
Jerry Jelneck F 6-4-16
Earl Thompson C 1-4-6
Gus Holubeck G 2-2-6
Jack Olzeski G 1-3-5

STRASBURG TIGERS - 48

Roland Malcuit F 2-1-5
Jim Weber F 4-1-9
John Reiger F 3-1-7
Clarence Yackey C 3-3-9
Lewin Vermillion C 0-0-0
Tom Haswell G 4-5-13
John Haswell G 2-1-5


Friday, March 12, 1948
Rex Ridenour, Right Down The Line
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

NOTE:  STRASBURG GRADUATES FOR 1948

TOP ROW:  Richard Bach - Dean Beitzel - Martha Bott - Naomi Deibel - Nancy Fernsell and Jack Fuhrer.  2ND ROW:  Glen Huffman - Rose Dorsey - Pat Von Kaenel - Tom Haswell - Raymond Kaiser and Margaret Welsch.  3RD ROW:  Roland Malcuit - Rosemary Meek - Jerry Ramsey - Mae Ellen Kenner, Bruce Renisch and Alma Rockbill.  BOTTOM ROW:  James Snyder - Julia Spring and Clarence Yackey.

NOTE:  At one time Dillonvale was known as the Dillonvale Purple Riders.  In 1936 a fooball field was constructed with LIGHTS and the Purple Riders became the Night Riders.

48 - Right Down The Line

Wednesday, March 10, 1948
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio


THE MIDVALE BLUE DEVILS made the 1st step last night toward arranging a 4th meeting with the Strasburg Tigers this year and from all indications, the Bengals should be able to take care of their end of the deal Thursday night, even though Sports Editor John Kirker of the Steubenville Herald-Star believes the Dillonvale Night Riders will end the Strasburg reign.  The Blue Devils' victory wasn't easy Tuesday night, but neither was it too difficult, once Midvale got themselves tuned to the court and acclimated to the Belmont Flying Eagles style.

WE WERE WARNED to expect a different brand of ball from Dillonvale, more defense and polish.  Vital statistics on the Night Riders; however, reveal a lack of anything capable of halting All-Ohio Senior center Clarence Yackey while he is on the court.  Center Earl Thompson is hardly over the 6-0 mark and forwards Harold Henry and Jerry Jelnick do not hit that figure.  Neither do guards Gus Holubeck and Jak Olzneski.  No doubt Strasburg will have a little difficulty with the fan-shaped backboards in the Big Red gymnasium, just as Midvale did, but this should not be a lasting evil.  After seeing part of what the river counties have to offer in the way of a challenge to Tuscarawas County entries, we'd guess there would be a large migration to Steubenville Saturday night to witness a return engagement of the county tournament.  But, this is still basketball, of course and anything can happen.

APPARENTLY FRANK BAUMHOLTZ, the former Midvale court star, has been convinced that basketball and baseball do not mix.  The Redleg lead-off man announced in Tampa, Florida the other day that he was forsaking the cage sport and would spend all of his time developing his baseball talents.  "From now on I will devote all my time to baseball," the 28-year-old Cincinnati outfielder said.  "Although it is not easy to pass up the $6,000 I could get from playing basketball during the winter, I believe I will profit in the long run."  Baumholtz, in his 4th year of organized baseball, weighs 180 pounds, 15 more than last year.

CLASS B TOURNAMENT NOTES:  Scores of Strasburg fans, in addition to Midvale's supporters, were on hand at Steubenville...Two seats away from Head Coach Emmet Riley of Strasburg was John Hanson, now coaching in the Amsterdam area.  It was 2 baskets by Hanson in the closing minutes which gave the Amsterdam Rams a victory over the Strasburg Tigers in the 1934 tournament at Dennison...The cheerleaders for Midvale and Belmont wore identical outfits - blue skirts, white blouses and blue bows...There were many vacant seats last night, but a capacity turnout is anticipated Thursday and Saturday.  All seats are RESERVED.

48 - Midvale Shakes-Off Belmont 54-45 (3-9-48)

The Midvale Blue Devils scoring ace, All-County Junior Forward Jack Ford, scored 22 points leading his team  over the Belmont Flying Eagles by a score of 54-45.  Ford has an 18.3 average per game with 110 points in tournament play.


STEUBENVILLE - The Midvale Blue Devils (5-1) (25-3), paced by Senior forward Jack Ford whose deadly accuracy from the field erased a 14-7 first quarter Belmont Flying Eagles (27-3) lead, battled their way into the finals of the District Class B Tournament at Steubenville on Tuesday night as they handed the Flying Eagles a 54-45 defeat in the 1st round of tournament play in the Big Red gymnasium before 7800 fans, nearly half of them Midvale supporters.  If Strasburg eliminates the Dillonvale Night Riders Thursday night, the stage will be set for the 4th meeting of the Blue Devils and Tigers, this time in the District finals.

Belmont's give-and-go offense, coupled with the strangeness of the floor, gave the Eagles their 1st quarter margin as forward Wayne Parker and center Ernie Kovach combined to tally 5 field goals with their pitch and run tactics.  However, in the 2nd period, the Midvale Blue Devils slowed the Belmont Eagles' margin and trimmed it to 23-22 by halftime.  Ford and Junior forward Jim Golder, with 2 doubledeckers each, sparked the Blue Devil drive, but were aided by action shots by Junior guard Dave Rennicker and Senior guard Dan Carlisle.  It was Carlisle's field goal in the waning minutes of the quarter which put Midvale ahead 22-21 for the 1st time in the game, but an action shot by Eagle forward Charles Cain gave Belmont their halftime advantage with seconds remaining.

In a hectic 3rd period, the score was knotted twice as the lead changed hands 6 times, but Midvale held a 37-35 advantage at the end of the stanza.  At the beginning of the 3rd canto, Parker increased the Eagle margin to 25-22 with a long shot, but Rennicker followed under the hoop to count a field goal and Carlisle whipped one through the nets to put the Blue Devils out in front 26-25.  Parker sunk a pair of free throws to give Belmont a one-point margin and Sophomore center Bob Sherrell knotted the count at 27-27 with a charity toss.  An action shot by Parker and a free throw by Kovach gave the Eagles a 30-27 lead, but field goals by Sherrell and Ford sent the Blue Devils out in front again 31-30.  After Sherrell hit from the field again, Parker and Cain each netted 2-pointers and regained the lead for Belmont 34-33.  Carlisle put the Blue Devils up 35-34 with a follow shot, but guard Miles Witchey knotted the score for the 2nd time with a charity toss.  Ford gave Midvale a 37-35 lead as the quarter ended with a pair of free throws.

Two successive doubledeckers by Ford and one by Golder gave Midvale a 42-35 lead early in the 4th quarter and from then on the Blue Devils were in command of the situation.  Midvale controlled the ball and staved off Belmont attempts to whittle the margin down for the remainder of the period.  With the exception of Parker, whose 7 field goals represented half of the Belmont total from the field, the fabulous Eagle offense which had rolled over 27 opponents this year, failed to function except from the free throw lines.  Belmont collected a total of 17 points from the charity lane in 24 attempts, while Midvale garnered 12 of 22 gift shots.  Ford led both teams in scoring with 22 points, while Parker hit 20 markers.

Thursday night at 7:45PM, the Strasburg Tigers, defending District Champions, will begin their title defense against the Dillonvale Night Riders, Jefferson County Champions and posessors of a 21-7 mark for the season.  Head Coach Paul Kalivoda's quintet upset powerful Yorkville in the Sectional joust last week and handed the Ductillites their 1st defeat by a Class B team since Strasburg turned the trick in last year's District meet.

MIDVALE BLUE DEVILS - 54

Jack Ford F 9-4-22
Jim Golder F 3-3-9
Bob Sherrell C 3-2-8
Dave Rennicker G 2-2-6
Gene Byers G 0-0-0
Dan  Carlisle G 4-1-9
Bob De Mattio G 0-0-0

BELMONT FLYING EAGLES - 45

Wayne Parker F 7-6-20
Johnson F 0-0-0
Gilham F 0-3-3
Chuck Cain F 2-1-5
Ernie Kovach C 3-1-7
Hepburn G 1-2-4
Milhoan G 0-0-0
Miles Witchey G 1-4-6


Wednesday, March 10, 1948
Rex Ridenour, Right Down The Line
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

48 - Right Down The Line

Monday, March 8, 1948
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

WHEN STRASBURG collides with the Dillonvale Night Riders on Thursday in the District Tournament at Steubenville, the Tigers will be starting their title defense against a quintet with a 21-7 record.  The Jefferson County Champions and conquers of the Yorkville Ductillites in the Sectional meet are sparked by a long shot artist, Harold Henry and Jerry Jelnick.  Their victory over the Ductillites marked the last time since last year's District Tournament that Yorksville had been defeated by a class B team (Strasbrug Tigers).  Even though Yorkville's big center, Charles Hesske, was out for the 1st quarter of the Dillonvale game, he went in after the initial period and collected 20 points, one of his biggest sprees of the year, but not good enough to top the Night Riders from Jefferson County.

THE BELMONT BISONS, Belmont County Champions, has the top record in the Steubenville area, a 27-2 mark.  This is the 1st year that a team from Belmont County has been able to reach the District meet and the Bisons success this year is largely due to a hot-shooting forward, Jim Parker, who has been averaging nearly 23 points a game.

STRASBURG HAS ROLLED up 1,686 points in winning 27 and losing only 2 for the season, while holding the opposition to 925.  All-Ohio Senior center Clarence Yackey has scored nearly 500 of these points and Tom Haswell 385.  Tickets for the Steubenville meet are on sale now at both Strasburg and Midvale schools at 75 cents each.  Referees for the tournament will be Paul Schott, who officiated at the Sectional here and Harlan Marshall of Wheeling.

ALTHOUGH THEY didn't make the grade, you must give Head Coach Bill Ortt and his Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates credit for giving Strasburg's powerful tigers credit for one of the hardest battles they have had in tourney play so far.

The Pirates, who have been improving with every game since losing to Strasburg 66-40 in the 1st round of the county tournament, reached their peak last Saturday night.  For more than 3 quarters, the Bucs using their slow-up offense, kept the possibility of one of the most amazing upsets of the year within their grasp as they clung tenaciously to the Tiger's 6 and 7 point lead and it was only 3 fast doubledeckers in succession in the last 2 minutes that stretched the Bengal margin to 13 points.

Memorial Hall was in turmoil as the Pirates' steady defenses held Yackey to 10 points in the first 3 periods.  The towering Tiger pivot man failed to register a field goal in the 3rd quarter and picked up only 2 each in the 1st and 2nd periods as Seniors forward Don Hostetler and center Don Miller, either of which might hit the 6 foot mark, barred the way with spectacular defensive play,  The Orttmen can hang up their suits for this season, secure in the knowledge that their tournament showing has been a credit to the school and the players.

ANOTHER STANDOUT performer in the Sectional meet was Dover St. Joseph's pivot man, Ed Reiger.  This boy raked up 36 points in 2 games and was the spark in Head Coach Ed Young's Rambler machine throughout.  Only a Sophomore, Reiger has 2 years of competition left.  The Ramblers have another distinction.  Their Sandy McCracken, diminutive member of the Rambler corps, continually delighted fans when she went out on the floor with other members of the yell group.

48 - Strasburg Defense Stops Sugarcreek-Shanesville 43-30 (3-6-48)

Senior Center Clarence Yackey of the Strasburg Tigers scored 17 points to lead the Tigers to a 43-30 victory over the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates.  The Bengal defense shutdown the Pirate attack with Yackey leading the way.  Yackey shows a point-total of 114 during tournament play for a 19.0 average.


DOVER - Strasburg's Mighty Tigers, 43-30 victors over the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates in the lower bracket finals of the Sectional Tournament meet in Memorial Hall Saturday night, advanced to the District Tournament at Steubenville this week and will collide with the Dillonville Night Riders, Jefferson County Champions at 7:45PM Thursday, while the Midvale Blue Devils, 53-43 conquerors of the Dover St. Joseph Ramblers in the upper bracket finale Saturday, will meet the Belmont Flying Eagles in the District joust Tuesday at 7:45PM.

The final of the Steubenville District Class B Tournament will be held Saturday night with Class A District games scheduled for Monday, Wednesday and Friday of this week.  Only one game night is scheduled for the combined Class A and B tournament.

Although given a terrific battle by the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates (6-2) (16-9) Saturday night, the Strasburg Tigers (6-0) (27-2) drove through to their 3rd consecutive Sectional Tournament win and will be defending their District Tournament laurels in Steubenville for the 2nd consecutive year.

For 3 quarters and well into the 4th period, Head coach Bill Ortt's small, but speedy Pirates nearly matched the Strasburg machine and it took a Bengal splurge in the last 2 minutes of play to gain a decisive margin of victory.

Strasburg rolled to an 8-3 first quarter lead as the Pirates, moving the ball cautiously and expertly with their slow-up offense style, limited the Tigers to 3 field goals and a pair of free throws.

In the 2nd canto, Strasburg increased their margin to 7 points and held a 20-13 lead at halftime as Seniors center Clarence Yackey and guard Tom Haswell dumped in 4 field goals to pace the attack.  The Bucs; however, harried the Champions with their board play.  Seniors center Don Miller and guard Don Hostetler wrestled the towering Yackey on even terms under the baskets, halting followups and pivot shots with an efficiency which had the 1,203 fans on their feet roaring most of the quarter.  Sophomore forward Jim Knox started the Pirate offensive in this quarter when he hit a long shot from the center of the floor and followed with a one hander frm the side court.  Freshman guard Glen Zimmerman completed the Buc field scoring with a one hander from the side.

In a thrill-drenched 3rd period, the Pirates outscored the Tigers and trimmed the Strasburg margin by one point.  Junior guard Clayton Deetz and Zimmerman each deuced from the field and Miller poured a pair of fielders through the nets.  Zimmerman added a free throw toss and Hostetler hit twice from the charity lane, while Senior forward Roland Malcuit, Tom Haswell and Sophomore guard John Haswell were each scoring doubledeckers for the Tigers.  Strasburg added 4 more points on free throws by Junior forward Jim Weber, Yackey and Sophomore guard John Reiger, giving the Tigers a 30-24 margin at the end of the quarter.

A charity toss by Yackey plus a doubledecker by Malcuit gave the Tigers a 35-26 lead at the automatic timeout in the last period and a fielder by Zimmerman along with free throw shots by Deetz and Miller failed to overtake the Tiger lead as John Haswell, Reiger and Yackey each counted from the court in the last 2 minutes.

STRASBURG TIGERS - 43

Roland Malcuit F 2-2-6
Jim Weber F 0-3-3
Clarence Yackey C 7-3-17
Tom Haswell G 5-2-12
John Haswell G 1-0-2
John Reiger G 1-1-3

SUGARCREEK-SHANESVILLE PIRATES - 30

Clayton Deetz F 1-2-4
Jim Knox F 2-1-5
Myron Beechy F 0-0-0
Don Hostetler C 0-2-2
Don Miller G 4-3-11
Glen Zimmerman G 3-2-8


Monday, March 8, 1948
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

NOTE:  The Strasburg Tigers and Midvale Blue Devils move on to the District Tournament at Steubenville.

NOTE:  SUGARCREEK-SHANESVILLE WINS SPRING BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP 47-48.

The Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates Baseball Champions in the Fall of 1947 will represent this area in the Eastern District meet at Zanesville in the Spring of 1948.  FRONT:  Howard Lahmers (Manager) - Richard Sundheimer - Bill Willis - Glenn Zimmerman - John Andreas - Jim Knox - Gene Miller - Dave Mishler and Richard Hostetler (Manager).  BACK:  Don Hostetler - Glen Miller - John Lanzer - Ike Hostetler - Matt Banks - Dallas Brown - Clayton Deetz - Wayne Schrock - Don Hostetler and Bill Shell.  Head Coach Bill Ortt is standing.

48 - Midvale Whips St. Joseph's 53-43 (3-6-48)

The Midvale Blue Devils All-County Senior Forward Jack Ford led the Blue Devils to a 53-43 triumph over the Dover St. Joseph Ramblers at Memorial Hall scoring 15 points for game honors.  Ford has amassed a total of 88 markers during the tournament run for a 22.0 average per game.


DOVER - A rallying, determined quintet of St. Joseph's Ramblers, paced by Sophomore center Ed Reiger and Junior guard Tony Contini, did not have quite enough to march to victory over the Midvale Blue Devils (4-1) (24-3), but Head Coach Eddie Young's cagers stayed on the pace throughout the game and threatened to overhaul Midvale on several occasions.

Sparked by All-County Senior forward Jack Ford and Junior forward Jim Golder, the Blue Devils took a 20-12 first quarter lead, but the Ramblers, paced by Reiger and Senior forward Ray Hagarman, cut this to 31-26 at halftime as they outscored the County League Champions.

Blue Devils power; however, asserted itself again in the 3rd stanza with Sophomore center Bob Sherrell leading the attack and the Ramblers trailed 43-31 at the end of the period.

Tony Contini, Reiger and Senior forward John Petrella staged a desperate 4th canto rally, but the Devil margin was too great even through the Ramblers outscored Midvale 12 to 10 in this quarter.

MIDVALE BLUE DEVILS - 53

Jack Ford F 5-5-15
Jim Golder F 3-4-10
Bob Sherrell C. 5-4-14
Dan Carlisle G 3-4-10
Bob De Mattio G 0-0-0
Dave Rennicker G 2-0-4
Gene Byers F 0-0-0

DOVER ST. JOSEPH RAMBLERS - 43

John Petrella F 1-1-3
Rudy Bauer F 0-3-3
Ray Hagarman F 1-3-5
Ed Reiger C 8-0-16
Ross Rondinella C 0-0-0
Bob Contini G 2-0-4
Tony Contini G 5-1-11
Tony Cenci G 0-1-1
Joe Brady F 0-1-1


Monday, March 8, 1948
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

48 - Strasburg Hammers Dennison 61-39 (3-5-48)

The Strasburg Tigers scoring ace Tom Haswell led the Tigers to a 61-39 victory over the Dennison Railroaders at Memorial Hall yesterday, while scoring 22 points gaining game honors.  Tom now has 96 points for a 19.2 point average during tournament play.  Yackey followed up with 21 markers.


DOVER - Midvale's County Class B League Champions will engage the Dover St. Joseph Ramblers at 7:30 tonight and the Strasburg Tigers, county tourney kings will battle the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates at 8:30 in the finals of the Sectional Class B cage carnival at Memorial Hall.  The winners will advance to next week's District classic at Steubenville.  Sugarcreek-Shanesville, Consolation Division victor in the county meet, moved ahead last night by eliminating the Malvern Green Hornets, the Carroll County color bearer, in a 57-45 tilt, while Strasburg ran its record to 26-2 by lacing Dennison's Railroaders 61-39 before a turnout crowd of 1,178.  The Midvale Blue Devils and Dennison St. Joseph's will be meeting for the 1st time, but Strasburg has defeated Sugarcreek-Shanesville 3 times, whipping the Pirates 66-40 in the opening round of the county tournament.

The brilliant floor work and shooting of Senior guard Tom Haswell highlighted the Strasburg Tigers (5-0) (26-2) victory.  He accounted for 22 points with 7 filed goals and 8 free throws, while 6-6 Senior center Clarence Yackey played a fine rebound game, while caging 21 points on 7 action shots and 7 charity tosses.  Senior forward Don Cable was high for the Dennison Railroaders .

Head Coach Emmet Riley's charges led all the way; although, Dennison tied the score at 21-all with 3 minutes and 10 seconds of the 2nd period remaining.  It was a close battle up to that point, but the Tigers rallied for a 31-23 halftime lead and then outscored Dennison 16 to 7 in the 3rd stanza to remove all doubt as to the eventual outcome.

Tom Haswell broke the ice with an underhand shot in the opening seconds and Roland Malcuit added a free throw before Junior guard Don Wright, who fouled out in the 3rd period, tallied for Dennison on a one-hander.  Yackey's free throw, a rebound by Tom Haswell and a lay-up by his brother, Sophomore guard John Haswell, made the count 8-2.  Cable personally halted the Strasburg spurt by sinking 2 consecutive doubledeckers and a free throw.

Free throws by Tom Haswell, Yackey and Junior forward Jim Weber and a one-hander by John Haswell ran the count to 13-7 before Wright connected again from the field and Cable meshed a charity toss as the quarter ended with Strasburg on top 13-10.  Cable opened the 2nd period bombardment with a free throw and Tom Haswell duplicated it.  After Senior center Jim Gold meshed a one-hander for Dennison, Tom Haswell cashed 2 charity throws and Yackey dropped in a rebound for an 18-13 edge.  Senior forward Earl Finn and Louis Saggio collected baskets for Dennison to make the score 18-17.  A free throw by Yackey and a bucket by Tom Haswell was followed by Cable's 2-pointer and Saggio's rebound which made it 21-21.

Weber broke the deadlock with a one-hander, Senior forward Dudgeon and Gold netted free throws and Yackey did likewise and the score was 24-23.  Then Yackey personally took charge of the game by harvesting a lay-up, free throw and 2 rebounds for 7 points as the half ended.  Dennison reduced the margin to 5 points early in the 2nd half, but then Tom Haswell collected 7 points and Yackey 5 as Dennison was being held to one and that spurt side-tracked the Railroaders.

A total of 46 personals were called, 25 against Dennison.  Strasburg made good on 21 of 33 charity tosses, while Dennison connected on 13 of 24.  In addition to Wright, the Railroaders lost Finn in the 4th quarter, while Yackey was forced out with 2 minutes left.

STRASBURG TIGERS - 61

Roland Malcuit F 1-2-4
Jim Weber F 1-1-3
Clarence Yackey C 7-7-21
Tom Haswell G 7-8-22
John Reiger F 1-2-4
Lewin Vermillion C 0-0-0
Rich Froman F 0-0-0
Tom Miller G 0-0-0

DENNISON RAILROADERS - 39

Don Cable F 6-7-19
Earl Finn F 1-1-3
Jim Gold C 3-1-7
Louis Saggio G 2-1-5
Don Wright G 2-0-4
Bill Dudgeon F 0-1-1
Cummings F 0-0-0
Sam Fausto G 0-0-0


Saturday, March 6, 1948
Harry Yockey, Sports Writer
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

48 - Sugarcreek-Shanesville Ousts Malvern 57-45 (3-5-48)

DOVER - The Malvern Green Hornets took a 2-0 lead over the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates (6-1) (16-8) last night, but Sophomore forward Jim Knox meshed a sucker shot and repeated with a set toss to put Head Coach Bill Ortt's cagers in front and they were never headed as they compiled quarter margins of 14-6, 28-19 and 38-30.  Senior center Don Miller and Knox tallied 19 and 13 points, respectively, to spark the victory, while George Matyas, Malvern's fine center, lead all scorers with 22 points.

Playing without regular Tom Deckman, who was ill, Malvern was expected to give the Pirates a close run, but after the initial quarter the Orttmen had complete control of the contest.  The Green Hornets passed wildly and had numerous bounce passes intercepted by the alert Pirates, who meshed their baskets from all angles.

A total of 44 personals were called by Referees Paul Schott and McCoy Mariner with 26 being assessed against Malvern.  Sugarcreek-Shanesville cashed 15 of 29 free throws, while the Hornets hit on 9 of 19.  Malvern lost sub forward Norm Burwell on personal fouls in the 3rd stanza and forward Jim Markino in the 4th when Junior forward Myron Beechy of the Pirates also went to the showers.

After the initial firing by Matyas and Knox, Miller and Burwell exchanged free tosses and Markino added another free throw to trim the Pirates' margin to 5-4, but a charity effort by Freshman Glen Zimmerman and baskets by Junior guard Clayton Deetz and Senior forward Don Hostetler, pushed the Orttmen's advantage to 10-4 and they held a comfortable lead the rest of the way.

SUGARCREEK-SHANESVILLE PIRATES - 57

Don Hostetler F 2-0-4
Jim Knox F 6-1-13
Don Miller C 6-7-19
Glen Zimmerman G 2-4-8
Clayton Deetz G 3-1-7
Myron Beechy F 2-2-6

MALVERN GREEN HORNETS - 45

Jim Markino F 0-2-2
Colombo F 0-0-0
George Matyas C 10-2-22
Summers G 4-0-8
Deckman G 0-1-1
Logan G 1-0-2
Geiger G 2-0-4
Pietrafese G 0-1-1
Ebner F 1-0-2
Norm Burwell F 0-3-3


Saturday, March 6, 1948
Harry Yockey, Sports Writer
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

48 - Midvale Destroys Berlin 74-47 (3-4-48)

DOVER - The Dover St. Joseph's Ramblers and Midvale Blue Devils advanced into the upper bracket finals of the Sectional Class B Tournament at Memorial Hall on Thursday night with the Ramblers gaining a 65-50 decision over the Carrollton Warriors and the Blue Devils scoring an easy 74-47 victory over the Berlin Blue Jays, Holmes County runners-up.

The Strasburg Tigers and Dennison Railroaders, Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates and Malvern Green Hornets, Carroll County Champions, will collide tonight in the lower bracket semi-finals with the 2 winners meeting Saturday to decide which quintet in this bracket will advance to the District Tournament at Steubenville.

Head Coach Eddie Young's Ramblers ran roughshod over the black and white of Carrollton and only in the waning minutes of the last period did the Carroll County quintet, formerly a Class A Club, threaten to pull close to St. Joseph's...final 65-50.

The Midvale Blue Devils (3-1) (23-3) had little difficulty in lacing the Berlin Blue Jays (19-7) after the 1st quarter.  In this canto, Junior forward Jack Ford, who turned in another brilliant performance in meshing 15 points, staged a scoring duel with guard Bruce Miller and center Bill Rottman of the Blue Jays.  The Blue Devils ace tallied 10 of his 15 points in this quarter to give Midvale a 16-11 margin at the end of the period.

In the 2nd period, Midvale made a rout of the game as Junior guard Dave Rennicker, who paced the Blue Devils with 17 points as Junior forward Jim Golder and Ford rfan wild to stake Head Coach Bill French's quintet to a comfortable 35-14 halftime lead.

From the 3rd stanza on, Berlin was helpless as Golder, Sophomore center Bob Sherrell, Junior guard Gene Byers and Rennicker shredded the Blue Jays' zone defense to score at will.  The Devils held a 55-32 3rd period margin.  Stan Miller, with 9 points, led Berlin point-makers.

MIDVALE BLUE DEVILS - 74

Jack Ford F 6-3-15
Bob De Mattio F 2-1-5
Jim Golder F 6-2-14
Bob Sherrell C 5-2-12
Dan Carlisle G 2-1-5
Gene Byers G 3-0-6
Dave Rennicker G 6-5-17

BERLIN BLUE JAYS - 47

Ruttman F 1-1-3
Bergen F 3-3-9
Stan Miller F 4-1-9
Bill Rottman C 0-2-2
Boyd C 0-7-7
Bruce Miller G 3-2-8
Troyer G 0-1-1
Engel G 0-1-1
Yoder G 3-1-7


Friday, March 5, 1948
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

48 - Right Down The Line

Thursday, March 4, 1948
The Daily Reporter

A TOTAL OF 6,483 FANS witnessed the 6 sessions of the Tuscarawas County Tournament and paid a total of $3,309.55 for the privilege of seeing their favorites perform, a statement issued today by County Superintendent W.E. Laws revealed.  Each of the 11 schools participating received a total of $185.  After expenditures were subtracted from the total receipts, the balance, was $2,166.50.  The schools will receive their $185 out of this balance, leaving a balance of $131.50 for the Tuscarawas County Athletic Association.

Largest expenditure items on the list was the $555.46 for federal admissions tax and the $300 for referees.  A total of $125 was paid to the City of Dover for rental on Memorial Hall and Tournament Manager W.E. Laws who received $75 for his services.  Printing of window cards, passes and programs cost $73.09, while other expenditures were also taken out of total receipts.

Attendance record for a single session was in 1944 when 1,728 persons paid to see the finals.  This year's largest session was the last which was attended by 1,428 fans.  A season attendance record was made in 1946 with a total of 7,043 paid admissions.  The season receipts record was set in 1946 with a total of $3,508.05.  Only admissions and sales of passes were included in the total receipts, however.

IN DEFEATING WALNUT CREEK Wednesday night in the 1st round of Sectional play at Memorial Hall, Dennison's Railroaders established themselves as contenders for the crown that Strasburg has been wearing for the past 2 years; although, neither the Railroaders or the Redbirds seemed to have enough to stop the Bengals march in the lower bracket.  Head Coach John Harmon's quintet might cause Strasburg some trouble Friday night.  Don Gable's 4 field goals represented only a part of the attempts the Railroader ace made and given a good night, this player will probably collect a higher total.  Lowell Zook of Walnut Creek, star of last year's Sectional and District meet, gave another brilliant exhibition of ball handling and marksmanship as his team suffered defeat and his mate, Dick Hostetler; although, benched by Head Coach Harold Wheaton for more than a quarter, looked like one of the best floor men in the meet.

HEAD COACH BILL ORTT'S Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates get the nod for one of the most improved teams in the county since tournament play began.  The Bucs completely outclassed a rugged Millersburg quintet last night and it was again the Big Three, Senior forward Don Miller, Sophomore guard Jim Knox and Freshman guard Glen Zimmerman, who sunk the Holmes County contenders.  Miller's 20 points, 10 of them from the free throw line, was high last night for the 6 teams.  Miller, Knox and Zimmerman, ranging in the front court, are a deadly trio and could oust Malvern, Carroll County Champions, Friday night.  If the Bucs get by this one and Strasburg eliminates Dennison, the Pirates will get another chance at the Bengals in the finals Saturday night in the lower bracket.

48 - Sugarcreek-Shanesville Rebuffs Millersburg 55-47 (3-3-48)

DOVER - The Tuscarawas County teams, the Dennison Railroaders and Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates, advanced into the 2nd round of the Sectional Class B Tournament with victories over the Walnut Creek Cardinals and Millersburg Knights at Memorial Hall on Wednesday night, while a 3rd county entry, the Dennison St. Mary's Blue Waves was eliminated by the Berlin Blue Jays, Holmes County runner-up, 60-48.

Playing before a crowd of 869 fans, Dennison upset favored Walnut Creek (16-5), a District representative last year, 55-51 in a rough battle in which a total of 35 personal fouls were called on both teams.  Dennison will make its next appearance Friday night against the Strasburg Tigers, tournament favorites.

For an entire half, the St. Mary's Blue Waves had an upset in the making as they led the favored Berlin Blue Jays (19-6), but Head Coach Ray Robbins' quintet faded in the last half as they lost 2 regulars via the foul route and the Holmes County team went on to win by a comfortable margin...60-45.

In downing the Millersburg Knights 55-47, Head Coach Bill Ortt's Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates (4-1) (15-8) continued to exhibit the same brand of sensational ball they showed in winning the Consolation Division finals of the county tournament last week.

After spotting the Knights a 12-10 first quarter lead, the Pirates roared back with their sharp-breaking game to take a 20-17 halftime margin.  With Senior forward Don Miller, Senior center Don Hostetler, Sophomore guard Jim Knox and Freshman guard Glen Zimmerman meshing field goals from the side and center court, the Bucs took a 44-28 3rd stanza lead and threatened to make a route of the game.

Late in the final canto, Coach Ortt pulled his regulars and sent in an entire Reserve team and it was not untill then that the Holmes Countyi combine was able to trim the Pirate margin.  Miller, with 5 doubledeckers and 10 free throws, led both quintets with 20 points, while Zimmerman followed up with 12 markers.  Norman of Millersburg's Norman was the only player to hit double figures as he canned 12 points for his team.

SUGARCREEK-SHANESVILLE PIRATES - 55

Clayton Deetz F 2-0-4
Don Miller F 5-10-20
Don Hostetler C 2-5-9
Jim Knox G 4-2-10
Glen Zimmerman G 5-2-12

MILLERSBURG KNIGHTS - 47

Clark F 3-2-8
Painter F 1-1-3
Hipp F 0-1-1
Hall F 3-1-7
Norman C 7-2-16
Ruttman G 1-1-3
Wachtel G 4-0-8
Weiss G 0-1-1


THURSDAY, March 4, 1948
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio