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
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