48 - Right Down The Line

Monday, March 22, 1948
Dover, Ohio

IF YOU WERE over in the Youngstown South field Saturday night you probably had the same impression we did.  As the minutes ticked away and one courageous Midvale rally after another failed to close the gap, you felt that, given just one break, the Blue Devils could have accomplished the impossible.  You probably came away with another impression, too, no matter what your partisan interests.  Those Midvale "mites" are a quality ball club.  They produced when the blue chips were down and the odds stacked the highest.  Selling them short would have been the gravest mistake a foe could have made and the few teams which did make this mistake discovered the error much too late.

It is no secret that many North Canton followers felt that their Vikings would romp as they pleased over Midvale on Saturday night.  Instead the Blue Devils nearly made history.  Their rapid fire play and pressing defense, which has opened the Strasburg Tigers, Dillonvale Night Riders, Middlebranch Diamonds and given them a season mark of 27-4 one of the best in the school's history, nearly succeeded again.  Had the Devils been able to cash in on 5 opportunities from the free throw line in the final canto, the story would probably not yet be ended.

Another thing, North Canton was hitting an uncanny number of their shots from the field in the 2nd quarter.  The Vikings rolled up 8 doubledeckers and a pair of free tosses in this quarter.  This above-average exhibition would never happen again probably.  Midvale made 16 of 56 attempts from the field, North Canton 21 of 61.  Even though defeated, Midvale need not apologize for anything.  They were 4 quarter laborers and in Senior guard Dan Carlisle, the "maneuvering midget" of the Blue Devil attack and Junior forward Jack Ford, a performer who should rate anybody's All-Ohio team, Midvale had a pair of the State's top cagers.  Next year the prospects are equally bright with all but Carlisle returning.

NOTE:  STRASBURG'S CLARENCE YACKEY LOOKING AT COLLEGES

Senior Clarence Yackey, the Strasburg Tigers brilliant All-Ohio center, was entertained on the Kentucky University campus Thursday, April 29th by Head Coach Adolph Rupp of the Champion Wildcats,  Yackey was one of 15 high school Seniors from Ohio, Indiana and Illinois invited to the Kentucky campus for workouts.

Others from this area who accepted the invitation were Roger Baker and Dick Westover of Canton South and Louis Metzger of Louisville.  Yackey was the tallest player in the group, towering at 6-6 and has also accepted invitations to visit Kent State, Bowling Green, Ohio State and Muskingum before the season closes.