55 - Right Down The Line

Tuesday, March 15, 1955
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio



THE TOURNAMENT TRAIL has blazed a path through Memorial Hall and after 4 consecutive weeks of the annual basketball wars, it will seem rather quiet here.  The excitement shifts elsewhere.  We have seen a few tournaments set up and run in the past and we would like to add our voice to those school officials and referees who have said that the tournaments here were run off in outstanding fashion this year.

W.E. LAWS - Memorial Hall Tournament Manager.


W. E. Laws and all of his assistants are to be congratulated for their work in running the meet as efficiently as they did.  There are many behind-the-scene actions necessary to make a tournament run smoothly.  These the fans always take for granted.

HAROLD EVERETT, Tuscarawas School Superintendent who had charge of the press box, kept everything going along smoothly there and those covering the contest had all the tools they needed.  We have seen other, more celebrated arenas and tourneys which do not offer half the services necessary.  We once covered a District Tournament game while standing in the crowd underneath a basket because there was no room at the press table.

Another year, we were relegated to a seat in the corner of an area right in the midst of the crowd, while unauthorized persons flooded the press section.  Then too, we go to many tournaments where the starting lineups are never furnished and one must hunt around until he can find someone with a list of who is who and what number he'll wear.  The services offered the press here by Laws and his assistants are better than we've seen in 90 percent of bigger and better equipped arenas, even those which offer free hot dogs and the like.  Personally we'd like something in the way of helping us with the coverage rather than free refreshment or soft chairs to relax in.

WE RECEIVED A LETTER this morning from Bill Jones, star athlete at Stone Creek High School for the past 4 years.  We're sure that Bill won't mind our using the letter here.  "Mr. Cicconetti...I wish to express my sincere appreciation to you for giving our team and me the nice write-ups you did.  I hope everything you stated in the Daily Reporter about me was true."  "I would like to say that it takes more than one man to make a good team.  Everything I have ever done in my high school career has been made possible because of the fellows on the team."

"I would also like to express my thanks to the sports editors and the coaches of Tuscarawas County for selecting me for the "All-County Team" and "All Tournament Team."  We would like to express our thanks to Bill, the Stone Creek Panthers and all of the county athletes for making our task much easier.  With the type of sports played in this area, the writing is much easier.

The Strasburg Tigers Jerry "Goose" Von Kaenel of Strasburg High School.

NOTE:  GOOSE ON 2ND TEAM ALL-OHIO SQUAD (Wednesday, March 16, 1955)

Jerry "Goose" Von Kaenel of the Strasburg Tigers was named to the 2nd team on the United Press All-Ohio Team which was released today.  The veteran Tiger Center barely missed being nominated on the 1st Five by 3 votes.  Dick Davis of the Tuscarawas Broncos, Bob Zontini of the Midvale Blue Devils and Jerry Haswell of the Strasburg Tigers were on the Honorable Mention list.

The UP's First 5 in the Class B ranks had:

Larry Huston - 6-6, of Savannah
Carter Howell - 6-5 of the Flushing Orioles
Rex Leach - 6-4 of the Vienna Mustangs
Virgil Thompson - 6-0 of Lockland Wayne
Ray Pryear - 6-7 of the Copley Indians

With Goose on the 2nd team were:

Clyde Evans of Rio Grande
Tom Boykin of the Xenia Woodrow Wilson Cadets
Harold Marx of Wyoming
Dave Barker of the Columbus St. Mary Rams

55 - Right Down The Line

Monday, March 14, 1955
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio



NATURAL ABILITY is not enough in any athletic contest.  Desire always plays a big part in any successful venture and this quality is one of the necessary tools a team must have to bring in a victory.  The 1954-55 Baltic Eagles Basketball Team had the desire during the tournaments just completed at Memorial Hall and its success story will long be remembered through the hears.

Future Baltic High School students will gaze upon the picture of Head Coach Jim Ross' team and dwell on the fact that these lads were the first in Baltic History to gain the District Tournament and go as far as the finals.  There have been good Eagle teams in recent years.  Some of these teams may have had more all-around ability, but none had more desire than the team which gave the Tigers' potent club a battle all the way to the finish Saturday night.

When Head Coach Ken Newlon of the Cats stated that the Eagles "had me sweating," he wasn't joking in the least.  The Flyers were never out of that game until the Strasburg began pulling away in the last 2 minutes.  We congratulated Baltic's Senior Errol Jacobs after the contest and "Jake" softly murmured his thanks and said - "I didn't want to finish 2nd best."

That's the spirit that kept Eagles moving at a fast clip right through the tournament.  The Flyers got a taste of defeat in their 1st outing when a team which they had beaten twice during the regular season turned the tables on them.  The Gnadenhutten Indians reached into the bottom of the bag and pulled out a fiery drive to set Baltic down in the last minutes of play.  That seemed to shake the Eagles' desire into the foreground and the Flyers were on their way.

THE TRAIL this Baltic team blazed through the tournament could be termed as one of "upsetting" power for the Eagles didn't seem to look upon what the dope sheet had in store for them.  They upset their way into the finals Saturday night and they were very much set on upsetting the kingpin Strasburg Tigers, too.  The Tuscarawas Broncos were the 1st victim of the Flyers "desire" and the Broncos were dropped unceremoniously from the county tournament.  Tusky was 8 points ahead with little more than a minute left in the regular session when Baltic caught fire and deadlocked the game in the last 10 seconds and then handily won in overtime.

That was only the beginning for the Eagles.  Gnaden a team with an equal amount of desire, forced the Flyers to the limit in the Consolation Division finals.  Baltic survived that and then came back to upend a good Dover St. Joseph Ramblers team that had a 10-point lead and appeared to be going away in the 2nd quarter.  The Big Prairie-Lakeville Bulldogs went down next with the fact that the Bulldogs had defeated them twice in the regular season discounted by the Eagles.  Then came the Flushing Orioles.

ONE THING was very outstanding in all of those important victories.  Each member of the Baltic team contributed to the balanced scoring attack and when part of the team was down, one man came up with a scoring punch that lifted the others back into the swing of things.  Fritz Syler, Jim Wallace and Jacobs, all of whom played their final basketball game for the Eagles Saturday night, were outstanding all the way.  Sophomore Glen Reidenbach doesn't have much size, but he commands a lot of authority on that floor.  Junior Jim Uher also came up with some blue chip performances and Junior George Regula was the jack of all trades, coming in when a strong lift was needed and never failing to provide that lift.  Senior Paul Armbrust came in with a particularly welcome stint in the St. Joseph's victory and was another of Baltic'a limelight.

THE OTHERS on the squad, Senior Don Kaser, Sophomore Jonas Miller, Senior Ron Huprich, also had a part in the Baltic success.  This has been a particular satisfying year for the Eagle basketball program with 3 new trophies going into the case, stationed just inside the front entrance to the school.  Two of those trophies, the Co-Sectional and District Runnerup awards, have no counterparts in the case.

Congratulations from this corner to Head Coach Jim Ross and all of his basketball players for a job well done.  You proved that teams can bounce back if it has the desire and is willing to put out 100 percent towards achieving victory.  Congratulations also to the Baltic Cheerleaders who won this year's county tournament award.  The trio of Priscilla Huprich, Marlene Lembright and Margene Young led the cheers which helped keep the Eagles driving towards victory..

As for Francis Lembright, the Manager who became a familiar sight on the Baltic bench as he shouted encouragement to the players and wrung his hands in anguish when things weren't going so good.  It's been a fabulous year for Baltic to remember.

55 - Strasburg District Tournament Champions For 1955 (3-12-55)

LOOKOUT FOR GOOSE.  The Strasburg Tigers' 6-4 Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel was caught in action as he grabbed a rebound off the defensive boards and ambled down the floor leading a fast break attack.  Racing along behind him is teammate Junior Will Rieger, while Junior George Regula (5) and Sophomore Glen Reidenbach ((3) of the Baltic Eagles flank the Strasburg Center.  Glen helps himself by sticking his tongue out.  (The Daily Reporter Photo)

TROPHY TIME.  Head Coaches Jim Ross (left) of the Baltic Eagles and Ken Newlon of the Strasburg Tigers exchange congratulations after Saturday night's Class B District Tournament finals.  Kneeling are Senior Jim Wallace (left) and 6-3 Senior Errol Jacobs, the Eagles' Co-Captains and Senior Gene Hensel of the Tigers.  The Bengals' Co-Captains, Senior Jerry Haswell and Senior Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel flank the coaches in the back row.  (The Daily Reporter Photo)

The Strasburg Tigers Senior Jerry Haswell.  Jerry scored 29 points while leading the Strasburg Tigers to an 87-70 victory and copping the 1955 District Championship.  His 29 markers totals 105 points for a 15.0 tournament average in 7 games.  (The Daily Reporter Photo)



DOVER - The Strasburg Tigers' Eastern District Class B Champions will launch their bid for further tournament honors at Kent State University's fieldhouse on Friday night at 7:45 when they tangle with the Boston Township Bulldogs (21-2) of Ssummit County.  The Tigers were placed opposite the Bulldogs in an open draw held at Kent yesterday with Vienna Mustangs (27-0) slated to face Liberty (24-4) in the other Northeastern Regional tilt at 9:00PM.

No advance ticket sale will be held in Strasburg due to the fact that there will be no Reserved seating.  All seats will be on a 1st come, 1st served basis in the spacious Kent Gymnasium  which will seat over 7,000 fans.  The doors will open at 5:30PM.  Strasburg earned the right to advance to the Regional Tournament Saturday night when the Tigers were forced to battle to the wire before subduing a stubborn Baltic quintet 87-70 at Memorial Hall.

Head Coach Ken Newlon's Strasburg Tigers (7-0) (25-2), who collected the Tiger's 6th District Crown in the history of the school and the 2nd in the last 3 years, had a fight on their hands before they were able to subdue the Baltic Eagles (7-2) (22-7), while a capacity crowd remained seated until the final buzzer.  The Eagles, picked as the underdog in the finals contest, had the Bengals reeling in the 2nd frame and forced the new Champions to battle every step of the way through the final half.

The Cats, evidently down at the start of the game, soon found that they would have to travel full tilt as the Flyers, despite an "ice cold" shooting exhibition in the opening quarter, roared back into the contest to run up a 3-point lead in the 2nd period.  Senior Jerry Haswell kept Strasburg rolling in the 1st stanza as he crashed 9 points through the nets to shoot the Tigers into a 9-point advantage.

It looked as though the Tigers would pull away despite the fact that the rest of the lineup couldn't hit, but Senior Errol Jacobs and little Sophomore Glen Reidenbach closed fast for Baltic and the period ended with the Bengals on top 17-13.  Haswell, playing his best contest of the tournament, continued to take charge for the Cats and whipped in 2 fast field goals with Junior Jim Kuecher stealing the ball and dribbling in for a layup to give Strasburg a 23-13 lead at the outset of the 2nd frame.

The Eagles were not to be counted out; however, and after a brief flurry by Senior Jim Wallace, Ridenbach and Senior Fritz Syler had trimmed the lead to 5 points, the Flyers soared past the Tigers's dazed crew to take a 30-28 advantage midway in the period.  The Bengals stopped the surge temporarily and vaulted back into the race, but with Wallace and Jacobs driving in for the Baltic, Strasburg couldn't get back into the lead until just before the quarter closed with Kuecher, Haswell and Senior Gene Hensel combining to bring in a 38-34 advantage at the half time intermission.

Kuecher, Haswell and Senior Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel, who had only 2 action shots in the 1st half as he missed shot after shot, put together a concerted drive in the 3rd stanza to offset the efforts of Wallace and Junior George Regula and the Tigers had a 62-50 advantage going into the stretch.  The Eagles Syler collected his 4th personal foul at the outset of the 3rd quarter and was forced out, but Regula's offensive surge offset his loss.  Jacobs went scoreless in the 3rd period; however, as the Flyers shifted tactics and elected to try it at long range.

Jacobs' rebounding in the 1st two quarters were the big advantage for Baltic as the Bengals usually got only one shot before losing possession.  Haswell and Goose tamed to take command of the boards in the last 2 periods and the Eagles' hopes were dimmed.  Jacobs' shot back into the scoring column in the final canto as did Reidenbach and the 2 teams staged a slam-bang scoring battle with the Flyers unable to get any closer than 9 points.

The Cat's cause was paced by Senior Gene Hensel, who canned 9 points in the outgoing quarter, with Junior Will Rieger, who came in to aid the Strasburg attack in the 3rd period after starter Sophomore Jerry Froman picked up his 4th personal foul, helping in the rebounding.  Baltic's outstanding effort was the big factor in keeping the contest a close one, while the Tigers appeared off the tremendous form they had showed in previous tournament outings.

Jacobs' great rebounding in the 1st two quarters kept Goose from having his usual devastating effect under the offensive Bengal boards and the Eagles remained in the running.  Haswell and Kuecher were the Cat's big guns in the scoring column with 29 and 20 points respectively; while Goose and Hensel each had 15. Wallace totaled 18, Jacobs 17, Reidenbach 15 and Syler 10 for the Flyers.

The defeat closed Baltic's most successful basketball campaign as Head Coach Jim Ross' charges finished with a 22-7 record and had the distinction of being the 1st quintet to carry the Eagle colors into the District tournament.  Strasburg moves into the Regional tournament jousts with a mark of 25-2, the same record it finished the season with last year after bowing to the Tuscarawas Broncos 52-49 in the finals at Brilliant.

STRASBURG TIGERS - 87

Jerry Haswell 13-3-29
Jim Kuecher 8-4-20
Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel 6-3-15
Jerry Froman 0-2-2
Gene Hensel 6-3-15
Will Rieger 1-4-6

BALTIC EAGLES - 70

Fritz Syler 4-2-10
Jim Wallace 5-8-18
Errol Jacobs 5-7-17
Jim Uher 2-0-4
Glen Reidenbach 7-1-15
George Regula 3-0-6
Paul Armbrust 0-0-0
Don Kaser 0-0-0

STRASBURG  17-38-62-87
BALTIC            13-34-50-70



Monday, March 14, 1955
Art Cicconetti, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

55 - Baltic-Strasburg Rundown

DOVER - The Strasburg Tigers will be favored to grab their 2nd Eastern Ohio Class B District Basketball Crown in 3 years when they face the rampaging Baltic Eagles at Memorial Hall tonight at 8.00.  The favorite's toga is worn by the Tigers by virtue of their 83-61 triumph over the Eagles on Flyers's floor midway in the regular season.

Since that time, Head Coach Jim Ross' Orange and Black have racked up 15 victories in 17 outings and have been playing outstanding ball since they were upset by the Gnadenhutten Indians 57-52 on the 2nd night of the county tournament jousts.  The Bengals boasting a 24-2 record in comparison with Baltic's 22-6 mark, has won 7 consecutive contests since losing to the Sandy Valley Cardinals 68-57 in the final week of the regular season campaign.

Head Coach Ken Newlon's powerful Cats have racked up an impressive tournament record on the Memorial Hall hardwood and the streak was capped by a record-shattering performance against the Yorkville Ductillites on Thursday night.  Strasburg's talented performers have averaged a tremendous 97.5 points per game in the 6 tourney victories thus far, while permitting the opposition to a 59.5 in that period of time.

The Tiger Reserves have played half as much as the starters in the last 3 contests with the undefeated 2nd string having chalked up nearly 4 complete quarters in those games.  Baltic has gained the District finals for the 1st time in the school's history and the Eagles have displayed a driving type of basketball that has meant the difference between victory and defeat.

The Flyers have averaged 71 points in 8 tournament contests, while permitting 64 to the opposition.  The Baltic path through the tournament has been one of constant alertness from the time the Eagles nipped the Sugasrcreek-Shanesville Pirates at the wire in their 1st game after being upset by the Indians.

The Flyers victory skein has been kept together through some tough scraps with only a 69-39 win over the Bolivar Cardinals standing out as the contest in which Baltic has been able to relax in the stretch.  The Eagles nipped Sugarcreek-Shanesville 63-59, edged past the Tuscarawas Broncos 75-71 in an overtime, nicked Gnadenhutten 68-62 for the County Consolation Division Title, outlasted the Dover St. Joseph Ramblers 84-75, nudged the Big Prairie-Lakeville Bulldogs 88-81 and then topped it off with a 71-68 win over the Flushing Orioles.

The probable starting lineups are almost evenly matched in the height department with both teams having displayed balanced attacks in recent contests.  Doors to Memorial Hall will open at 7:00.

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS

BALTIC EAGLES

6-2 Senior Jim Wallace at Forward
6-1 Senior Fritz Syler at Forward
6-3 Senior Errol Jacobs at Center
5-11 Junior Jim Uher at Guard
5-6 Sophomore Glen Reidenbach at Guard

STRASBURG TIGERS

6-1 Senior Jerry Haswell at Forward
5-11 Junior Jim Kuecher Jr. at Forward
6-4 Plus Senior Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel at Center
5-11 SophomoreJerry Froman at Guard
5-8 Senior Gene Hensel at Guard



Saturday, March 12, 1955
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

55 - Strasburg Jolts Yorkville...Sets Records 118-71 (3-10-55)

Junior Jim Kuecher (33) of the Strasburg Tigers and Senior Morris Kosikowski (14) of the Yorkville Ductillites waitS under the basket, while 6-4 Senior (Goose) Von Kaenel (44) of the Tigers goes up in the air for a shot with 6-5 Senior Henry Josefczyk (31) of the Ductillites attempting to block him.  Freshman Dom Di Napoli (24) of Yorkville moves in at right. (The Daily Reporter Photo)



DOVER - The Strasburg Tigers (6-0) (24-2) whose victory express gathered speed and power as the game progressed last night and when the decks were cleared the Tigers had racked up the Yorkville Ductillites (17-10) 118-71 and gained a berth in the Saturday night finals.  Head Coach Ken Newlon's smooth operating basketball machine rolled along at will to record a new Memorial Hall, District Tournament and Tuscarawas County scoring mark in garnering the 118 points.

The one-sided triumph assured an All-Tuscarawass County finals for the 2nd straight year with the Bengals and the Tuscarawas Broncos having battled in the Championship contest at Brilliant last year.  The Ductillites' hopes for an upset victory were dashed in the very 1st quarter when the Cats, after breaking a 5-5 deadlock, rocketed to 14-5 and 21-8 leads before the Ducats began catching fire.

Sophomore Jerry Froman's driving play kept the Orange and Black in the driver's seat in the opening period with Senior Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel and Senior Jerry Haswell each adding 5 points.  The slashing Strasburg attack hit a temporary snag near the close of the 1st frame and Senior Morris Kosikowski shot Yorkville back up into contention with 2 quick baskets as the score read 25-18 at the 1st stop.

Junior Ed Baran and Kosikowski combined to help shave the Tigers lead to 5 points, 29-24, in the 1st minute of the 2nd quarter, but the roof fell in with a resounding crash and the Ductillites hopes were buried under the powerful Bengal thrust.  The Cats roared away with the throttle wide open to amass a 40-24 advantage before Baran could hit from the corner.  That one goal ended the Ducats' scoring in the 2nd period and the talented Orange and Black once again accelerated their attack and whisked to a 51-26 half time lead.

Strasburg's powerful offense has been steadily gathering power throughout the tournament and last night the Tigers hit a new high as they scored from all over the court almost at will.  A 38-point spree by the Bengal's juggernaut in the 3rd stanza buried the Ducks' 22-points and the Cats went farther ahead 89-48 at the far turn.

Coach Newton sent his club into a semi-stall at the outset of the final canto, but this lasted very briefly before the Orange and Black racked up 6 points and the Varsity retired to the bench in favor of the Reserves.

Yorkville lost Junior Nick Gerolimos and Baran on personal fouls in the 3rd quarter with 6-0 Junior Jim Azzi going out in the 4th quarter.  Kuecher of Strasburg was also thumbed out on personals shortly before the 3rd stanza ended.  With 5 and a half minutes left in the contest, the Tiger Reserves took over and set the new scoring records and racked up a new high for the Bengals.

The 118 points broke a Memorial Hall high of 109 set by the Dover St. Joseph Ramblers' earlier and the tournament record of 102 set by the Tuscarawas Broncos a few years back.  The mark of 111 which the Broncos had set this season for the county was also cracked.

Froman was high scorer for the Bengals as he tossed in 26 markers and had a string of 8 consecutive free throws going into the 3rd quarter.  Four other Cats hit in douible figures with Goose getting 21, Kuecher tallying 18, Haswell collecting 15 and Senior Gene Hensel 13.  Senior Henry Josefczyk was the Duck's top scorer with 24, 12 of which came in the final stanza against the Strasburg Reserves.

The victory sends Strasburg into the District finals for the 3rd time in the last 3 years.

STRASBURG TIGERS - 118

Jerry Haswell 6-3-15
Jim Kuecher 6-6-18
Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel 8-5-21
Jerry Froman 9-8-26
Gene Hensel 3-7-13
Will Rieger 2-0-4
Bob Grimm 0-0-0
Don Weber 0-1-1
Lloyd Diebel 2-0-4
Woody Norris 0-5-5
Ron Gray 2-2-6
Bill Hensel 1-3-5

YORKVILLE DUCTILLITES - 71

Jim Azzi 2-0-4
Morris Kosikowski 3-8-14
Henry Josefczyk 9-6-24
Nick Gerolimos 1-0-2
Ed Baran 5-2-12
Carducci 3-2-8
Lollini 0-0-0
Vionci 0-0-0
Raush 0-0-0
Dom Di Napoli 0-5-5
Rungo 0-0-0

STRASBURG  25-51-89-118
YORKVILLE   18-26-48-71



Friday, March 11, 1955
Art Cicconetti, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

55 - Right Down The Line

Thursday, March 10, 1955
The Daily Reporter


THERE WAS ANOTHER CLOSE BALL GAME at Memorial Hall last night and once again - for the 11,000th time - who was blamed for the Flushing Orioles' defeat?  Why of course the referees naturally!  We heard one fan - not from the Orioles - go so far as to say that the referees deliberately reversed their tactics in the last half.  This fan had it all doped out that the refs favored Flushing in the 1st half and the Baltic Eagles in the last.

There were fouls missed!  We disagreed with calls made!  But then we did all during the season!  Not just last night!  Any way you slice it the game wasn't won or lost by the officials.

LET'S GIVE SOME CREDIT where credit is due.  We personally think it was a tremendous effort by a fighting Eagles ball club.  The Orange and Black has been playing some fiery ball of late and Baltic won last night on their own merits.  If one were to scan the game on movies - (unfortunately there are none available) - it wouldn't be very hard to spot the defensive lapses that permitted the Eagles to score a good many of its field goals.

Baltic came up with a "whale" of a scrap to turn in the victory.  They needed it to defeat a very good Orioles ball club which relied heavily upon the scoring potential of one man, 6-5 Senior Carter Howell.  The Eagles made quite a few free throw shots.  A total of 25.  But let's go back and notice that Baltic has been doing this right through the tournament.  They made 22 against the Big Prairie-Lakeville Bulldogs, 26 against the Dover St. Joseph Ramblers, 18 against the Gnadenhutten Indians, 23 against the Tuscarawas Broncos, 17 in the Bolivar Cardinals game, 23 in the win over the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates and only 10 in the defeat by the Indians.  Gnaden had 27 in that game.

IF THE STRASBURG TIGERS needed more incentive than they now have to win tonight's tilt against the Yorkville Ductillites, they need only remember that it was a Ductillite team that knocked a Strasburg quintet out of the District title at Steubenville back in 1950.  The Ducats hasn't had a team in the District meet since winning the title that year.  Strangely enough, Strasburg was the team that kayoed a strong Scio Panthers combination that had gone undefeated up to that point.

Scio's Bob Hugh and Glen Bower were potting anywhere from 30 to 50 points a game for the Panthers that year when the Tigers caught Scio at Steubenville and pinned them.  Senior Henry Josefczyk at 6-4 and Junior Ed Baran of Yorkville have been the "one two" punch that has kept the Ductillites in contention thus far through the tournaments.  The 2 are said to be the trigger men in the Ducats' attack.  Just how potent a wallop the duo packs remains to be seen.

STARS OF THE FUTURE.  That's what George Elford's 6th Street Basketball Players were called by many after they put on a dribbling, passing and shooting show at Memorial Hall prior to the Fllushing-Baltic exciter.  The 7 pint-sized basketball players staged a polished exhibition and convinced many of those present that they'll be a classy club when they get up into the high school ranks.

Only the future will tell whether this will be true, but Elford has done a great job in molding the lads into such a poised group.  If the lads can perform for a crowd like that now they'll not be rattled later on before such turnouts as have been attending Dover High games.  The lads are Don Fox, Curt Ray, Phil Brewer, Jake Hammond, Cal Woods, Bill Levengood and Jim Trotter.  Keep watching for those names, you may hear them again within the next few years.

55 - Baltic Trips-Up Flushing 71-68 (2-9-55)

Senior Jim Wallace (7) of the Baltic Eagles jumps high for a shot in the 4th quarter of last night's upset victory over the Flushing Orioles, while 6-1 Senior Jerry Rinkes 14) of the Orioles and an unidentified Flushing player attempt to stop the shot.  Junior 5-9 Charley Campanizzi (17) of the Orioles is at right, while Senior Fritz Syler of the Eagles is at left (8).  Wallace's 4th Canto drive sparked Baltic to victory.  (The Daily Reporter Photo)



DOVER - The battling Baltic Eagles (7-1) (22- 6) went into last night's tussle at Memorial Hall as the underdogs, but came out as the victors 71-68 in a terrific fight that kept the overflow crowd on the edge of its seats from start to finish.  The verdict was still in doubt until 6-3 Errol Jacobs of the Eagles iced the victory for 1st-Year Head Coach Jim Ross' charges with a free throw shot in the last 2 seconds of the game.

The triumph was a smashing one for the Orange and Black, in the District Tournament for the 1st time in the school's history.  Baltic battled from behind on several occasions and in the final count, it was a well-balanced team effort which helped bring in the victory.  For the Flushing Orioles (21-2), the defeat was a bitter one since the Orioles had a long winning streak ended in the District joust at Brilliant last year with another Tuscarawas County team, the Tuscarawas Broncos, taking a close victory..

The Eagles gained entrance into the finals of the District meet with the Orange and Black slated to play the winner of tonight's Strasburg Tigers-Yorkville Ductillites contest on Saturday night.  There was no room for relaxing in the tight contest as both teams battled for the victory with every weapon at their command.  Baltic's upset victory was achieved at the free throw line, but it was the drive and scrap of the entire squad which kept the O's from reversing the decision.

A total of 43 chances were awarded the Eagles at the charity stripe and the victors cashed in on 25 of those chances with 17 of these coming in the last half.  Flushing used an aggressive man-for-man defense that kept the Orange and Black bottled up for only a time as Baltic worked their way into the basket on drives.  The final canto was a thriller all the way with the lead changing hands no less than 10 times and the score deadlocked on 4 different occasions before the Eagles went out in front to stay 68-66 with only 30 seconds left in the tilt.

Senior Jim Wallace, who had scored only 3 free throws up until the final stanza, finally found himself in the stretch and poured in 5 field goals and a free throw shot to lead the Eagles' surge that swept on to victory.  Wallace's twisting jump shot was the one that put the Orange and Black ahead to stay and seconds later, Jacobs stepped up to the foul line and connected with 2 straight shots to give Baltic a 70-66 advantage with but 7 seconds to play in the game.

Senior Jerry Rinkes of the Orioles gave the O's a faint hope when he pumped a push shot through the nets with 2 seconds left to go, but once again 6-5 Senior center Carter Howell, whose tremendous offensive play kept Flushing in contention throughout the fray, lunged out in a desperate attempt and fouled Jacobs.  The Eagles ace stepped up to the free throw line and made one of 2 attempts to ice the victory with a scant 2 seconds remaining on the scoreboard clock.

With Howell leading the Oriole attack all the way through the game, the O's piled up a 27-23 edge in field goals and made 14 of 19 chances at the foul line.  The Flushing dynamo tallied 32 points as he set the pace for his mates, but the high total was not enough to overcome the balanced Orange and Black attack which was centered around 5 players with Jacobs' 22 rating as high.

With Howell starting off at a swift clip, the Orioles whipped away to an 8-1 lead in the opening minutes of the 1st quarter as Baltic exhibited tightness and "stage fright."  It didn't take long for the tightness to wear off; however, and with Jacobs leading the way on 4 field goals, the Eagles roared back into contention and took the lead just before the period ended with Senior Fritz Syler connecting from close in.

The Orange and Black's 20-19 advantage soon disappeared at the outset of the 2nd quarter, but Baltic bounced back to take a 5-point advantage midway in the frame before Howell, unheard from in the early stages of that canto, turned on the drive and swept Flushing to a 37-32 half time advantage.  Little Sophomore Glen Reidenbach displayed an accurate aim at the free throw line in the 3rd period and Baltic began picking away at the Orioles' advantage and once again sprinted into the lead 50-49 at the end of the quarter.

The O's lost the services of Junior forward Al Di Pietro with 4 and a half minutes left in the 3rd stanza and Senior 5-9 Willie Diosi was whistled out with 6:15 left in the final period, but the Oriole subs came in to take up the slack and keep the battle glowing red-hot down the stretch.  Syler was ushered out of the contest for the Eagles with 2 minutes and 30 seconds left in the game as Flushing took advantage of the chance and connected for 3 points to go ahead 63-61.

A total of 27 personal fouls were called on the Orioles, while the Orange and Black was assessed 15 in the contest with 11 of these tagged on Baltic in the 1st half as Jacobs and Wallace both were taken out in the 2nd quarter when they were charged their 3rd personals.  Seventeen personals were called on the O's in the final half.

BALTIC EAGLES - 71

Glen Reidenbach 2-8-12
Paul Armbrust 0-1-1
George Regula 1-1-3
Jim Wallace 5-3-13
Fritz Syler 3-4-10
Jim UKher 3-4-10
Errol Jacobs 9-4-22

FLUSHING ORIOLES - 68

Willie Diosi 2-0-4
Litten 1-0-2
Jerry Rinkes 4-0-8
Al Di Pietro 3-2-8
Charlie Campanizzi 4-3-11
Purtiman 0-0-0
Floyd Brown 1-1-3
Carter Howell 12-8-32
Burgins 0-0-0

BALTIC        20-32-50-71
FLUSHING  10-37-49-68



Thursday, 3-10-55
Art Cicconetti, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

55 - The Strasburg Tigers-Yorkville Ductillites Rundown

DOVER - The Strasburg Tigers will face a fast-improving Yorkville Ductillites ball club on Thursday night when the Tigers open their bid for their 2nd District Title in 3 years in the Class B District Tournament at Memorial Hall.  Head Coach Ken Newlon's charges will be tagged as favorites over the river valley Ductillites, who have been showing vast improvement in late season contests.

The Ducats, Champions of Jefferson County, has height and scoring power to recommend its chances with 6-4 Senior Henry Josefczyk leading the parade in both departments.  The lanky Yorkville center has tallied 704 points in games to date with flashy Ed Baran, 5-11 Junior forward, next in the scoring line with 546 markers.

Expected to be paired at the forward post with Baran is 6-foot Senior Morris Kosikowski, who has tallied 244 points in games thus far.  Jim Azzij, 6-0 Junior and Nick Gerolomis, 5-6 Junior, are expected to hold down the guard berths against the Bengals.  The 2 play-makers have tallied 113 and 129 points respectively thus far this year.  Sixth man on the Ductillite squad is Don Di Napoli, 6-0 Freshman.  The season records of both teams are as follows:

STRASBURG TIGERS (23-2)

Port Washington 88-53 W
Bolivar 74-29 W
Dundee 77-33 W
Sugarcreek-Shanesville 54-32 W
Tuscarawas 68-58 W
Midvale 73-53 W
Mineral City 95-42 W
Baltic 83-61 W
Scio 89-28 W
Gnadenhutten 76-56 W
Pleasant City 63-50 W
West Lafayette 73-76 L
Millersburg 71-43 W
Bolivar 89-37 W
Killbuck 61-37 W
Stone Creek 83-61 W
Berlin 69-35 W
Sugarcreek-Shanesville 74-37 W
Sandy Valley 57-68 L
Midvale 97-93 W

COUNTY TOURNAMENT

Port Washington 87-46 W
Tuscarawas 85-73 W
Midvale 91-65 W

SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT

Millersburg 89-68 W
Dennison 85-36 W

DISTRICT TOURNAMENT

Yorkville Ductillites



YORKVILLE DUCTILLITES (17-9)

Brilliant 52-42 W
Steubenville Central 67-65 W
Shadyside 70-91 L
Bellaire St. John's 76-74 W
Dillonvale 69-78 L
Bridgeport 68-84 L
Brilliant 48-70 L
Mt. Pleasant 81-69 W
St. Clairsville 60-63 L
Wayne 74-53 W
Dillonvale 51-53 L
Bellaire St. John's 67-96 L
Flushing 69-87 L
Adena 81-75 W
Sherrard 99-75 W
Mt. Pleasant 62-50 W
Bridgeport 96-93 W
Sherrard 112-58 W
Smithfield 61-56 W
Shadyside 81-84 L

COUNTY TOURNAMENT

Mt. Pleasant 75-57 W
Wayne 85-56 W
Brilliant 63-55 W
Adena 63-58 W

SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT

Holloway 72-71 W
Adena 75-70 W

DISTRICT TOURNAMENT

Straburg Tigers



Wednesday, March 9, 1955
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

55 - The Baltic Eagles-Flushing Orioles Rundown

DOVER - The Flushing Orioles, Champions of Belmont County, will be tagged as the favorites to defeat the Baltic Eagles when the 2 teams collide in the opener of the Eastern Ohio Class B District Basketball Tournament at Memorial Hall Wednesday night at 8:00.  Powered by their high-scoring center Carter Howell, the Orioles have gone through 20 straight games without a defeat and boast an overall record of 21-1.

Last year, the Orioles went into the 1st contest of the District meet against the Tuscarawas Broncos with an undefeated record and lost a one-point decision to the Broncos, who eventually went on to capture the District toga.  Flushing has not been defeated this year since the 2nd game of the season when Old Washington of Guernsey County turned the trick by a 53-48 count.

Since that time, the Orioles have whipped past all opponents with comparative ease except for the final tussle in the Sectionals when Howell's push shot from far back won the game over the Cadiz Cardinals 60-58 just before the final buzzer.  Howell, 6-5 Senior, is one of the leading scorers in Ohio and has totaled 873 points in the 22 games to date.  The lanky Black Center has been the big gun for Flushing all through the season.

The remainder of the lineup has 2 veterans.  Jerry Rinkes, 6-1 Senior, is the only other Orioles' player in the regular lineup to go over the 6-foot mark with Floyd Brown, 6-1 Junior, also topping the high level.  Rinkes, who has scored 168 points, is expected to share the duties at guard with the other vet, Charlie Campanizzi, 5-9 Junior, who has a scoring total of 200 points.

At the forwards for Head Coach Waler Bahorak's outfit will be Willie Diosi, 5-9 Senior and Al Di Pietro, 5-10 Junior, who has tallied 265 and 223 points respectively.  Records of Baltic and Flushing are as follows:

BALTIC EAGLES 21-6

Walnut Creek 68-48 W
Fresno 62-49 W
Stone Creek 83-65 W
Roscoe 71-54 W
Bolivar 63-38 W
Midvale 71-72 L
Big Prairie-Lakeville 65-66 L
Gnadenhutten 59-52 W
Millersburg 70-44 W
Strasburg 61-53 L
Big Prairie-Lakeville 63-68 L
Plainfield 70-32 W
Dundee 71-32 W
Gnadenhutten 76-63 W
Sugarcreek-Shanesville 54-47 W
Stone Creek 69-49 W
Port Washington 50-61 L
Killbuck 65-53 W
Fresno 77-55 W
Mineral City 95-57 W

COUNTY TOURNAMENT

Gnadenhutten 52-57 L
Sugarcreek-Shanesville 63-59 W
Bolivar 69-39 W
Tuscarawas 75-71 W OT
Gnadenhutten 68-62 W

SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT

Dover St. Joseph's 84-75 W
Big Prairie-Lakeville 88-81 W

DISTRICT TOURNAMENT

Flushing Orioles



FLUSHING ORIOLES 21-1

New Athens 69-47 W
Old Washington 48-53 L
Centerville 79-57 W
Bethesda 91-66 W
Freeport 78-61 W
Belmont 112-81 W
Jewett 75-68 W
Lafferty 92-51 W
Holloway 69-63 W
New Athens 118-54 W
Mt. Pleasant 64-53 W
Yorkville 87-63 W
Lafferty 88-47 W
Bethesda 83-73
Holloway 84-63 W
Belmont 94-58 W
Centerville 95-70 W
Hopedale 95-77 W
Jewett 80-51 W

COUNTY TOURNAMENT

Bethesda 97-65 W
Holloway 75-52 W

SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT

Cadiz 60-58 W

DISTRICT TOURNAMENT

Baltic Eagles



Tuesday, March 8, 1955
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

55 - Strasburg Slams Dennison 85-36 (3-7-55)

Senior Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel of the Strasburg Tigers.  Goose led the Tigers to an awesome 85-36 victory that destroyed the Dennison Railroaders.  Jerry added 22 points to his 5 tournament games for a total of 135 markers which gives him a game average of 23.0 points per contest.



DOVER - The Baltic Eagles (21-6) will meet the Flushing Orioles (21-1) in the 1st game of the Eastern Ohio Class B District Basketball Tournament at Memorial Hall on Wednesday night at 8:00 with the Strasburg Tigers (23-2)  facing the Yorkville Ductillites (17-9) at 8:00 on Thursday night.  The 2 winners in the Wednesday and Thursday night contest collide Saturday night for the District Championship and the right to advance to the Regional Tournament.

The Tigers will be making its 3rd consecutive appearance in the District Tournament, while the Eagle cagers set a new school record in advancing past the Sectional Tournament for the 1st time in Baltic history.  The Flyers Saturday night took a long lead and then fought off a determined Big Prairie-Lakeville Bulldog rally to win 88-81, while the powerful Bengal combination had an easy night in crushing the Railroaders 85-36.

Advance ticket sales will be held at each of the 4 schools involved in the District meet with the adult tickets selling for 75 cents and the student Ducats going for 50 cents.  Tickets at the box office will all be 75 cents.  Doors will open at 7:00 on each night of the meet managed by W.E. Laws , Tuscarawas County School Superintendent.

The Strasburg Tigers (5-0) (23-2), once again flattening an opponent expected to make the contest interesting, turned on the power in the 2nd frame of the final Sectional Tournament contest and pulled far out in front of the Dennison Railroaders (13-9) with both teams using Reserves in the final canto.  The Railroader's strategy of holding the ball for a good shot kept the score down in the 1st quarter, but the Roaders, who couldn't hit from the field, were without rebounding power under the boards and the strategy failed to work.

The Tigers zipped away to a 7-0 lead despite the fact that the talented Bengals were missing some easy layup shots.  It took the Trainmen more than 4 minutes to dent the scoring column in the initial period with Senior Carl Ludwig connecting on a one-hand push from just outside the key.  Senior Jerry Haswell, who was left to shoot as Dennison tightened their defense under the boards to stop Senior Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel, led the Cats' 1st stanza assault as the Orange and Black moved out to a 15-6 advantage.

Again in the 2nd quarter the power-packed and evenly-balanced Strasburg machine moved away quickly as Head Coach Ken Newlon's quintet zipped to a 28-6 lead with the Railroaders scoring after 4 minutes had been played.  Sophomore Al Kennedy connected for that shot on a long one from out front of the Tiger defense and the game settled down into a slow-moving affair with the Bengals out ahead 38-14 at the half time intermission.

The Roaders couldn't stop the Cat attack in the 3rd period as Goose hit for 11 points, Junior Jim Kuecher 7 and Senior Gene Hensel for 6 and Strasburg pulled away to a 42-point advantage 66-24 at the far turn.  The Tiger Reserves took over in this quarter and continued to hike the margin as Head Coach Chuck Lorenz of Dennison began to insert his Reserves and experimented with different combinations of underclassmen.

The Bengal Reserves added 7 points to the overall margin and the Cats came away with one of its most one-sided triumphs of the season against a respected Railroaders Team that had just defeated the Midvale Blue Devils 76-68 in the tournament.  All 5 of the Strasburg starters hit for double figures with Von Kaenel collecting 22 markers to set the pace.  Haswell, Kuecher each had 12, while Hensel and Sophomore Jerry Froman, whose rebounding and ball-handling again sparkled, each getting 10.

Kennedy, whose shots from out front helped Dennison' attack, was high with 12.

And so the Strasburg Tigers move on to the District Tournament.

STRASBURG TIGERS - 85

Jerry Haswell 5-2-12
Jim Kuecher 5-2-12
Jerry (Goose) Von Kaenel 9-4-22
Gene Hensel 5-0-10
Jerry Froman 4-2-10
Will Rieger 2-2-6
Lloyd Diebel 1-0-2
Bill Hensel 2-1-5
Don Weber 1-0-2
Bob Grimm 0-3-3
Ron Gray 0-0-0
Woody Norris 0-0-0

DENNISON RAILROADERS - 36

Gary Page 0-1-1
Gary Wright 4-0-8
Jerry Hill 0-5-5
Al Kennedy 5-2-12
Carl Ludwig 1-0-2
Chuck Polen 2-2-6
Bill Cummings 0-0-0
Ben Nardi 0-0-0
Cargnel 0-0-0
Tom Maitland 0-0-0
Myrtle Murray 0-1-1
Dick Trolio 0-1-1

STRASBURG   15-38-66-85
DENNISON        6-14-24-36



Monday, March 7, 1955
Art Cicconetti, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

NOTE:  Art Cicconetti's RIGHT DOWN THE LINE

AT THE CLASS B DISTRICT here in Dover, the possibility of another All-Tuscarawas County Championship game is very distinct.

The Flushing Orioles (21-1), powered by the highly-touted Carter Howell, will be tagged as the favorite against the Baltic Eagles (21-6) on Wednesday night, but from what we've seen of the Eagles in the tournament up to now. the decision could very easily go the other way.  When Baltic plays the all-out aggressive ball game it did in the early and late stages of the Big Prairie game and in the stretch against the Dover St. Joseph Ramblers, any team will have a hard time beating the Eagles.  Baltic has all-around scoring punch and the rebounding power to give the Orioles its 2nd defeat of the campaign.  It could happen.

THE STRASBURG TIGERS (23-2), on the other hand, appears to have too much for the Yorkville Ductillites (17-9) even though the Ducats have a 6-5 man to match the Goose's (Jerry Von Kaenel) towering height under the basket.  The Jefferson County Champions haven't impressed thus far and they appear to be one year away from being a polished club.

The tournament trail for the Tigers has been a blazing one up to this point and who can say what will happen along the way.  The Bengals need only play the type of ball they have been showing thus far and the victory will be in the can.