39 - Strasburg Wins 17th Annual Tuscarawas County Class B Basketball Tournament (2-25-39)

If you wonder why competition in the county league is tough during the entire season as well as the tournament, take a look at the above picture, for here's the pay-off.  The 4 boys pictured above, Bill Stevenson of the Midvale Blue Devils, Earl Crites of the Gnadenhutten Indians, Maurice Bayer of the Strasburg Tigers and Manager Paul Johns of the Tuscarawas Broncos received all the trophies and medals on the table Saturday night.  Midvale won the runner-up trophy and medals, Gnaden won the Sportsmanship Trophy, Strasburg won the League and Tournament Championship trophies and medals and Tusky won the Consolation Trophy.


DOVER - The Strasburg Tigers won their 8th Tuscarawas County Class B Basketball Championship and the Midvale Blue Devils and Tuscarawas Broncos qualified along with the Tigers for Sectional Tournament play this week as the 17th Annual County Basketball Tournament ended at Memorial Hall Saturday night.  A crowd of over 1,500 fans packed the big hall to watch county League ball at its best...and it was far superior Saturday night to any other time in the tournament.

Strasburg, League Champion and loser of only one game during the current season, won a clean-cut victory over Midvale in the final game by a score of 45-33 and Tusky, coming from far behind, edged Gnaden 35-34 in a thrilling battle for Consolation Tournament honors.  The double Championship for 9th-year Head Coach Paul M. Roby's team...Strasburg's 5th "double" under Roby since 1930...added 2 more trophies to the already overflowing display cases at Strasburg High School.

Presentations saw the Tigers take the Championship Trophy, given by The Daily Reporter and the regular League Trophy, donated by E. Fienberg and Company.  In addition, the Strasburg Tigers all received medals furnished by Walter E. Lieser Inc.  Midvale received the Runner-Up Trophy, given by Sanitary Milk and medals furnished by Godfrey Electric, while Tusky received the Consolation Trophy furnished by the S. Toomey Company.

A 5th award, the Sportsmanship Trophy awarded for regular season League play went to Gnaden, coached by Ed Sears in his 2nd year.  The trophy, given by The Daily Times, was awarded on a merit system with school officials and referee judging.  County Superintendent W.E. Laws made the presentations which were under direction of Tournament Manager A.C. Bahler of Sugarcreek.

Although Strasburg won the tournament title Saturday night in a seemingly easy manner after a close 1st half, the Burgers were hard-pressed several times during their other 3 games at the joust.  The Tigers defeated the Bolivar Cardinals 29-24, Gnadenhutten 26-19 and edged the Dundee Bulldogs 28-26 to reach the finals, while Midvale beat the Baltic Eagles 54-32 and Tuscarawas 34-30 to reach the final game.

An unusual feature of the final game was the clean play of the 2 teams...only 11 personal fouls being called on each by Referees "Fizz" Miller and Vic Schreiner and still more unusual was the fact that not one personal foul was called in the 3rd period.  The work of 2 Strasburg players, Senior forward Maurice Bayer and Senior guard Blake Roush and Senior center Big Bill Stevenson of Midvale was outstanding in the game, the 3 collecting a combined total of 44 of the 78 points scored.

Bayer handled his position to near-perfection, dumping in 8 field goals and 3 free throws for 19 points, while Roush, specializing on quick breaks and follow-in shots counted for 12 markers on 5 field goals and 2 free throws.  Stevenson, well-bottled by the Strasburg crew and carrying much of his team's load, still was good enough to shoot and tip in 6 field goals and a foul toss for 13 points to lead tournament scoring.  He scored 55 points in 3 games.

The Strasburg Tigers (4-0) (46-9) opened the scoring and led in the 1st period, but the Midvale Blue Devils (2-1) (26-14) matched and overcame the lead before the Tigers went to work again and the quarter ended in an 8-8 tie.  The 2nd quarter saw both teams warm up and keep the net singing as they matched basket for basket in a thrilling display of speed, but the Tigers were ahead 21-19 at  intermission.

The Blue Devils, which was doing a good job of penetrating the Strasburg zone defense in the 1st half, found itself checked at every turn in the 3rd stanza and fell behind 31-25 at the quarter's end.  Then in the final period, the Tigers turned on the heat, looking impressive for the 1st time during the tournament as they showered the basket with field goals from every angle and when it was over they had scored 14 points to 8 for Midvale.

STRASBURG TIGERS - 45

Maurice Bayer F 8-3-19
Loren Miller F 0-2-2
Lloyd "Mule" Haas C 2-0-4
Bob Dreher G 3-1-7
Blake Roush G 5-2-12
Fred Yenny G 0-1-1

MIDVALE BLUE DEVILS - 33

Bob Swinderman F 3-2-8
Frank Morrison F 2-1-5
Bill Stevenson C 6-1-13
Bob Baldwin G 2-1-5
Jerry Young G 1-0-2


Monday, February 27, 1939
John Stratton, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

THE DAILY REPORTER ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS

1ST TEAM

FORWARD - Maurice Bayer (Strasburg Tigers)
FORWARD - Dick Machan (Dundee Bulldogs)
CENTER - Bill Stevenson (Midvale Blue Devils)
GUARD - Blake Roush (Strasburg Tigers)
GUARD - Bill Arthurs (Tuscarawas Broncos)

2ND TEAM

FORWARD - Bob Miller (Gnadenhutten Indians)
FORWARD - Earl Johnson (Tuscarawas Broncos)
CENTER - Lloyd "Mule" Haas (Strasburg Tigers)
GUARD - Loyal Peterman (Dundee Bulldogs)
GUARD - Justin Huth (Bolivar Cardinals)

HONORABLE MENTION

Glenn Regula (Baltic Eagles)
Jim Huffman and Bud Ross (Bolivar Cardinals)
Earl Crites, Dean Mills and Warren Parrish (Gnadenhutten Indians)
Bob Baldwin and Bob Swinderman (Midvale Blue Devils)
Bob Osbourne (Mineral City Tigers)
Henry Linard (Port Washington Purple Riders)
Wayne Kughler and Ed Lorenz (Stone Creek Golden Panthers)
Bob Dreher and Loren Miller (Strasburg Tigers)
Bob Becker (Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates)

SECTIONAL THURSDAY NIGHT 3-2-39

Strasburg Tigers vs Millersburg 7PM
Midvale vs Sherrodsville 8PM
Tusky vs Holmesville 9PM

SECTIONAL FRIDAY NIGHT 3-3-39

Dennison vs Berlin 2pm
WINNER Strasburg-Millersburg vs WINNER Dover St. Joseph 8PM

SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT CLASS B RECORDS

Berlin Blue Jays 23-3
Dennison Railroaders 14-5
Dover St. Joseph Ramblers 6-13
Holmesville Goldenbears 10-5
Midvale Blue Devils 15-7
Millersburg Knights 9-8
Sherrodsville Rockets 19-3
Strasburg Tigers 20-1
Tuscarawas Broncos 17-4

NOTE:  Attendance at the county's 17th Annual Class B Basketball League Tournament, which ended at Memorial Hall Saturday night broke all existing records, A.C. Bahler of Sugarcreek, Tournament Manager, revealed today.  Semi-final games, played Friday night, put over the event Bahler revealed, drawing about 1,500 paid admissions, the biggest single session in the history of the event.

Saturday afternoon, 200 paid to see the Consolation semi-finals and Saturday night 1,230 paid to see the finals.  Total unofficial figures for the 2 week-ends of play is 4,996 compared with 4, 977 in last year's record attendance.

NOTE 2:  Frank Baumholtz of Midvale, Ohio University basketball star, showed clean heels to Toledo University's famous-Chuck Chuckovitz Saturday night when the two met for the 1st time this season in a scoring duel at Athens.  Baumholtz hit the hoop with 9 field goals and 5 free throws for a total of 23 points and sparked the Bobcats to a 77-46 victory.  Meanwhile, Chuckovitz, leading scorer in the nation on an average points basis, was stopped with 6 field goals and 5 free tosses for 17 points.

Jimmy Reiser of New Philadelphia tallied 3 points for Ohio Wesleyan as the Bishops wound up the season defeating Miami 23-19.  The victory gave the Bishops a record of 16-9 for the season.

Big Bill Sattler of Mineral City, playing with Ohio State in a Big Ten game against Wisconsin, tallied 5 points as the Buckeyes won 46-38.

NOTE 3:  Frank Baumholtz (The Midvale Marvel), sensational member of the Ohio University basketball team, pushed his season's scoring total of 298 points for 19 games last night when he collected 11 markers as the Bobcats were knocked out of the Ohio Conference race by the Dayton University Flyers, chalked up a 44-35 upset victory against Athens.

Baumholtz scored 4 field goals and 3 free throws to pace the Ohio attack.  Ray Blickensderfer of Gnadenhutten, also a member of the Ohio University team, scored 4 points.

The Midvale star, leading scorer in the Conference, has tallied 92 points in League play, averaging over 13 points a game.  (Wednesday March 1, 1939 - The Daily Reporter, Dover, Ohio)

39 - Tuscarawas Broncos Wins 6th Annual Consolation Tournament (2-25-39)

Tuscarawas Broncos Senior Forward Earl Johnson hit for 13 points (4 field goals and 5 free throws) in helping to corral the Gnadenhutten Indians 35-34 in a last moment victory.


DOVER - The Gnadenhutten Indians (3-2) (20-21) proved the toughest team of the tournament in its final game losing a 7 point lead in the last-three minutes as Head Coach Charmis Davis' Tuscarawas Broncos (3-1) (13-19) took the Consolation Championship by a 35-34 score.  For thrilling basketball the game was enough to satisfy any fan's desire for it was a story book finish that Tusky won.

Both teams played fast and smart ball all the way, the score being tied at 7-7 for the 1st period of play with the Broncos grabbing a 14-13 advantage at the half and Gnaden forging into a 24-22 lead at the 3rd stanza.  At the start of the 4th quarter Gnaden found itself for the 1st 5 minutes and with substitute Senior forward Warren Parrish leading the attack rolled up a 33-26 lead with less than 4 minutes to go.

But, the Indians couldn't keep possession of the ball after that.  Tuscarawas rallied to score 6 points on a basket and 4 free throws to cut the lead to 34-32 with slightly more than 2 minutes remaining.  Senior guard Bob McDonald knotted the count with a close-in shot after a clever play and Earl Johnson counted a foul as the Broncos led 35-34 with one minute to go and Gnaden; although, it tried desperately to score, was eliminated.

Tuscarawas won the game on free throw shots the box score reveals, when they counted 11 of 20 tosses, while Gnadenhutten made 10 of 18 free throws.  The Indians scored 12 field goals as did the Broncos.

Leading the scoring for Tusky was Senior forward Earl Johnson who dumped in 13 points, but Gnadenhutten's Parrish was high scorer as well as capturing game honors for the evening with 14 points, made on 4 field goals and 6 free throws.

TUSCARAWAS BRONCOS - 35

Earl Johnson F 4-5-13
Earl Myers F 1-2-4
Fred Blackstone C 4-1-9
Clarence Rolli G 1-1-3
Bob McDonald G 1-2-4
Bill Arthurs C 1-0-2
Les Johnson G 0-0-0

GNADENHUTTEN INDIANS - 34

Bob Miller F 3-2-8
Dean Mills F 1-0-2
Earl Crites C 2-2-6
Charles Kail G 2-0-4
Earl Johnson G 0-0-0
John Metzger G 0-0-0
Warren Parrish F 4-6-14
Ray Kennedy F 0-0-0
Dallas Crites G 0-0-0


Monday, February 27, 1939
John Stratton, Sports Writer
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

39 - Gnaden Burns Dundee 39-25 (2-25-39)

Gnadenhutten Indians Senior Forward Bob Miller came up with game honors once again by hitting the hoops for 17 points (8 field goals and a free throw), his highest game total of the tournament, to lead the Indian victory of the Dundee Bulldogs 39-25.  Miller now has a total of 46 points in the county tournament.


DOVER - In the 2nd game on Saturday between the Gnadenhutten Indians (3-1) (20-20) and the Dundee Bulldogs (1-2) (13-22), the Indians had a relatively easy victory over the Bulldogs 39-25.  Gnaden's road to the Consolation Tournament started with a an easy triumph over the Stone Creek Golden Panthers 39-21, a loss to the talented Strasburg Tigers 26-19, and a surprising 20-point victory over the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates 46-26.  Dundee won their 1st game over the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates 27-25 and then was edged by the Mighty Strasburg Tigers 28-26.

The Indians showed no concern as they ran wild over the Bulldogs 39-25.  Whatever defense Dundee showed in the Strasburg game, was nowhere to be found in this contest.  Gnadenhutten Senior forward Bob Miller scored 17 points, with Senior guard Charles Kail dropping in another 7 points as did Senior forward Warren Parrish.  Dundee's Senior guard Dick Machan continued to lead his team as he swished the nets for 14 points on 7 field goals, while his teammate center Denver Smith contributed 6 markers.  Although 4th-year Head Coach Bob Lanzer's team ended up in 6th place in the League (5-5), his cagers in the tournament played extremely well and their outlook for the next year appears promising.  Gnaden's 2nd-year Head Coach Ed Sears' team went 6-4 and was in 4th place in the League.  In the tournament his cagers has shown great power in 3 out of 4 of the their games.

GNADENHUTTEN INDIANS - 39

Bob Miller F 8-1-17
Dean Mills F 1-0-2
Earl Crites C 1-2-4
Charles Kail G 3-1-7
Earl Johnson G 1-0-2
John Metzger G 0-0-0
Warren Parrish F 2-3-7

DUNDEE BULLDOGS - 25

Dick Machan F 7-0-14
Bronco Jones F 1-1-3
Denver Smith C 2-2-6
V. Fruchey G 0-0-0
Loyal Peterman G 1-0-2
Victor Smith G 0-0-0


Monday, February 27, 1939
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

39 - Tusky Sends Bolivar Home 36-29 (2-25-39)

Tuscarawas Broncos Senior Forward Earl Johnson blasted the nets for 17 points and game honors in leading his team to victory over the Bolivar Cardinals 36-29.


DOVER - First game out of the box on saturday was between the Tuscarawas Broncos (2-1) (12-19) and the Bolivar Cardinals (2-2) (23-18).  To get to the Consolation Tournament semi-finals, the  Broncos had trounced the Port Washington Purple Riders 43-27,  and lost to the Midvale Blue Devils 34-30.  The Bolivar Cardinals lost to the Mighty Strasburg Tigers 29-24, beat-up the Mineral City Tigers 34-20 and whipped the Stone Creek Golden Panthers 39-24.

This fight was more or less nip-and-tuck, basket-by-basket as the 2 teams appeared to be evenly matched.  Tuscarawas Senior forward Earl Johnson lead all scorers with 17 points (6 field goals and 5 free throws) with a little help from Senior center Fred Blackstone who dumped in 6 points on 2 field goals and 2 free tosses.  First-year Head Coach Sherwood Haueter's team had a more balanced approach to this game with both Senior forward Justin Huth and center Bud Ross both scoring 10 points (5 field goals each) with forward Jim Huffman right behind them with 8 points (3 field goals and 2 free throws).  Eleventh-year Head Coach Charmis Davis' team was the runner-up with an 8-2 record in the league, while Bolivar finished 8th with a 4-6 record.

TUSCARAWAS BRONCOS - 36

Earl Johnson F 6-5-17
Earl Myers F 1-0-2
Fred Blackstone C 2-2-6
Clarence Rolli G 2-0-4
Bob McDonald G 0-2-2
Les Johnson G 0-2-2
Bill Arthurs C 1-1-3

BOLIVAR CARDINALS - 29

Jim Huffman F 3-2-8
Justin Huth F 5-0-10
Bud Ross F 5-0-10
Ken Oberlin C 0-0-0
Russ Everly G 0-1-1
Stan Lebold G 0-0-0
Gene Steenrod G 0-0-0


Monday, February 27, 1939
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

39 - Fans Blast Class B Tournament Officials

DOVER - As long as there is basketball there will be referees and as long as there are referees, they will be cussed and discussed, but it is doubtful if any set working a Tuscarawas County Tournament will draw enough fire to equal the record of the set working the current Class B tourney at Memorial Hall.  The 3 are Adrian "Fizz" Miller of Strasburg, Russ Stevenson of Midvale and Ben Schreiner of Gnadenhutten and they have already drawn enough "boos" from the audiences that have packed the Hall, to set a record...and the tournament doesn't end until tonight.

Fans...followers of the competing teams and others who have attended the meeting just to see the basketball teams...are almost in accord in their criticism of the work and have aimed some of the criticism at school officials handling the tournament.  The officials are not to blame.  After the referees were named, they were assigned to the brackets of the tournament before the teams drew their places in the brackets.

When it turned out that Miller was to work the Strasburg games, Stevenson the Midvale games and Schreiner the Gnaden games, the coaches of the League discussed it at some length and then let the matter stand.  So the referees aren't responsible for their assignments.  Miller worked the Strasburg game last night and received the worst punishment of the meeting for 2 fouls he called on Dundee's Dick Machan.  In one case, the booing lasted several minutes and the game was held up.

Fans have become so partisan about the officiating that they have started counting the fouls assessed by the various officials against the various teams...and the figures look bad.  Just so some fond parent or some League student doesn't have the wrong idea, the individual medals offered in the tournament do not go to the tournament winner and the League winner.  They go to the tournament winner and runner-up.  Otherwise one team might win both sets.

A.C. Bahler, Sugarcreek-Shanesville School Superintendent who is managing the tournament was back in good spirits last night when all the seats were filled...he is again predicting a record attendance for the tournament as a whole...cheering groups from the various schools lose no time in picking their favorites and going to bat for them...Strasburg pulled for Midvale, Sugarcreek-Shanesville for Tuscasrawas, etc., one natural rival against the other all the way.  Tusky's Rolli was assessed a technical foul last night for throwing the ball into the crowd...wonder who will pay for the woman's spectacles broken when the ball hit her along the side of the head!


Saturday, February 25, 1939
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

39 - Strasburg Just Slides Past Dundee 28-26 (2-24-39)

Dundee Bulldogs Guard Loyal Peterman gained game honors on 10 points (5 field goals) in a losing cause against the Mighty and Consistant Strasburg Tigers as they stayed alive in a narrow victory over the Bulldogs.


DOVER - The Strasburg Tigers and Midvale Blue Devils will fight it out for top honors in the 17th Annual County Class B Basketball Tournament at Memorial Hall tonight.  The 2 teams qualified for the Championship round by turning back semi-final foes before a wildly cheering, jeering, strictly partisan crowd of 1,800 fans that jam-packed every inch of Memorial Hall last night.  Strasburg, defending Eastern Ohio District Champions and holder of the League's regular season title for the 10th time, nosed out the Dundee Bulldogs 28-26 and Midvale upset the Tuscarawas Broncos 34-30.

The 2 games, bitterly fought every step of the way, leave tonight's final with a big order to fill if it is to match last night's exhibition.  The playing of Midvale's Big Bill Stevenson and the spunk and scrap of Dundee's combination in face of tremendous odds were featured in last night's contest.

In the Consolation games last night, the Gnadenhutten Indians and last year's Tournament Champions, who were blown out of Memorial Hall, left no doubt as to who was going to win the 46-26 game and the Bolivar Cardinals downed the Stone Creek Golden Panthers 39-24.

The Strasburg Tigers (3-0) (45-9) owes its victory to the fact that Senior guard Dick Machan of the Dundee Bulldogs (1-1) (13-21), was fouled out of the game early in the 2nd half.  Throughout the 1st half Machan, sparked by 4th-year Head Coach Bob Lanzer's combination, performed to great expectations.

As a result of that sparking process, Dundee led 8-2 at the close of the 1st quarter and 14-12 at the close of the 2nd which finished with a blaze of scoring as Strasburg tied their rivals and then the 2 teams matched points in the final minutes with Dundee taking the edge at the finish.

Then began a race for the finish line with the Tigers hard pressed to protect their slim lead against desperate bids of Dundee for victory.  In the final analysis, the Burgers won from the free throw line, where Dundee failed to convert a single one of 7 free tosses allotted them.  Strasburg tallied 8 of 16.  The Bulldogs scored 13 field goals to 10 for the Tigers.  Outstanding in the game was the even display of ball by 9th-year Head Coach Paul Roby's Champions.  When they trailed 8-2 and when they led 22-16 at the start of the 4th quarter, they played the same cool, deliberate game they have long been noted for...unhurried and calculating the chances before making the bid.

Dundee guard Loyal Peterman, diminutive and shifty, paced the scoring with 10 points and second for his team was guard Milton Fruchey who collected 6, all in the final stanza.  Strasburg's scoring was evenly divided with Senior Loren Miller leading with 8 points, Senior forward Maurice Bayer and Senior center Lloyd "Mule" Haas with each collecting 6 markers.

STRASBURG TIGERS - 28

Maurice Bayer F 2-2-6
Loren Miller F 3-2-8
Lloyd "Mule" Haas C 3-0-6
Blake Roush G 1-3-5
Bob Dreher G 0-1-1
Fred Yenny G 1-0-2

DUNDEE BULLDOGS - 26

Dick Machan F 2-0-4
Bronco Jones F 1-0-2
Denver Smith C 2-0-4
Milton Fruchey G 3-0-6
Loyal Peterman G 5-0-10


Saturday, February 25, 1939
Clyde Shaffer, Sports Writer
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

FRIDAY'S RESULTS

Bolivar 39 - Stone Creek 24 (C)
Midvale 34 - Tusky 30
Gnaden 46 - Sugarcreek-Shanesville 26 (C)
Strasburg 28 Dundee 26

SATURDAY'S SCHEDULE

Bolivar vs Tusky 1PM (C)
Gnaden vs Dundee 2PM (C)
WINNER Bolivar-Tusky vs WINNER Gnaden-Dundee 7:45PM (Consolation Champions)
Strasburg vs Midvale 8:45 (Tournament Champions)

39 - Gnaden Slams Sugarcreek-Shanesville 46-26 (2-24-39)

Gnadenhutten Indians Senior Forward Bob Miller claimed game honors hitting 15 points (6 field goals and 3 free throws) in leading his team to a rout of the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates 46-26.


DOVER - The Bolivar Cardinals and Gnadenhutten Indians made their way to the semi-finals of the Consolation Division of the County Class B Cage Tournament at Memorial Hall last night and today. 

The Gnadenhutten Indians (2-1) (19-20) behind a torrid pace set by Senior forward Bob Miller, blasted the Sugarcreek-Shanesville Pirates (2-2) (30-17) out of the meet and on the short end of a 46-26 score.

The Indians wasted no time whatever in getting the jump on the Pirates and led 13-6 at the end of the 1st quarter.  In the 2nd period, the Indians defense kicked in to limit Sugarcreek-Shanesville to but 2 points, while Gnaden was still sharp-as-a-tack and grabbing another 12 points as the scoreboard at the end of the half read 25-8.  The Pirates rallied in the 3rd and picked up 7 points, but the Indians were still hungry for victory and canned 10 points.  But this night, Gnadenhutten would not be denied and continued the on-slaught with 11points in the final frame as the Pirates also had 11 points, but by then it was too late and the Pirate-Ship was abandoned.

The Indian massacre at Memorial Hall was led by Bob Miller's 15 points, while his fellow braves,  Senior center Earl Crites and Junior forward Dean Mills had 4 field goals and 1 free throw for 9 points each and were close behind.  The Pirates' center Bob Becker led his team with 6 field goals for 12 points.

GNADENHUTTEN INDIANS - 46

Bob Miller F 6-3-15
Dean Mills F 4-1-9
Earl Crites C 4-1-9
Charles Kail G 1-1-3
Earl Johnson G 2-0-4
John Metzger G 1-0-2
Warren Parrish F 1-0-2
Ray Kennedy G 1-0-2

SUGARCREEK-SHANESVILLE PIRATES - 26

Moomaw F 1-0-2
Earl Smith F 1-3-5
Bob Becker C 6-0-12
Don Hershberger G 2-0-4
Merle Smith G 0-1-1
Kaser F 1-0-2


Saturday, February 25, 1939
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio