57 - Midvale-Ayersville...Evenly Matched?

COLUMBUS - For the 1st time since the Dover Class A District Tournament the Midvale Blue Devils will be meeting a team which is almost even with them in every department when they square off with the Ayersville Pilots at 1:30 Friday in the semi-finals of the State Tournament at St. John Arena in Columbus.  Head Coach Ralph (Pete) Hilliard's cagers played the Adena Golden Wave in the Dover District Tournament and the 2 teams were even on height and in scoring and the difference between their offensive output and opponents points scored about even.

Next Friday afternoon when Mighty Midvale takes on Ayersville (27-1) the situation will again be on even terms.  In sweeping through the County Sectional, District and Regional Tournaments the "Cinderella" team of Tuscarawas County was required to battle teams having superior height and several times a defensive advantage, but came through with flying colors.  The Pilots have done the same all season.

The Airmen, which lost only one game in 28 outings and that to the Miller City Wildcats, a Class A State Champion in 1949-50, in an overtime by the score of 60-57.  The loss came on the 13th game of the regular season.  The Cloudbusters, under the tutorship of Head Coach Lee Himmeger in his 1st year at the helm of a high school basketball team, played in 3 overtime games including the Miller City fracas.  Against the Edgerton Bulldogs they won a 63-57 verdict in an overtime in the Ayersville Sectional Tournament on their home floor.  Then against the Deshler Pirates, they took a 69-64 victory in the Defiance District Tournament on the Defiance High School hardwood.

The Ayersville Pilots, which is located in Defiance County of which Defiance is the county seat, had several other close ball games during its campaign.  It copped 2 close decisions over the Continental Pirates winning the 1st game of the season 59-56 and then midway in the season defeated the same team by a 69-63 count.  Their next closest encounter was with Ottaw St. Peter and Paul, a parochial school at Ottawa, in the Lima Regional Tounrament which they won 63-58.

Over the span of the 28 games the Pilots have scored at an average of 72.1 points per game, while they have held their opponents to a 51.7 output in scoring 2,021 points.  Their foes have tallied 1,450 points, while the Diablos on the other hand, has tallied 2,309 points in 30 games for a 76.9 per game average and their opponents have accounted for 1,802 points or a 60 point average per game.  But included in those points scored by the Devils' foes are 9 losses, 8 in the regular season and one in the County Tournament.  After hitting the tournament trail the Blue and Gold of Midvale disposed of every team which defeated them in the regular season.  Their worst defeat came at the hands of the Stone Creek Golden Panthers, an 11-point spread, by a 69-58 count.

Size has meant nothing to the Midvale Blue Devils, which has 111 boys in the high school making them the biggest Class A Team of the 4 finalists.  The starting array averages 5-11 1/4 per man.  Ayersville will be the 1st team since Midvale played Adena that will be even in this department.  The Pilots have a team averaging 5-11 1/2, only one quarter of an inch better per man than the Blue Devils.

Marvin Hohenbreger, 6-1 Senior has been the big gun for the Airmen.  A top rebounder, Hohenberger is also the high scorer with an average of 22 points per game at a forward post.  At the other forward will be Jim Hammersmith, 6-0 Senior, who is the 2nd high scorer with a 15 point average per game.  John Zimmerman, 6-1 Senior, is the top rebounder.  Although he is not unusually tall, he does a bang-up job under the boards using his broad frame in jockying for position.  Two 5-10 guards round out the starting array.  Jim Martin, the only Junior on the 1st five, is the 3rd high scorer and is noted for his jump shots.  He has tallied at an average of about 14 points per contest, most of his points coming from out front.  Larry Meyer is the other guard and is labeled as the playmaker of the team.

The Cloudbusters, which has 56 boys in the top 4 grades, likes to fast break and plays almost the same brand of ball that Coach Hilliard's combine uses.  They take advantage of well-rounded scoring and a fast moving ball club in overcoming their inferior height.  Actually, Hohenberger is the main cog in the offense.  He drives, shoots jump shots and is a very good set shot.  He can drive from either side of the basket for layups.  Hammersmith is also noted for his jump shots, most of them on long shots.  He is also a good driver and can shoot set shots.

The Bethel Blackhawks (27-1) which will meet Gratis (26-1) in the 2nd game of the semi-finals at 3:00 is the tallest team of the 4, boasting 3 boys stretching the tape at 6-2 and one at 6-3.  They also boast the highest scoring ouput, hitting over 88 points per contest, going over the century mark 8 times this season.  Its only loss came at the hands of River Local, the team's archrival, by a 74-69 count.  The Blackhawks revenged that defeat though in the Monroe County Tournament by a 73-70 count.  Bethel, the smallest school of the 4, boasts only 18 boys in the high school, 16 of them out for basketball.  The population of Marr, in which Bethel Township High School is located, is only 8.  They draw the other 24 students from surrounding areas.  It is located in Monroe County at the Southwestern tip of which Woodsfield is the county seat.  The team is coached by Richard Potts, his 6th year.

Gratis, located in the southwestern corner of Preble County of which Eaton is the county seat, boasts a population of 500 people and has 90 boys in the top 4 grades.  The Trojans, coached by John Buriff for the past 3 years, all the longer the schools has been in existence, has a well-rounded scoring attack and has the one big man needed for rebounding strength who is 6-3.  They also have dropped only one game and that on the 6th game of the season to Dixie by a resounding 82-65 score.  But the Trojans revenged the loss whipping the same team to the tune of 84-68 in the Preble County Tournament.

The entire county has become excited over the prospect of the Midvale Blue Devils copping the State Championship.  Supt. J.F. Zack announced this morning that all of the 1,203 Reserved Seat tickets allotted to the school were sold by 7:00 last night.  The tickets, which are good for only the Ayersville-Midvale game, cost the buyers $1.50.  There will also be about 1,000 standing room tickets sold at each of the 4 games of the tournament.  They may be obtained at the fieldhouse doors.

AYERSVILLE PILOTS (27-1)

Continental Pirates 59-56
Oakwood Bobcats 75-56
Florida 54-41
Jewell 79-49
Ney 91-75
Mark Center 73-34
Stryker Panthers 65-56
Continental Pirates 69-63
Farmer 70-49
Holgate Tigers 62-38
Sherwood Apaches 95-34
Jewell 64-56
Miller City Wildcats 57-60 DEFEATED
Ney 64-49
Hicksville Aces 71-47
Mark Center 74-58
Farmer 64-37
Paulding Panthers 76-40
Sherwood Apaches 96-33

DEFIANCE COUNTY TOURNAMENT

Jewell 79-40
Mark Center 80-58
Ney 67-53

AYERSVILLE SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT

Grover Hill Hornets 82-69
Edgerton Bulldogs 63-57

DEFIANCE DISTRICT TOURNAMENT

Deshler Pirates 69-64
Fayette 65-49

LIMA REGIONAL TOURNAMENT

Ottawa St. Peter and Paul 63-58
Holmes-Liberty 94-71


Tuesday, March 19, 1957
Jim De Mello, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporte
Dover, Ohio

57 - Midvale Goes To STATE! 61-60 (3-16-57)

The 1957 Midvale Blue Devils, who turned into "Giant Killers" as tournament play got under way and swept through the Sectional, District and Regional events, will now make their bid for their 1st Class A State title.  FRONT:  Manager Bill Kerschbaumer - Lonnie Fulp - John Beans - Tom Krocker - Lonnie Wolfe - Dave Belknap and Manager Larry Gibbs.  BACK:  Head Coach Ralph (Pete) Hilliard - Dick (Dandy) Leggett - John Colombo - Gary Haney - Bill Housel - Don Patterson - Dave De Mattio and Jerry Benedum.



CANTON - The Mighty Midvale Blue Devils need to win only 2 more games for their 1st Class A State Basketball Championship!  No one is more aware of this than 3rd-Year Head Coach Ralph (Pete) Hilliard, the members of those rampaging Blue Devils and residents of that proud community.

Evidence of this fact is apparent today and was more evident yesterday.  The fans are still celebrating their team's stupendous 61-60 victory over the Savannah Sailors on Saturday night which earned them one of the 4 berths in the State Tournament scheduled for next Friday and Saturday afternoon and gave them the Northeastern Regional Basketball Championship.  Coach Hilliard's cagers, the "Cinderella" team from Tuscarawas County, won Saturday night's game in a story book finish that will probably have basketball fans all over the State talking for years to come.  Midvale pulled the game out of the fire with hardly any time showing on the clock.

Once again it was 5-11 Senior forward Dick (Dandy) Leggett!  Saturday night he repeated an almost unbelievable fete.  The little red-head snagged a jump ball tip from teammate 6-0 Senior guard John Colombo with only 3 seconds remaining in the contest.  He wheeled, took one dribble and swished the net from 5 feet out.  The buzzer was blowing and the official timer's gun had ended the game just as the ball left Leggett's hand.  The referees ruled the shot good and the majority of the 2,774 fans exploded onto the floor and swarmed over the players attempting to grab, touch and congratulate those spectacular Diablos.

Friday night Leggett rode to the showers on the shoulders of his teammates after he canned a jumper as the buzzer ended the game to give the Devils a 64-62 upset victory over the 3rd rated Vienna Mustangs.  Saturday night fans attempted to carry Leggett off the floor on their shoulders, but were unable to as the crowd swamped the entire team.

Next Friday afternoon Midvale will seek to continue making Ohio basketball history.  Entering the State Tournament with a 20-9 record, they will open the gala event at 1:30 Friday afternoon when they square off against a powerful Ayersville quintet which has copped 27 victories as against only one setback.  If they win, the Blue Devils will meet the winner of the Bethel Tigers (27-1)-Gratis (26-1) tilt which is slated for 3:00 the same afternoon.  The Championship game is slated for Saturday afternoon.

Defiance District Champs, Ayersville gained its berth in the State finals as it waltzed past Holmes Liberty (22-2) to the tune of 94-71 to wrap up the Lima Regional Championship.  Bethel, which won the Marietta District title, whipped New Boston (23-1), the only unbeaten Class A team in the Regionals, by a 74-64 count and copped the Athens Regional laurels, Gratis, the Dayton District Champs, edged favored Lockland Wayne (20-6) in a thriller 47-46 for the Troy Regional Crown.

Supt. Joseph Zack, who attended the drawing at the Seneca Hotel yesterday in Columbus with Head Coach Hilliard, announced today that 1,200 reserved seat tickets will go on sale at the high school.  All residents of Midvale will have 1st choice to buy the ducats.  The tickets will be good for the Midvale-Ayersville game only and will cost $1.50 each.

Thus, the county's Consolation and Northeastern District winners will attempt to iron out final flaws in their now smooth-working ball club this week.  Midvale, along with the 3 other Class A teams and 4 double A quintets, each get a chance to practice on the St. John floor Thursday afternoon.

Should the Blue Devils of Midvale win their 1st game at the tournament it will be the furthest any Midvale combine has ever gotten.  They have made the trip to the State Tournament 3 times when there were 16 teams in the event.  In 1937 they made the trip when M.R. Helwick, Superintendent of Strasburg Schools, was coach and then again in 1941 under the tutorship of Clayton Wolf, now principal of Uhrichsville High School and also in 1940.  The 1937 team which included Frankie Baumholtz, now playing Major League Baseball and the 1941 team lost out in the semi-finals.  The 1940 team lost their 1st game.

The Regional Trophy, awarded to Co-Captains Leggett and Colombo, by Ed Masonbrink, Tournament Director, after the game on Saturday night was the 1st one for the high school since there were no Regionals at the time when they made the trip to the State Tournament on the 2 previous occasions.

The Midvale Blue Devils (11-1) (20-9) whose shooting from the field and free throw line wasn't up to par.  In attempting to stage a comeback in the 2nd half, the Blue Devils took 40 shots and made only 13.  Overall, they hit on 25 of 73 action shots for 34.2 percent, way below their usual output.  The Savannah Sailors (25-4) hit over 50 percent in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and ended the contest with 42.3 percent on 22 field goals in 52 tries.

At the free throw line Midvale canned 11 of 21 attempts, 3 of those 10 misses came in crucial moments in the final canto.  The Sailors, on the other hand, tallied 16 of 24 charity tosses and percentage wise outdid the Diablos in both departments.  But, going against all expectations, the battling Devils overcame the superior height and actually won the game on the boards and with defense.  Junior 6-2 center Russ Hobart, tallest man on the squad, did a tremendous job against the rangier Boatmen.  In the final quarter Russ snagged 4 rebounds which eventually led to baskets for the Blue and Gold of Midvale.  The contest was tied up 7 times, twice in the 1st quarter, 3 times in the 3rd and 2 times in the final canto.  The lead, surprisingly, changed hands only 5 times, three of those in the initial quarter.

It was the Midvale Blue Devils game in the 1st half.  Senior 5-9 guard John Beans, who did an outstanding job on defense and as playmaker, started things off by stealing the ball and driving in for a lay up to give the winners a 2-0 edge.  Forward Larry Whitesel tied it up with a pair of free throws and added another one to give the Sailor men the edge.  Leggett tied it up at 5:53 and 5-10 Senior forward Lonnie Wolfe put the Blue Devils ahead with 2 more charity tosses at 5:11 of the 1st quarter.  The rest of the period it wasn't even close as Midvale romped ahead to post a 16-7 lead, holding the Sailors to only one action shot.

The Diablos continued to command in the 2nd period.  Although the Boatmen hit on 7 of 13 action flings and tallied 5 free throws the Devils kept pace as the 2 teams matched buckets.  At intermission the Blue and Gold held a 34-26 lead.  The nearest the Sailor men could get was 7 points in that frame.  Colombo led the winners in the 1st two quarters with 13 points, while the rest of the scoring was well distributed.  Colombo and Hobart did a fine job on high-scoring center Lew Aulger at 6-3 and held him to only 8 points, all in the 2nd period.  As the 3rd period started the bottom fell out of things for the Midvale Blue Devils.

The Boatmen got the tip and center Dave Helvie potted a layup to make it 34-28.   After Colombo tallied forward Bill Fast and Aulger hit on consecutive fielders to whittle the score to a 36-32 count.  The Blue Devils pushed the score back up to 40-34, but Whitesel tallied a fielder and Chuck Ritchey hit on a pair of free throws to make it 40-38 with only 3:15 to go in the third.  Fast then tied it up for the 3rd time in the game with 2:31 to go.  Leggett hit a jumper, but Aulger matched it.  Colombo and Helvie also matched shots and then with only a few seconds left Helvie drove in for a layup to give Savannah a 46-44 lead, their 1st since the early minutes of the 1st quarter.  The buzzer sounded a few seconds later before the winners could get a shot off.

Aulger hit for 3 straight buckets as the final period got under way and the Sailormen had a 52-44 lead as Midvale failed to find the range.  Colombo potted the Diablos' 1st fielder in the 4th with 6 minutes left to start the payoff drive.  He followed with another and Leggett came through with a jump shot to make it 52-50 with 5:00 to go.  Hobart, battling for the ball furiously, finally came up with it and slipped in a layup to knot the count at 52-52.  Helvie put the losers ahead again with a pair of free throw flings.  But, Colombo found the range again and hit a set from the corner to knot the count at 54-54.  Then the Savannah Sailors began to stall.

Brother to Lew, LeoAulger finally put the Sailors ahead again with 3:24 to go...56-54.  Ritchey fouled Colombo with 2:14 to go and he hit on one of 2 tries, but Helvie scored on a jumper to make it 58-55.  Krocker potted a short set with only 1:06 remaining to whittle the score to a 58-57 count.  The seconds ticked off and with only 40 remaining in the game Beans fouled Helvie.  He hit both shots and the Devils once again were behind by 3 points.

Wolfe, in the contest for Hobart, picked up a loose oval after the 2 teams had battled for it under the Blue and Gold's bucket.  He leaped and parted the net with less than 30 seconds to go and the score read 60-59.  Another foul sent Aulger to the free throw line.  He missed!  The stage was set for Leggett's spine-tingling basket.  The Midvale Blue Devils brought the ball down the court and after 5 attempts at the basket the ball got loose and Colombo tied up Ritchey with only 3 seconds left.  Colombo leaped, hit the ball to Leggett and bang!  The Blue Devils were on their way to the State Tournament as he scored at the buzzer.

Colombo topped Midvale's scoring with 24 markers, 7 important ones in the final canto.  Leggett, who got 27 the night before, tallied 15, while Beans had 8.  Lew Aulger was high man for the losers with 20, while Helvie had 16 and Fast 12.  Fast fouled out of the contest midway in the final stanza which hurt the Boatmen as he was one of their best shots.

MIDVALE BLUE DEVILS - 61

Dick (Dandy) Leggett 6-3-15
John Colombo 9-6-24
Russ hobart 2-0-4
Lonnie Wolfe 1-2-4
John Beans 4-0-8
Tom Krocker 3-0-6

SAVANNAH SAILORS - 60

Lew Aulger 9-2-20
Bill Fast 4-4-12
Larry Whitesel 2-3-7
Dave Holvie 6-4-16
Chuck Ritchey 0-3-3
Leo Aulger 1-0-2
Carr 0-0-0

MIDVALE ....16-34-44-61
SAVANNAH   7-26-46-60


Monday, March 18, 1957
Jim De Mello, Sports Editor
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

57 - Midvale Survives! 64-62 (3-15-57)

Senior 5-11 Forward Dick (Dandy) Leggett came through in fine fashion last night as his Blue Devils of Midvale downed the Vienna Mustangs 64-62 and earned a berth in the finals of the Canton Class A Regional Basketball Tournament Championship tonight against Savannah.  The red-headed lad hit a jump shot at the buzzer to give the Hilliardmen the narrow victory.



CANTON - The name of 5-11 Senior forward Dick (Dandy) Leggett and the mighty Midvale Blue Devils (10-1) (19-9) was on almost every area basketball fans lips today.  Leggett's moniker because it was his last second shot that gave the cagers of Head Coach Pete Hilliard a thrilling 64-62 victory over the Vienna Mustangs (23-4) in the Canton Class A Regional Basketball Tournament last night and the Blue Devils because they will clash with Savannah (25-3), which defeated the Ridgeville Falcons (14-9) 68-57 tonight seeking a berth in the State Tournament to be held at Columbus' St. John's Arena next weekend.

Over 4,500 fans held their collective breath as Leggett, with only 2 seconds showing on the clock, drove from center court to about 10 feet out and shot a jump shot.  Just as the oval parted the net the buzzer blew ending the game and Midvale was one of 8 teams left in the Class A ranks.  The fine strategy of Coach Hilliard could also be commended in bringing in the victory.  With only 50 seconds left to play in the thrill-packed fracas, the mentor called time out.  When the Diablos took the floor again they stalled the ball.  Then with 11 seconds left Leggett began his move towards the basket.  The seconds ticked off and 5-9 Senior John Beans handed the oval to the red-headed lad to set the stage for his last-second shot.

Thus, the Devils...a team with a Cinderella tag...and the Mustangs, both seeking their 1st State Crown, clash tonight for the Regional Championship.  The Blue and Gold of Midvale made the trip to Columbus twice.  In 1937 they won 3 games when M.R. Helwick, now Superintendent of Strasburg High School, coached the team and then again in 1941 when Pete Wolf, Principal of Uhrichsville High School, piloted the Midvale Blue Devils to the semi-finals.  Both times it was when 16 teams entered the State Tournament.  Vienna, 3rd rated team in the final Associated Press Poll, ended the season with a 23-4 record.  It was the 2nd team in a row that the Blue Devils have sidelined with the same records.  In the Dover District, Midvale defeated the Gnadenhutten Indians also boasting a 23-3 mark going into the fracas.

Midvale will enter tonight's tilt with a 19-9 record.  They have won 9 straight games after losing to the Stone Creek Golden Panthers in the 2nd round of the County Tournament.  Besides Leggett's terrific 27-point outburst much of the credit should go to 5-9 Reserve Sophomore guard Tom Krocker, who came into the contest for 5-10 Senior forward Lonnie Wolfe, who fouled out of the contest in the 4th quarter.  Krocker potted 8 important points in the nip-and-tuck final canto.

Senior guard 6-0 John Colombo, who scored 615 points in the previous 28 games to be the leading scorer, was pressed the entire night by 6-5 Senior center Ken Mishorich and had trouble finding the mark.  But, Colombo did an outstanding job in the rebound department in battling with the much taller Horsemen and added 8 points.  Junior center 6-2 Russ Hobart, tallest man on the Diablos squad, also did a good job under the boards and snagged many important rebounds in the final quarter.  In short, the victory was a team effort; although, Leggett did carry the load in the scoring department.

Leggett and Beans led the Devils in the 1st quarter as the red-head hit for 8 and Beans 7.  The Riders held a 15-8 lead at one time, the biggest margin of the entire game between the 2 teams, but the Blue and Gold came roaring back to make it 18-17 at the end of the 1st period.  It was Leggett again in the 2nd frame as he ripped the nets for another big 8 points, while contributions by Hobart, Colombo, Wolfe and Beans saw the Midvale Blue Devils knot the count at intermission 32-32.

Wolfe put the Blue Devils ahead 32-30, but Junior forward 6-0 Tom Wilson hit for a fielder to knot the count.  Colombo had 2 tries at the free throw line with only one second to go, but missed both and the score remained tied at halftime.  Mishorich picked up his 4th personal early in the 3rd period and was required to sit out the rest of that quarter and Midvale took advantage.  After the 2 teams see-sawed for the 1st few minutes the Diablos pulled out front by 6 points and when the quarter ended the winners held a 48-42 advantage.

With 6:30 to go in the contest, the Vienna Mustangs tied the game up at 50-50 with Mishorich back in the contest.  Senior guard 5-11 Jim Mizicko tallied another action shot to give Vienna the lead at 52-50.  The Devils never trailed again until 3:52 to go as 5-10 Senior guard Bob Rappach hit on a fielder to give the losers a 60-58 edge.  But, Krocker came through with one of his timely baskets to knot the count.  Then with 2:30 showing on the clock Rappach swished 2 free throw tosses to give the Mustangs a 62-60 edge.  Krocker again knotted the count to set the stage for Leggett's buzzer-beating field goal.

The Blue and Gold led from the field as they connected on 25 of 55 action flings for 45.4 percent, while Vienna shot at a 36.5 clip making 23 of 63 action shots.  The Midvale Blue Devls hit 14 of 21 attempts from the free throw line.  The Blue Devils hit 14 of 21 charity tosses, while the Horsemen held the edge in this department with 16 of 23 free throw tosses.  Colombo led in the rebound department, snaring 6, while also grabbing many other loose ovals.  Leggett followed closely.  The Riders boasting a startling array averaging 6-1 or better fell way short of their expectations in controlling the boards as Midvale out-rebounded them most of the way.

Mishorich led the losers along with Rappach as each had 17 points apiece, while Wilson had 10.  Beans was the only other Diablos cager to hit double figures as he tallied 10 markers.

The Midvale Blue Devils will not have to battle the superior height tonight, but will meet a well-rounded team in Savannah which has a 25-3 record.  Lawrence Aulger is the tallest man on the squad at 6-2.  He is the only Junior on the starting array.  Larry Whitesel, 6-1, Bill Fast, Chuck Ritchie and Dave Helvie all 6-0 and Seniors, will round out the starting array.  Last night Aulger was the big gun as the Mustangs squelched a fired-up Ridgeville team.  He tallied 30 points.  Savannah trailed at the end of all 3 quarters at 16-8, 33-28 and 48-47 before going ahead to stay early in the final canto.

Tickets for the Midvale-Savannah game were to go on sale at 8:00 this morning.

MIDVALE BLUE DEVILS - 64

Dick (Dandy) Leggett F 11-5-27
John Colombo F 3-2-8
Russ Hobart C 1-2-4
Gary Haney C 1-1-3
Lonnie Wolfe G 2-0-4
John Beans G 3-4-10
Tom Krocker G 4-0-8

VIENNA MUSTANGS - 62

Jim Clark F 2-3-7
Tom Wilson F 5-2-12
Ken Mishorich C 7-3-17
Ron Diets C 0-1-1
Jim Mizicko G 3-2-8
Bill Beach G 0-0-0
Bob Rappach G 6-5-17

MIDVALE  17-32-46-64
VIENNA.....18-32-42-62


Saturday, March 16, 1957
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

57 - The Regional Tournament 1st Round In Canton

DOVER - With the field already being narrowed to 27 teams in both the Class A and AA in the Regional Basketball Tournament, the Midvale Blue Devils will be battling tonight to be one of the 16 finalists when they clash with the Vienna Mustangs tonight at 7:15 in the Canton Regional at Memorial Fieldhouse.  Head Coach Pete Hilliard's cagers, who have been working out on the Fieldhouse floor and at the Uhrichsville Gym the past week to get the experience of a bigger floor, are scheduled to leave for Canton sometime late this afternoon by car.

A large following from the area is assured as it was reported that no less than 880 tickets were sold by yesterday and at least 150 were to be sold last night so that the Blue Devils will have better than 1,000 fans following them to Canton.  The Mustangs bring a 23-3 record into the fracas, while the Diablos, labeled the "dark horse" of the tournament, has an 18-9 record, after ending the season with a mediocre 10-8 mark.

The game, which will be broadcast locally, is the 1st of 2 tilts.  In the nightcap, slated to start at 8:45, Savannah (24-3) takes on the Falcons (14-8).  Tonight's winners battle at 8:00 tomorrow night for the Eastern Regional Championship and a berth in the State semi-finals which will be held at St. John's Arena in Columbus next weekend.  After tonight only 16 high school basketball teams will remain in tournament play, 8 in each Class.

Probable starting lineup for the Devils will see:

Dick (Dandy) Leggett - Forward
John Colombo - Forward
Russ Hobart - Center
Lonnie Wolfe - Guard
John Beans - Guard

Head Coach Pete Hilliard's 1st Line Reserves:

Tom Krocker
Gary Haney

Starters for the Horsemen will probably be:

Jim Clark - Forward
Tom Wilson - Forward
Ken Mishorich - Center
Jim Mizicko - Guard
Bob Rappach - Guard

A giant pep rally will give Midvale a big send off this afternoon when students and faculty gather in the auditorium this afternoon.  Cheerleaders will be leading the yells tonight and this afternoon.  The Blue Devils Cheerleaders are:

Mary Varally
Arlene Zontine
Bonnie Hobart
Linda Anderson

In other Class A action tonight at Athens will be Newark St. Francis (21-2) taking on the Bethel Tigers (25-1) with the winner meeting the New Boston Tigers (23-0) on Saturday night for the Championship.

At Troy, Plain City (21-2) meets Lockland Wayne (19-5) and Gratis (24-1) takes on Bradford (19-5) with the winners battling on Saturday night.  And finally, at Lima, the New Bremen Cardinals (20-3) squares off with Holmes-Liberty (21-1) and Ayersville  (25-1) clashes with Ottawa's St. Peter and Paul (16-10).

Ottawa is the only team remaining with a record worse than that of the Midvale Blue Devils.


Friday, March 15, 1957
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

57 - Right Down The Line

Friday, March 15, 1957
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio



THERE IS STILL SOME CONSOLATION for those basketball fans who have been turned down in their attempts to get tickets for the State Basketball Tournament on March 22nd and 23rd.  It was revealed today that WHBC of Canton will broadcast both the semi-finals and finals of the Class A and Class AA games as well as WVKO of Columbus.  The games were broadcast last year by the same 2 stations.

Jim Muzzy and Bob Krahling of WHCB and Bert Charles of the Columbus station will provide the basket-by-basket account of the 6 games.  Muzzy has been Sportscaster for the past 14 years with WHBC and Krahling has been Muzzy's statistician for the last 4 years.  He has been with the Canton station for 7 years.  Charles, General Manager of the Columbus station, has had many years experience in broadcasting sporting events and is widely known throughout Central Ohio.

BASKETBALL USED TO BE PLAYED more or less under the heading of a gentlemen's agreement.  Or so says Mrs. Nile Johnson of Dundee.  Mrs. Johnson said that way back in 1916 a team was organized in Dundee with charter members consisting of:

Glenn Allison
Adrian Bowker
John Burrell
Myron Haager
Nile Johnson
Russell Lautsenheiser
Ernest Shonk
Clyde Smith

The squad did all of their traveling by train in those days...except for one time when it made the trip to Beach City by sled.  Many of the players lived more than 3 miles from school and had to walk to and from the basketball games.  The Dundee team was outfitted in black shirts with a big orange "D" and cost only 45 cents!  They wore white trunks, coating 35 cents and wool socks with cotton bottoms and costing an astonishing 75 cents per pair!  The players owned only one ball and dressed in the school furnace room and carried their suits in a 25-pound sugar sack.

The main purpose of the referee in those days was to prevent rioting and to bring the ball back to center court after each basket.  Thus, many times coaches took turns at this chore.  No one was benched because of fouls, because calling fouls was unsportsmanlike.

Fans watched the game from the sidelines as there were no bleachers.  When players needed extra nourishment beyond the old water jug, they were sometimes rewarded with ice cream and coffee.  And finally, the first aid kit consisted of only 2 articles.  A bottle of iodine and some cotton dressings.

57 - Midvale-Vienna Rundown

DOVER - The Midvale Blue Devils will be seeking to get past the Vienna Mustangs tomorrow night to ear a berth in the Regional Basketball Tournament  finals at Canton's Memorial Fieldhouse.  Head Coach Ralph (Pete) Hilliard's cagers, tabbed the "comback" team of the year, are slated to open play at 7:15, while at 8:45 the Savannah Sailors (24-3) battle the Ridgeville Falcons (14-8).

The winners of tomorrow night's games will then square off on Saturday night for the Regional Crown and a berth in the State Tournament to be held at St. John's Arena in Columbus March 22nd and 23rd.  The Blue Devils (18-9) will be attempting to get revenge for another Tuscarawas County quintet.  Two years ago, the Strasburg Tigers had made it to the Regionals, but lost out to the Mustangs after leading most of the game.

Vienna, boasting a big team, will enter the contest with a 23-3 record, the 2nd best of the 4 teams in the tournament.  The cagers of Head Coach Randall Wilson, in his 4th year at the helm, lost two games during the regular season, a 67-64 verdict to Braceville and a 59-58 decision to the Liberty Tigers midway in the regular campaign.  Their only other loss came at the hands of a Champion quintet which defeated them 69-56 in regular play.  The 2 teams met the 4th time in the Youngstown Sectional Tournament and the Mustangs took a lopsided 61-37 victory.

Some of their other close scores saw them get revenge over Braceville in their County Tournament 76-74 in 2 overtimes, nipped the Windham Bombers in the District Tournament 60-58, slipped by the Leavittsburg Yellow Jackets 66-61 and Hartford 56-49.  The Mustangs are led by Big Ken Mishorich, 6-5 Senior center, who has scored 542 points in the 26 games for a 20.8 average.  Their other big man is Jim Clark, 6-4 Junior forward, who; although, he has scored only 136 points for a 6.0 average, has been very valuable in the rebound department.

Tom Wilson, 6-0 Junior, will be at the other forward and is the 2nd high scorer with 412 points for a 15.8 average.  Jim Mizicko, 5-11 Senior and Bob Rappach, 5-10 Senior, will be the guards.  Mizicko has tallied 346 points for a 13.3 average and Rappach has canned 213 markers for a 9.0 average.  Ron Diets, 6-0 Junior with 48 points and Bill Beach, 5-9 Junior with 42 points, will be Coach Wilson's first line Reserves.  Overall, the team's average height is over 6-1 per man, while the 1st five starters are scoring at a 51.46 average.

The Blue Devils, on the other hand, will probably have Russ Hobart, 6-2 Junior at center, John Colombo, 6-0 Senior and Dick (Dandy) Leggett, 5-11 Senior, at the forwards and John Beans, 5-9 Senior and Lonnie Wolfe, 5-10 Senior, at the guards.  Midvale then has a starting array averaging a little over 5-11 or better than 2 inches shorter per man than Vienna.  However, the starting 5 cagers for the Blue Devils are scoring at a higher average with Colombo leading the way with 615 points for a 21.9 average.  Leggett follows with 552 points or a 19.7 per game clip.  Wolfe is next with 211 points for 7.5, Hobart 4th with 151 for 5.3 and Beans 5th with 128 and a 4.5 average.  The 5 averages total 589 per game or 7 points more per game than Vienna.  Tom Krocker, 5-9 Sophomore, and Gary Haney, 6-0 Senior, will be Hilliard's front line Reserves.

Supt. Joseph Zack of Midvale said tickets for the game were "selling like hotcakes."  Two blocks of Reserved Seats have been sold to the Blue Devils' fans, totaling 567 and Supt. Zack said that 150 more have been obtained.  They will be on sale for $1.50 at the high school from 5 until 8 tonight and Friday if any are not sold.  A total of 880 tickets have been sold and only a limited number of general admission tickets, both adult and student, are still available.  General admission is $1 for adults and 75 cents for students.

The Blue Devils mentor said today that all of his cagers were in top shape for the joust.  He said they practiced on the Canton floor Tuesday and will do so again today.  Yesterday they drilled on the Uhrichsville floor which is similar to the Canton Fieldhouse floor.

THE VIENNA MUSTANGS ((23-3)

Mineral Ridge Ramblers 71-50
Braceville 64-67 DEFEATED
Southington Wildcats 106-56
Vernon 81-57
Brookfield 55-31
Liberty Tigers 58-59 DEFEATED
McDonald Blue Devils 80-54
Champion 60-54
Southington Wildcats 90-15
Howland 52-43
Liberty Tigers 83-56
Cortland Bulldogs 81-58
Newton Falls Bees 71-53
Fowler 100-31
McDonald Blue Devils 86-63
Leavittsburg Yellow Jackets 66-61

TRUMBULL COUNTY TOURNAMENT

Fowler 72-30
Braceville 76-74
Hartford 56-49
Champion 56-69 DEFEATED

YOUNGSTOWN SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT

Leetonia Bears 59-47
Champion 81-37

CANTON DISTRICT TOURNAMENT

Warren St. Mary 66-46
Windham Bombers 60-58


Thursday, March 14, 1957
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio

57 - INS Class A All-Ohio From Tuscarawas County 1956-57

DOVER - Four Tuscarawas County basketball players received special honors today.  Senior 5-11 Ron Deibel of the Stone Creek Golden Panthers and 6-0 Senior Eldon Miller of the Gnadenhutten Indians were selected to the 2nd Team International News Service (INS) All-Ohio Class A Basketball Team for the 1956-57 season.  Senior 6-0 Jerry Froman of the Strasburg Tigers and 6-1 Ed Bates of the Port Washington Purple Riders were named to the Honorable Mention list.

Deibel, who set a new 4-year scoring record this year, led the Golden Panthers to one of their best seasons in the school's history.  Deibel scored 399 points during the regular season and tallied 120 more in the county and Sectional Tournaments.  This brought his 4-year total to 1,905 points.  The mark snapped the old record of 1,792 points held by Jim Lorenz, a former Stone Creek player and set in the 1951-52 campaign.  Miller led the Indians to the County Championship through the Sectional and finally lost out in the finals of the District Tournament to the Midvale Blue Devils.  The Tribe posted a record of 23 victories and only 4 setbacks.

Froman was the stalwart on the Tigers team this year which went through the regular season undefeated in County League competition and posted a 17-1 season record.  The Bengals were eliminated from the County Tournament and finished with a record of 19 wins and only 3 losses.  Bates was the high-scorer during the regular season in the County League with 446 points.  The Purple Riders were also knocked out of action in the County Tournament in the semi-finals of the Consolation bracket.  He ended the season with 582 points.

The 1st Team members were Bob Filiere of Troy-Luckey, Jerry Delong of Sidney Holy Angels, Jim Opperman of New Bremen, Larry Kruger of Allensville and Dan Kizer of Concord.  The 2nd Team, besides Miller and Deibel, included Paul Fike of New Washington, Paul Hoffman of St. Paris and Marvin Engle of Arcanum.

Wednesday, March 13, 1957

The Daily Reporter

Dover, Ohio