New Look Lady Flames Building Towards The Future
There’s a new head coach in charge to go along with a young nucleus of talent for the Mansfield Christian girls’ basketball team who plan to build a new foundation for future success.
First-year head coach Megan Young takes over a Lady Flames program that has less than 10 total players at the high school level with only two returning letter winners. She, along with the inexperienced varsity roster understands, however, that they are working towards imminent success by establishing a fresh foundation. Mansfield Christian finished last season with a 3-19 overall record and did not record a single win in the Mid-Buckeye Conference.
Behind senior leader Ashley Maiyer and a pair of strong sophomores in Elle Schmitz and Rachel Roblin, the team has expectations of improving as they build towards the future.
The Lady Flames open their season with cross-town rival Temple Christian hoping to secure a win to kick off their campaign with some confidence and momentum.
Spartans Take Rivalry Win At “The Furnace”
St. Peter’s took Mansfield Christian’s best shot in a rivalry showdown between the two Mansfield schools, surviving a tough 60-52 battle against the struggling Flames.
Coming off their only win of the season, Mansfield Christian (1-11, 0-5) hung with the four-time defending Mid-Buckeye Conference champs in the first half, as Jared Mount’s team-best 14 points helped the Flames enter the halftime locker room tied at 23 apiece.
The third quarter is where the Spartans (7-5, 4-1) made their move, outscoring MC 20-12 in the frame to hold a 43-35 edge heading into the final quarter of action. Both Caleb Stewart and Luke Henrich played key scoring roles in the second half for St. Peter’s, combining for 40 points in the contest to help Sparty close out a tough rivalry victory.
St. Peter’s Guts Out Rivalry Win Over Mansfield Christian
St. Peter's raced out to a 17-6 lead after the first quarter on senior night against cross-county rival Mansfield Christian, but had to hold off a game Flames squad late for a 53-49 victory.
Despite finding themselves in an early hole, Mansfield Christian (5-17, 2-8) stormed back to claim a 44-41 edge with 6:21 left in the fourth quarter after finishing the third on a 6-0 spurt. The Spartans knocked down late free throws and locked down defensively, however, outscoring the Flames 12-5 down the stretch to secure the win.
St. Peter’s (13-7) got a game-high 17 points from Jonah Ramey while Luke Henrich finished with 13 points and Caleb Stewart had 11 in their final home games.
Mansfield Christian (5-17) saw their 3-game win streak snapped as Jared Mount scored 16 points and Ethan Barry poured in 14.
Mohawk Advances Past Flames To Sectional Final
Opening night of the girls basketball state tournament saw Mohawk run away from Mansfield Christian into the Shelby sectional title game with a 45-20 win over the Flames.
A hard-fought 1st quarter would have the 9th-seeded Lady Warriors out in front by a score of 5-2 before extending their advantage to 19-8 by the break. Mohawk continued to shut down #11 Mansfield Christian at the offensive end of the floor in the second half as they extended their lead to 30-13 by the end of the third and cruised to a 25-point victory.
Aubrie Harper led the way for the Lady Warriors (6-17) with a game-high 13 points with Marah Gillig adding nine. Elle Schmitz was the Flames top scorer with 7, Ashley Maiyer contributed with four.
Flames Beat Clear Fork For 3rd Straight Win
After an inconsistent 2-3-0 start to their season, Mansfield Christian has strung together three consecutive wins with a 5-2 victory over Clear Fork at Comstock Field.
Senior MF Jared Mount sparked the Flames early by smacking a ball off a Colts defender in for the first score of the match then gave MC the lead for good when he split three Clear Fork players and hammered home a goal to make it 2-1 midway through the opening half. Along with Mount, Mason Berryman, Parker Stigall and John Ballenger all scored for the Flames.
Next up for Mansfield Christian (5-3-0) is a road match vs CVCA while Clear Fork (3-4-0) will host Galion.
Warriors Put Out Flames 2-1
Mansfield Christian closed out their regular season on senior night at Comstock Field, but visiting Ontario would spoil the Flames festivities with a 2-1 road victory.
On a cold, damp evening, the Warriors got on the board first when Kyle Woods finished a beautiful cross from Brennan Blaising at the 7:05 mark of the first half. Ontario took their 1-nil advantage into the break and would extend their edge in the early portion of half number two.
Senior forward Jalen Trammel tracked down a ball deep in the corner of Flames territory and fired a bending shot across the front of the net from a near impossible angle. The ball would curve back into the corner of the goal, however, giving the Warriors a 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the second half.
Ontario has struggled to put away opponents all season and would allow Mansfield Christian to get back into the match when leading scorer Jared Mount headed in a long free kick at the 20:12 mark to pull the Flames within a score. MC produced a handful of quality attacks down the stretch but were unable to capitalize with an equalizer, losing their contest to the Warriors for a second straight season.
Mansfield Christian (6-9-1) now heads into tournament play against Eastwood without a win in their last six matches. Ontario (9-5-1) will wrap-up their regular season with a make-up game against Marysville before opening postseason action against Clyde.
Niswander Fuels Lucas Comeback Over Flames
Mid-Buckeye Conference foes Mansfield Christian and Lucas hooked up for a third time this season in the Division IV Lexington Sectional Finals where the #5 Flames appeared to be in total control through 3 quarters of action. Jared McPeek carried MC with 22 points while backcourt mate Kyle Kurtz added 15 and the Flames led 52-43 heading into the final frame.
The 4th quarter would belong to the #3 Cubs and sophomore Logan Niswander who scored an incredible 21 fourth-quarter points, finishing with a game-high 26 to help fuel a 33 point stanza that lifted Lucas to a 76-68 victory. Lucas (15-8) would next play #1 Mansfield St Peter's (24-0) in the district semifinals.
Tournament Takeover: St Peter's vs Danbury & Mansfield Christian vs Plymouth
Recap from St. Peter's 71-28 blowout of Danbury as the AP poll champion Spartans remain undefeated behind Elijah Cobb's game-high 24 points with Jared Jakubick adding 18.
Mansfield Christian also advanced past Plymouth with a 44-40 victory, led by Jared McPeek's 16 points and Kyle Kurtz's 11. The Big Red received solid performances from Kade Collins (13 pts) and Jacob Adams (12 pts).
Rivalry Recap: Mansfield Christian vs St. Peter's
Recap of the Mansfield, Ohio cross-city rivalry between AP #1 St. Peter's and Mansfield Christian in boy's hoops.
See how Jared Jakubick & Elijah Cobb helped keep the Spartans undefeated with a 57-50 victory at The Furnace despite a monster performance by Kyle Kurtz.
Kurtz & McPeek Carry Flames Past Colts
Mansfield Christian rides the hot hands of senior guards Jared McPeek and Kyle Kurtz to a stunning 84-72 win vs Clear Fork.