Willard Dominates Upper Sandusky For District Crown
In Willard’s first trip to the District Championship since they beat Upper Sandusky for the title in 2006, the Flashes repeated history with a 60-36 victory over the Rams to claim the Division III Norwalk title.
Upper Sandusky (19-6) blitzed Willard 83-59 in their regular season opener back in November, so a motivated Flashes squad took control from the jump, leading wire to wire. Willard held a 20-15 advantage after the first, extending their lead to 30-19 by the break.
Upper Sandusky put together a late run in the third quarter after falling behind by 13 to close within 40-29 heading into the final eight minutes where Flashes senior forward Davon Triplett took over the game. The Willard big man scored six field goals in the frame, finishing with a game-high 20 points and 9 rebounds, as the Flashes scored the last 11 points of the contest to secure the win.
Willard (22-3) will next face Coldwater (17-9) in the Regional Semifinals at Bowling Green.
Mohawk Survives Rams For Outright N10 Lead
A critical Northern 10 Conference showdown between unbeaten Mohawk and 3-time defending league champion Upper Sandusky wasn’t decided until the final whistle when the now 11-0 Warriors walked off their home floor with a hard-fought 59-58 victory.
Following a back and forth opening half that saw the Rams on top 15-11 after the first and Mohawk ahead 28-25 at the break, the Warriors then controlled most of the second half action. Fueled by a boisterous crowd, Mohawk would build a double-digit edge in the third stanza before Upper Sandusky battled back to make it 46-40 heading into the contest’s final quarter.
The Warriors would again put the Rams in a 10-point hole but junior guard Cameron McCreary, who scored 12 of his team-best 19 points in the fourth, helped trim the deficit down to a single possession. Mohawk would do just enough damage from the free throw line down the stretch, however, to hold off a devastating come back to remain perfect on the season.
Zach Hayman led all scorers with 24 points for the Warriors with teammate Kaden Hammer adding a dozen and Chirs Klopp chipping in with seven. Along with McCreary, Trevor Clifford was the only other Ram to hit double-figures with 10 followed by Mason vent who dropped nine.
Galion Shuts Down Upper Sandusky 34-0 To Stay Unbeaten
The Galion football squad wrapped-up their non-league schedule with a sparkling 3-0 mark after shutting down previously unbeaten Upper Sandusky 34-0 at their place.
The Tigers received an outstanding performance from senior QB Elias Middleton who accounted for all five of their scores, finishing 10-14 through the air for 185 yds and a TD and rushing for 187 yds & 4 TD’s on 14 carries. Galion’s defense forced six Rams turnovers on their way to the team’s first shutout of the season.
Next up for the Tigers (3-0) is their MOAC opener against Marion Pleasant (3-0) while Upper Sandusky (2-1) will travel to Colonel Crawford (2-1).
Norwalk Rolls Past Rams To District Finals
The Lady Truckers returned to the district finals with a 53-45 victory over Upper Sandusky in the Division II Galion District Semifinals.
Norwalk led from start to finish receiving 17 points from senior guard Kaelyn Harkness and 16 by senior forward Jasmine Thomas.
Northern 10 Conference leading scorer Abigail Fogle netted a game-high 18 points for the Lady Rams in her final high school contest but a slow start combined with 20 Upper Sandusky turnovers saw their comeback fall just short.
Sports Spotlight: Upper Sandusky vs Colonel Crawford
Watch every single basket from this winner takes all showdown for an outright Northern Ten Conference boy's basketball championship where the Rams outlast the Eagles for a 62-55 victory in North Robinson.
Upper Sandusky senior guard Jevon Dible scored a game-high 21 points with sophomore forward Mason Vent adding 13.
Crawford put three players in double-figures scoring with sophomore guard Cam McCreary netting 18, senior forward Harley Shaum 14 and senior guard Brody Martin 13.