`Kennedy collapses`

By Ed Farrell
Herald Sports Writer

Losing in the District 10 semifinals in your own backyard is difficult enough. But watching his club's 8-point lead with 61/2 minutes remaining dissipate into defeat was almost too painful to bear for Kennedy Christian boys' basketball coach Joe Votino.

Votino's Golden Eagles, leading virtually throughout, were[JU]outscored 14-3 by Saegertown in the game's final six minutes, resulting in a 56-53 setback Tuesday night at Sharon High School.

Kennedy Christian (18-8) will meet Conneaut Valley (13-13) _ a 76-46 loser to West Middlesex in Tuesday's doubleheader nightcap _ later this week at a site and time to be determined for the right to represent D-10 as its third-place seed in the Class A state playoffs.

``With three minutes to go, we're running `motion' with, like, a 6-point lead. We should be getting layups, and nobody wanted[JU]the ball,'' a bewildered Votino lamented. ``Nobody wanted to throw the ball backdoor, and nobody wanted to catch the ball backdoor for a layup. No one. And my teams, in the past, would've gotten a million layups.''

``I think that their guards are a little young,'' Saegertown head coach Randy White said regarding Kennedy, while explaining his team's comeback. ``I think, if they have a weakness, they're a little bit young.

When Kennedy's Erik Hemsing drilled a corner jumper off an inbounds play with 6:22 remaining, the Golden Eagles led 50-42.

However Saegertown scored the next 11 points, culminating in Jason Shea's layup and subsequent free throw with 1:20 left which enabled the Panthers to assume a 51-50 edge. It was the Panthers' first lead since midway through the first frame and one they would not relinquish.

Shots from the lane by Damon Clayton and Justin Green failed to drop, though Kennedy's Carlos Oatis recovered a loose ball. However, he was whistled for traveling, and Saegertown's Justin Johnson padded his game-high 27-point performance with a layup for a 53-50 Panthers' lead with 44 seconds remaining.

In the frantic final seconds, despite several opportunities from close range, the best the Eagles could do was an Oatis free throw with 9.6 seconds left, then a pair of Clayton freebies with 7.2 ticks to play after he rebounded Oatis' missed second shot. That drew Kennedy within 55-53 before Shea converted a free throw for a 3-point Saegertown margin with six seconds to play.

At the buzzer, Hemsing had a good look from the right wing at a potential game-tying trey, but it glanced off the rim.

``They really wanted to get the ball to Hemsing late in the game, and they were able to do it. I mean both those shots at the end (also following a Kennedy timeout with 38.1 seconds and Saegertown leading 53-50) were hanging on the front of the rim. He's a great shooter,'' White praised.

Votino, however, was left searching for an explanation.

``Not to take anything away from Saegertown _ 'cause I think they're a very good basketball team _ but I thought we gave it away.

``I think what it came down to is a program that is fighting to win a title, versus a program that's won, how many in row? We're just not hungry, we're very complacent,'' Votino admitted.

Clayton's 10-point, 3-rebound first frame enabled Kennedy to assume a 20-13 margin, but the Golden Eagles were guilty of seven second-stanza turnovers. Coupled with Shea's 10 points, Saegertown narrowed its halftime deficit to 30-29, with Kennedy's margin being a pair of John Reimold free throws.

Clayton and Hemsing tallied six and five points, respectively, offsetting Johnson's 8-point period, and Kennedy led 44-39 entering the fourth frame. Six seconds into the quarter, Ryan McElhinny took the inbounds pass and drove for a layup, increasing the Golden Eagles' ill-fated lead to 46-39.

``I don't know what's in them,' Votino, speaking of his club, admitted. ``I don't have a feel for this team. My teams in the past, if they would've lost, I'd feel sorry for the next team they played, or if they had a bad practice, I'd feel sorry for the team we'd play. It's just a matter of the type of person you are, your personality ... ''

``They'll come out and we'll practice hard (today), and if we're better than Conneaut Valley, we'll beat 'em, and if we're not, we won't. But it's not gonna be because we play above our ability,'' Votino concluded.

Notes: Kennedy connected on 20 of 41 (48.8) floor shots and 10 of 17 (58.8) free throws, while Saegertown (22-4) _ honorably mentioned among Harrisburg Patriot-News' top teams state-wide _ turned in respective totals of 18 of 39 (46.2) and 18 of 26 (69.2). ... Clayton's 11 caroms led Kennedy to a 32-17 rebounding edge. ... Kennedy Christian committed 21 turnovers _ eight in the fourth quarter.

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Updated Feb. 27, 1997
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Panthers 56Eagles 53

Kennedy collapses

Panthers 56
Eagles 53

`Kennedy collapses`