The Herald, Sharon, Pa: Winter sports '97-'98

Published Saturday, Feb. 28, 1998

DISTRICT 10 PLAYOFFS
Eagles 67, Big Reds 52
Eagles rally past West Middlesex

ENABLES KC TO NAB 8TH DISTRICT 10 CHAMPIONSHIP

By Ed Farrell
Herald Sports Writer

It was giddyup time for the Kennedy Christian High School boys basketball team, so John Reimold hoisted the Golden Eagles onto his back and took 'em for a ride _ all the way to the District 10 Class A championship.

The slender sophomore sharpshooter's torrid 4-for-5 long-range markmanship enabled Kennedy to overcome a 30-28 third- period deficit en route to posting a 67-52 victory Friday night.

By virtue of the victory, Kennedy Christian (25-2) claimed its 19th consecutive conquest and the school's eighth District 10 title overall and sixth under Votino. In addition, the Golden Eagles advance to the PIAA playoffs for the 10th straight season under Votino.

The win was all the more sweet, considering it occurred in Farrell's E.J. McCluskey Gymnasium. Votino assisted the legendary McCluskey during his lone season as Kennedy's head coach following his incomparable Steelers' stint, in which he emerged as Pennsylvania schoolboy basketball's winningest coach with seven state titles.

``I respect this place,'' Votino, his typically raspy post-game voice descending to an almost reverent whisper, admitted. ``I want to win a district championship in any place, but being in the `house' of Coach McCluskey, I have a lot of respect for that.''

Reimold's performance surely would have elicited a smile from ``Mac,'' as it did from his disciple, Votino.

``He did a great job shooting,'' Votino asserted, then sounding a little like McCluskey, adding, ``and he's getting a little better defensively, too.''

With Marc Bator tallying 11 first- half points, West Middlesex assumed a 26-25 margin at intermission. Then Bator's freebie commenced the second-half scoring and increased the Big Reds' lead to 27-25, before Reimold went off.

A minute into the second half, Reimold's top-of-the-key trey enabled Kennedy to take its initial lead (28-27) since the midway mark of the first frame. Ten seconds later Derek Gearhart responded with his own trifecta to regain a 30-28 West Middlesex edge, but that short-lived lead would prove to be the Big Reds' last.

With Reimold connecting on a trio of treys from a variety of spots and Lamar Jefferson adding a pair of buckets, Kennedy outscored West Middlesex, 18-6, during the final 5:45 of the frame en route to a 46-36 edge at the third-quarter turn.

The Golden Eagles then spread the wealth during the final frame, as Carlos Oatis' half-dozen points, complemented by five apiece from Damon Clayton and Justin Green and Reimold's four enabled Kennedy to maintain a double-digit lead through the duration.

The second half stood in stark contrast to the first, when Kennedy's collective 8-for-29 shooting and a dozen turnovers, coupled with Bator's play, provided West Middlesex with its halftime lead.

``I was disappointed at the beginning of the game, I thought we were being out-hustled and out-rebounded,'' Votino admitted. ``But then I felt we corrected that in the second half and started getting the loose balls and the loose rebounds.

``We talked (at halftime) about not getting pushed all over the place and playing stronger, 'cause we weren't doing that,'' Votino continued. ``They were very physical and we weren't responding. But I thought we responded in the second half.''

``I think, tonight, we played probably better than the other two (regular season) games,'' West Middlesex head coach Larry Ellison said. ``We just didn't knock any shots down and missed some crucial foul shots.''

The Big Reds struggled through a 6-for-28 second-half shooting performance, due, in part, to Bator's absence. He was assessed his fourth personal foul with 4:09 remaining in the third period with Kennedy leading 34-31. By the time he returned at the 6:46 juncture of the fourth frame, West Middlesex trailed 49-38.

``He was the only one who was actually taking the ball to the hole and looking to score,'' Ellison noted. ``And he probably was the only one who was having success shooting the ball for us tonight, and that did hurt us.''

Now both clubs will represent the Mercer County Athletic Conference and District 10 in next week's state playoffs.

``If anyone would've said at the beginning of the year that we would be here, I'd have said we'd need a lot of breaks. But the kids have come on and really played hard,'' Ellison praised.

``This is a very tired basketball team,'' Votino said of his club. ``But that's the way it is; you've gotta get used to it. You gotta find extra energy. I mean, that's the sign of a great team, because we were really tired. It's hard to play when you're tired. But we've got a week off. We'll get ready. We'll have a chance to recuperate, get some rest. But you never know when you're gonna travel.''

Notes: The Golden Eagles will meet Monessen (16-10), District 7's No. 5. ... Kennedy connected on 22 of 52 (42.3 percent) floor shots and 17 of 30 (56.7) freebies, compared with respective totals of 16 of 57 (28.1) and 18 of 26 for West Middlesex (21-6). ... Green's game-high 10 caroms led Kennedy to a 41-36 edge on the boards. David Jennings and Tim Van Buren led West Middlesex with 8 and 7, respectively. ... Kennedy committed 21 turnovers, two more than West Middlesex. ... the Big Reds will meet Serra Catholic (WPIAL No. 3) in the first round.

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Updated Feb. 28, 1998
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