Solon boys have chance to avenge girls’ loss
Tickets for the boys basketball state tournament had barely gone on sale when Solon coach Tony DeCesare was being asked whether his team could get a measure of revenge against an opponent he had never seen play in person.
The Comets defeated Copley 81-60 in a Division I regional final at Cleveland State on Saturday and fans streamed to the parking lot after the trophy presentation to begin a 2½-hour drive to Value City Arena to watch their girls play for a state championship.
Pickerington Central held on to defeat Solon 49-45 in the final seconds on Saturday.
Now, the Solon boys (26-1) will play Pickerington Central (18-8) in a state semifinal at 8 p.m. Friday.
“It is a pretty unique Pickerington Central coach Eric Krueger celebrates a 43-39 win over Hilliard Bradley in a Division I regional final on Saturday. His Tigers take on Solon in a state semifinal on Friday. situation to be facing the same team our girls played for the state championship," DeCesare said. “Somebody asked me, ‘Can you get some revenge for the girls?’ That probably wouldn’t make our girls feel any better for not closing the deal. It’s amazing for both schools to have this kind of success."
DeCesare was asked
what was in the water for Solon to send boys and girls teams to the final four. He pointed out this is the boys’ first trip, but that it was the girls’ fourth since 2006.
“Tournament-wise, we’ve had a difficult road when you think about the names of the programs we’ve had to face," he said of Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights, Mentor and Copley. “I’m proud of the way our guys have put together five good tournament games. Our regional was really loaded. I wish I could pinpoint something because we’d bottle it up and continue to do it."
John Rositano was a young assistant coach when powerful Lorain Admiral King made the last of three state tournament appearances in 1988.
In those days, the once thriving steel-making town had three high schools. Now it has one.
The Titans (22-5) have given the population an emotional boost by making their first state tournament since 1923. They will play Cincinnati Moeller (25-3) in a Division I semifinal at 5:15 p.m. Friday.
“This has been a basketball town. and I go back since the ‘70s," Rositano said. “This town has been dreaming about this appearance in the state final four, and they got it. The cheers and the joy you saw from old-timers and fans — everybody involved — was something to see."
Lorain defeated Lakewood St. Edward 72-69 in a regional semifinal and Toledo St. John’s 47-44 in a regional final.
“This was our third time in the last four years in the regional, and we just had not broken through," Rositano said. “One thing about Lorain kids is they feel they’ve been disrespected this year. They felt people were not convinced we were going to be a great basketball team. They’ve got a chip on their shoulders and they play with a great deal of character and heart."
Lutheran East has a 14-13 record but has overcome injuries and inexperience to reach the Division III tournament for the fourth time since 2005. It won titles in ’05 and last season.
Star Jordan Burge has played through back spasms. The starting lineup includes two sophomores and a freshman, and a sophomore is the first player off the bench.
“We lost nine guys from last year and you wonder whether you are going to have the chemistry to pull it off," coach Anthony Jones said. “You look at our scores and everything has been close. We’ve won in so many ways. We’ve got guys who have never played on this stage, but they are determined and hungry."