Boys, girls hoops postseason continues

The action on the hardwood continues with the Gilmour girls team in a Division II regional final, and the Beachwood and Cornerstone boys in district finals. We have preview capsules for all.

(1) CORNERSTONE CHRISTIAN VS. (2) BRISTOL

What: Division IV Orwell District final

When: March 9, 7 p.m. Where: Grand Valley High School, 111 Grand Valley Ave. #C

Records: Cornerstone Christian 17-7, Bristol 22-2

On deck: The winner advances to a Canton regional semifinal March 13 against the winner of Rittman and Cuyahoga Heights.

For the record: Cornerstone returns to the Orwell District final after an emotional victory against defending district champion Warren JFK on March 5. The Patriots lost to the Eagles in last year’s district championship. Bristol compiled a 20-win regular season and advanced with a victory against Windham. The Panthers finished the season ranked No. 6 in the state poll. Bristol’s schedule as members of the Northeastern Athletic Conference pales in comparison to Cornerstone’s loaded slate, but teams don’t win 22 games by accident. Guards Bryan Danielson and Tommy Donadio lead the Panthers from the backcourt. Patriots guards Michael Bothwell, Jeremy Owens, Titus Wheeler, Dontavious Henry and Ricky Adams have shown they can lock up any opposing scorer when necessary. Cornerstone owns a significant size advantage over Bristol. The Patriots should be able to control the frontcourt and receive production from Kendall Saunders, Martel Ferrell and Ja’Shawn Robinson.

Barnes’ pick: Cornerstone Christian

(1) LUTHERAN EAST VS. (2) BEACHWOOD

What: Division III Garfield Heights District final

When: March 9, 7 p.m. Where: Garfield Heights High School, 4900 Turney Road

Records: Lutheran East 11-13, Beachwood 13-10

On deck: The winner advances to a Canton regional semifinal March 14 against the winner of Manchester and Triway.

For the record: Beachwood rallied late to defeat Elyria Catholic, 68-63, in a district final. The Bison were without coach Jon Mannarino, currently on a leave of absence, for the game. Beachwood played to its potential in stretches, using a 15-0 run in the second quarter to take a halftime lead. The Bison asserted control with a 14-0 run in the fourth quarter. Josh Sizemore led the Bison with 23 points. Lutheran East advanced with little resistance over Columbia, 63-50. Lutheran East is led by first team all-district selection Jordan Burge, who averaged 18.6 points per game during the regular season. David Gulley led the team in scoring at 21.2 points per game, while freshman E.J. Farmer and sophomore Nehemiah Benson also averaged doubledigit scoring. The Falcons are the reigning Division IV state champions and entered the postseason with a 9-13 record. Lutheran East is the only D-III member of the Lake Erie League that features schools from D-I and D-II. The Falcons’ nonconference slate included matchups with St. Edward, St. Ignatius, Cornerstone Christian, Gilmour, Revere and Beachwood. The Bison fell in the teams’ first matchup, 70-64, on Dec. 3.

Barnes’ pick: Lutheran East