Russia routs Fisher Catholic, storms into regional finals
KETTERING — When Lancaster Fisher Catholic put four players back on defense for the opening tip, it was more than a sign. It was an admission.
The Irish didn’t bother to list heights in the program, but no one was taller than 6-foot, if that. And Russia, with its tallest lineup of 6-5, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2, took advantage of their size. The Raiders blocked shots, converted offensive rebounds into points, deployed disruptive double-teams, deflected passes and dunked.
In short, the Raiders did whatever they wanted.
Russia’s hoped-for march toward a second straight state semifinals on Tuesday night at Trent Arena was more of a stroll, a 71-20 walkover of the Irish.
The Southwest District changed its Division IV format this season to a super sectional. That meant Russia coach Spencer Cordonnier, as the No. 1 seed, had his choice of playing in Piqua or Troy. He preferred Piqua, but he knows the toughest path to state is against teams from the Dayton-area sectional. So when he saw the setup of playing against a Cincinnati school in the district final and a Central District team in a region semifinal, the choice to play in Troy was obvious.
“This was the route that that we took, and we knew what that route was going to be,” he said. “Any No. 1 seed’s going to take that route. There’s no sense in putting yourself in jeopardy in trying to get to this point.”
But there are no more easy games for the No. 2 Raiders (26-1). They will play fourthranked Troy Christian (24-2) in Friday’s 7 p.m. regional final at Trent.
The second-ranked Raiders beat No. 4 Troy Christian 64-39 on Dec. 28. In a regional final, however, Cordonnier expects a much tougher game.
“Whoever we play Friday night, it’s going to be very, very challenging,” Cordonnier said before the Troy Christian-Jackson Center game. “Friday night is going to be a great atmosphere, and sometimes in that atmosphere, and we’ve already talked about this, it’s maybe a situation where we tell the kids just go be athletes and see what happens.”
On Tuesday, the Raiders happened in waves that Fisher (16-10) couldn’t avoid. In the first half, the Raiders blocked six shots, turned 19 offensive rebounds into 18 points and forced 14 turnovers. After a running-clock second half and the bench getting ample playing time, the final totals were nine blocks, 24 offensive rebounds for 22 points and 18 turnovers.
“Our guys have maintained focus and stayed discipline throughout,” Cordonnier said. “If we want to go to where we think we can get to, you got to guard. Defense wins championships.”
Hayden Quinter led the Raiders with 20 points, with 17 coming in the first half. Benjamin York added 12 points, and 11 of the 15 Raiders scored. Felix Francis, the tallest starter at 6-5, blocked three shots.
Fisher shot 21.1% and took 23 fewer shots than the Raiders, which shot 45.9%.
Believe it or not, the final score could have been worse. The Raiders struggled to make layups and jump shots in the first quarter. They led 17-1 after making only 7 of 23 shots, including many attempts near the basket.
For a while, the Raiders’ offense was reminiscent of the last time they played at Trent. That was last year’s 27-25 region final victory over Jackson Center in which neither team shot well. But there was no chance that would continue.
You could see that from the opening tip.