LORDSTOWN Ridge tourney winner by 83-69

Southington used a balanced attack to beat Lordstown.
By SAL MARINO
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
LORDSTOWN -- Mineral Ridge High had to hold off a late McDonald rally and made 10 straight foul shots in the latter part of the game to capture the Lordstown Holiday Tournament championship Saturday night.
Ridge's 83-69 victory over McDonald followed the consolation game in which Southington defeated Lordstown, 65-36.
The Ridge-McDonald rivalry saw outstanding performances from several different players including the tournament's most valuable player -- Ridge's Malachi Hall, who had 32 points, seven steals and seven assists.Also contributing to the win for the Rams (5-1) was Chris Anderson with 23 points which included three 3-point goals and Kevin Garland with 10 points. Garland also made all-tournament first-team.
McDonald's Kevin Stonestreet also had an outstanding night with 31 points and was also a first-teamer. Teammate Jason Joynes chipped in with 19 points.
The first period was close with the Rams taking a 17-14 lead. By halftime, Ridge opened a 40-29 lead. Anderson hit all three of his 3-point goals in the first half.
Hall had 12 of his team-high 32 points in the first half. Stonestreet had 15 of his 31 points in the opening half.
Joynes made 15 of his points in the second half.
Midway through the third period, Ridge held a 24-point lead. After three quarters, the Rams led, 61-44.
McDonald out-scored Ridge 23-12 to pull within 73-67. Joynes made all three of his 3-pointers in the final period.
In the closing moments, Ridge used the foul line where it made all 10 free throws to seal the win.
The Rams had 24 rebounds with Garland and Bobby Burgess getting seven apiece.
"We got a lead and got a little tentative," said Ridge coach Del Ruiter. "Our plan was to run time off the clock. But the big difference was our shooting at the foul line. That's when our senior leadership and experience showed."
McDonald coach Ed Dolsak said, "Our intensity rose in the third and fourth periods, but it should have been in the first and second periods."
Southington, which lost to Mineral Ridge on Thursday, came back against Lordstown with Dave Motz scoring 16 points. Mike Pflager added 14 points and Max Slater 10 for the winning Wildcats. Motz was also a first-team choice.
Southington (5-3) used a balanced attack against the Red Devils (0-7).
"The focus was on our defense," said Southington coach Mike Karr. "I told our players to take care of the basketball and make sure your shots count. It was a little different tonght than Thursday, but we still have to go back to the drawing board."
Lordstown's top scorer was Nathan Czeck with 11 points while Jason Darocha added eight and was also an all-tourney selection. The Red Devils are a relatively young team that used underclassmen.