Tuesday, March 12, 2002
The two Division IV teams are similar as they square off tonight in Canton.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR STAFF REPORT
For the first time in 10 years, Sebring High will take the Canton Fieldhouse court as Division IV district champion.
The Trojans' opponent tonight will be Bristol, which is making its first regional appearance since 1994.
Last Friday, Sebring (20-3) won the district title at Struthers Fieldhouse, defeating Mineral Ridge, 54-52. Bristol (22-1) defeated Windham 76-71 to win the Middlefield district.
Tonight at 8, the Trojans and Panthers will face off. The winner will play either Dalton (21-3) or Strasburg-Franklin (18-6) in Friday's regional final.
Homecoming regional: Sebring coach Brian Clark says tonight's gathering will be a homecoming of sorts.
"Over the Thanksgiving break, we scrimmaged Dalton on one day and Strasburg the next," Clark said, "and we've been playing Bristol in the summer leagues for several years.
"You know, when we left those scrimmages, we jokingly said, 'See you in Canton,' " Clark said, "and now we will."
Coach Scott Groves said the Panthers also scrimmaged Strasburg and are similar in makeup to Sebring.
"The kids are certainly familiar with each other," Groves said. "We know the kind of kids they have and we certainly have a lot of respect for each other.
"Neither one of our teams has much height, and we rely on a total team effort to win," Groves said.
Rallied in district: Bristol trailed Windham by nine points in the fourth quarter before rallying for the win. Junior Craig Giesy scored the Panthers' final 14 points, including 12 at the free throw line.
"We didn't look at the clock or the score in those fourth-quarter timeouts," Groves said. "We just told the kids to keep their poise, stay relaxed, stay focused and things would take care of themselves."
The task for the Trojans is to stop Bristol's Giesy and senior John King, the NE Inland district Div. IV player of the year.
Groves said Giesy and King, who were all-Ohio selections last year, are great at picking each other up.
"If one is hot, the other is feeding him the ball," Groves said, "and if one is down, the other is trying to lift his spirits."
Giesy, a three-year starter, averaged 18 points per game while King, a four-year starter, averaged 17.3.
Clark admitted his players are excited about taking their act to the Hall of Fame city.
"Although regional appearances are nothing new to this community, it's big for these kids to be the ones restoring the Sebring tradition," said Clark, who took over the program three years ago when Rick Brook retired.
Clark is especially happy for his one senior, Joey Springer.
"Joey is so intense," Clark said. "During his two years of junior high, his teams only won once. So to play in this regional has to be so special for him."
Young team: Because his club is so young, Clark says he thinks they are "unaware of what we've accomplished. It's been an innocent climb. But we felt we could compete at the district level, so I can't say I'm terribly surprised that we are here."
Clark is aware tonight's game will turn on how well Giesy and King perform.
"They are excellent players," Clark said. "I was at the game in McDonald where they both eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for their careers. What a special night that was."
Sebring sophomore David Scarpitti, who scored the game-winning basket against Mineral Ridge for the school's 10th district title, said Giesy and King "are tough to defend."
"We need to stay out on them and try to keep them from getting shots off," Scarpitti said.
williams@vindy.com