DIV. III BOYS REGIONAL Poland contends with flu bug

The Bulldogs play Canton South tonight at the Canton Civic Center.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
Ken Grisdale's first taste of regional semifinal was enough to make him sick. Freshman Chad Fender may feel the same way.
Grisdale, the coach of the Poland High boys basketball team, won his first district title in 1996. As a reward, he got to face the defending Division III state champion -- Orrville.
The Bulldogs lost 46-37, but were down by two with a minute left when a Poland 3-pointer rimmed out. Poland would have faced either Warrensville Heights, one of the top programs in the state, or Cleveland Villa-Angela St. Joseph, which won the Div. II state title in 1995.
"It's all about timing," Grisdale said. "You gotta be a little lucky."
Unfortunately, luck has a way of eluding Poland, which plays Canton South (22-1) in the Div. II regional semifinal tonight at 8 at the Canton Civic Center.
After finally conquering their buzzer-beating blues, the Bulldogs must fight another foe: the flu.
Fenders sick: Junior Eric Fender got the first bout on Sunday before passing it to his brother Chad on Monday.
"Chad got home from practice at 5:30 [on Monday] and was throwing up until 11:15," Grisdale said. "I just talked with his mom and I'm not sure how much he can play."
But things have a way of working out, and Poland (21-2) got a little lucky with its regional placement.
Two-time defending Div. III state champions Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary will take its star LeBron James up to the Toledo regional. Instead, Poland will meet a strong -- but mortal -- Canton South team, which Grisdale said is similar to the Bulldogs.
"You could take the uniforms and switch them," he said.
Junior guard Ronnie Bourquin leads the Wildcats, who go six or seven deep. Bourquin averages 17 points and six assists per game. Jeremy Richards is a strong defender and adds 15 points per game and Adam Manko averages 12.3.
"They're very guard-laden, like us," Grisdale said. "Defensively, they do a little more zone trapping and we do more man trapping. They've had a little lower scoring, but I think they're trying to be a little conservative offensively in the tournament."
Dunn top scorer: Senior guard Jamie Dunn leads Poland with 14.2 points per game.
Chad Fender led the Metro Athletic Conference in 3-point percentage with 38.9 percent, and is the Bulldogs' best foul shooter at 79 percent.
Junior Neil Harris -- who Grisdale calls "our motor" -- led the MAC with 3.4 steals per game and grabs 5.7 rebounds per game.
Juniors Bill Bartos and Eric Fender add depth off the bench and Lou DaVanzo is a threat from 3-point range, shooting 34.6 percent from behind the arc.
Senior David McGarry, who doesn't garner as many headlines as Dunn, solidifies the middle and averages 12 points per game and a team-high six rebounds.
Better player: McGarry played sparingly behind Micah Harris last year until Harris had to quit because of swelling in his knees. The experience made McGarry a much better player this year.
"He's the kid who gives us the most in the post," Grisdale said of McGarry. "Everyone has a little nitch and if we didn't have his body inside, we wouldn't have been as successful."
Grisdale played football and basketball before graduating from Canfield in 1981. He played football at the University of Akron until 1986 and was hired as head basketball coach at Poland in 1993.
He lost two district title games -- to Canfield in 1995 and to Chaney last year -- and has one of the best assistant staffs in the area.
Tom Fender coached at Fitch for 12 years before coming to Poland to help coach his sons. Brian Nord, a 1984 Poland graduate, joined Grisdale's staff in 1993 and coaches the defense.
scalzo@vindy.com