Senior Liz Valerio's outside shooting helped Struthers upend Lakeview, 67-57.

Senior Liz Valerio's outside shooting helped Struthers upend Lakeview, 67-57.
By TOM WILLIAMS
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
AUSTINTOWN -- Struthers High senior basketball player Liz Valerio has seen her much younger teammates grow up plenty this season.
She knows that chances are good that freshman point guard Dana Mathews and sophomore Sally Phillips are likely to see several more tournament games in their varsity careers.
Valerio is happy she has at least one more to enjoy.
Monday in the Division II tournament opener at Fitch High, Valerio's hot shooting from the outside helped propel the Wildcats (9-12) to a 67-57 upset of Lakeview (16-4).
"I'm happy to have another two days of practice because it means we have one more game," said Valerio after scoring 14 points. "It always feels good to have one more game."
Thursday at 6:45 p.m., Struthers plays Mooney.
In Monday's nightcap, second-seeded Rayen (17-3) defeated Streetsboro, 66-42. The Tigers' next tournament game will be Thursday at 5:15 p.m. against Poland.
Struthers-Lakeview
Valerio connected for a pair of first-quarter 3-pointers as the Wildcats jumped out to a 17-8 lead.
"We all encourage each other," Valerio said of her young squad. "We have three juniors and the rest are underclassmen.
"It's been tough because not all of them have that much game experience," Valerio said. "But they have the talent.
"I give them a lot of credit because they were just thrown into a game that has a much faster pace than what they are used to playing in middle school," Valerio said. "They just really stepped up."
Although Lakeview cut the gap to two points in the fourth quarters, Struthers never trailed.
Mathews made seven baskets and eight free throws for a game-high 23 points. Juniors Halle Minchin-Skook scored 14 points and Ashley Galbraith 11.
"That was probably our best game," said Struthers coach John Grandy, adding that the key was "we kept control of the ball. We're not a big team and I thought we did a decent job on the boards.
"Valerio stepped up for us in 3-point shooting and she pulled down some big rebounds," Grandy said. "I think we played better defense than they probably saw on film.
"We're a very young team and I was a little worried when it got close because we haven't been in that situation much."
Grandy said playing a Metro Athletic Conference schedule that includes Canfield and Howland makes the Wildcats better.
For Lakeview, Joanna Novotny scored 18 points. Seniors Chelsea Butler and Alynn Martin ended with 13 points and 12 points.
"We were 0-for-9 to start with," Lakeview coach Glenn Rowland said. "We just dug ourselves too deep a hole in the first quarter."
Rayen-Streetsboro
Two days after losing to Division I powerhouse Boardman by eight points, Rayen coach Tanisha Franklin says her team suffered a hangover effect from the energy expended against Spartans.
"We were sluggish but I'm not going to make excuses for my team," said Franklin of the Steel Valley Conference champions.
An 8-3 run to close the first quarter had the Tigers ahead, 17-8 and the Rockets never seriously threatened, trailing 34-16 at halftime.
Rayen's speed keyed 30 turnovers by the Rockets. "That been our bread and butter all year, our pressure defense," Franklin said.
After trailing by 21 points late in the third quarter, the Rockets surged with a 9-0 run and caught Franklin's attention for a postgame lecture.
Junior Brittney Taylor led the Tigers with 25 points, five rebounds and two steals.
Jaleesa Beverly scored 16 points while point guard Kenysha Beachum scored 11. Alex Hines came off the bench to net 10 points while senior guard Tieara Jones keyed the defense with seven steals and four rebounds.
The Rockets were led by Brittni Jones with 12 points and Kelsey Cianci with 10.
williams@vindy.com