Spartans beaten by No. 9 Lexington Catholic

In a 49-41 loss, Courtney Schiffauer had 18 points against nationally-ranked Lexington (Ky.) Catholic.

By JOE SCALZO

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

BERLIN — Midway through the fourth quarter of Monday’s game against Lexington (Ky.) Catholic, Boardman sophomore Darryce Moore dislocated a finger and stepped off the court in pain.

Her mom came down to talk to her, stressed the importance of the game, and after the finger was popped in and taped, Moore told her coaches, “I want to play.”

“She’s a tough son of a [gun],” said Spartans coach Ron Moschella, shaking his head.

But in the words of noted philosopher Clint Eastwood, tough wasn’t enough.

Michigan State recruit Courtney Schiffauer scored 18 points to go along with eight rebounds, three assists and four steals, but she didn’t get enough help on the offensive end as the Spartans fell to the nationally-ranked Knights 49-41 in the Classic in the Country at Hiland High School.

Lexington Catholic was ranked ninth in the country in USA Today’s latest poll, but lost to North Canton Hoover on Sunday.

“They’re a good team and it’s beneficial for the kids,” Moschella said. “Not for the coach, but the kids.

“I’m going to have a coronary in my car.”

Moore, who is ranked 50th nationally in her class, battled foul trouble in the first half and finished with eight points and five rebounds for the Spartans, whose rebounding problems proved fatal.

The Knights (18-3) outrebounded Boardman 41-27, including a 20-5 edge on the offensive end. Part of that was due to Boardman’s strategy of playing the 6-foot-1 Schiffauer on the perimeter, which left the Spartans vulnerable inside.

“She’s [Schiffauer] a good player and we tried to run and jump her to get the ball out of her hands,” Lexington Catholic coach Jeff Hans said. “We wanted to make the other players beat us.”

Monica Touvelle scored eight points off the bench for the Spartans (11-6), but Boardman will need better play from its guards to make some noise in the postseason.

Still, the Spartans were in the game late, trailing just 39-38 with 3:37 left. Lexington answered with a 7-0 run and Boardman couldn’t recover.

“We played the No. 9 team in the country and we were knocking on the door,” Moschella said. “This team has a tough time finishing games. We’re with every team to the very end, but we have to learn to finish better.

“Schiffauer needs some help and she didn’t get.”

The Spartans played well defensively, holding the Knights to 26 percent shooting (14 of 54) from the field, but the offensive rebounds proved costly.

“Sometimes the shots fall and sometimes they don’t,” Hans said. “We rebounded well and made some big baskets down the stretch.”

Although this was the second straight year one of Moschella’s teams lost at this tournament, he’d love to come back. More than 170 college scouts attend the three-day tournament, including one from Michigan State. (When he was asked about Schiffauer, he said, “I like her. She’s going to be really good for us. She’ll fit right in.”)

“The people are so nice and so hospitable,” Moschella said. “They want you to be here and they want you to enjoy the town and the high school. I’ve been at other tournaments and they make you feel like they just want your team.

“Here, they want you to have the nicest experience you can have. It is and I love it. I don’t like losing, but when you play these kinds of teams, that comes with the territory.”

scalzo@vindy.com