Firebirds’ Gray may be a handful

West Chester Lakota West prefers to play fast and use a lot of pressure, defensively.

By TOM WILLIAMS

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

BOARDMAN — The only girls basketball team without at least 20 wins at this weekend’s state tournament is Boardman (19-7).

“Everyone says that we’re not very good, that we’re going to get killed,” said Spartans coach Ron Moschella (529-129 in 28 seasons). “I think they are laughing at us ... but we’re going down to Columbus.”

Friday at 6 p.m., Boardman will make its second state tournament appearance in four seasons, taking on West Chester Lakota West (25-1) in a semifinal game.

“They are very good — very, very, very, very good,” said Moschella who scouted the Firebirds last Saturday when they defeated top-ranked Dublin Coffman, 62-48, in the Otterbein College regional. “They’re probably the best team we will play. They have all facets of the game.

“Their guards are way bigger than ours,” Moschella said. “They play really hard defense and they really deny. They try to close down every lane. ”

Leading the Firebirds to their first state appearance is senior forward Amber Gray, who will play for Tennessee and Pat Summitt next fall. The 6-foot-1 Gray averages 18.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 3.5 steals per game.

By the way, she was announced on Wednesday as Ohio’s Ms. Basketball.

The daughter for former NFL defensive back Carlton Gray, she’s also Ohio’s Division I player of the year

“She’s the player” on the Firebirds,” Moshella said,

“Courtney [Schiffauer] has a tendency to target someone like that,” said Moschella of his 6-1 senior forward who will be playing for Michigan State next fall.

In 26 games, Schiffauer has averaged 19.6 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists. She also made 19 blocks and 76 steals.

To say that Moschella, who doesn’t mince words, is miffed at the media because Schiffauer was not picked as an All-Ohio first team player would be an understatement.

Schiffauer said she’s looking forward to playing the Firebirds for the second time in two seasons. In January 2007, the then-number-three-ranked Spartans and number-two Firebirds played in Berlin’s “Classic in the Country.” Both were undefeated.

Lakota West won, 52-46. Gray was in foul trouble, finishing with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Schiffauer scored 24 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Darryce Moore, then a freshman for the Spartans, provided 14 points and 14 rebounds.

“They’re fast and they have big girls, too,” Schiffauer said. “They are a good team all around [but] I like that we get to play them again.”

What hurt the Spartans in that 2007 game was free-throw shooting, making just 21 of 37 attempts.

“That killed us,” Moschella said. “When you play a quality team like that, you’ve got to make your free throws. We missed a couple of crucial one-and-ones down the stretch. ”

Moschella said the Firebirds’ number-two player is 6-1 junior guard/forward Alexis Rogers, a Division I college prospect. Rogers averaged 12 points per game.

“Alexis Rogers is their inside person and she’s real active,” Moschella said. “She’s not as big as Ryce but she’s more active.”

The other Lakota starters will come from this quartet: 5-8 senior guard Quinessa Johnson (St. Francis), senior guard Caitlin Dombart (soccer scholarship with Illinois), 5-11 senior center Emma Zieverink and 5-6 junior guard Tessa Elkins who has committed to Ohio University.

The Firebirds prefer to play fast and use a lot of pressure defensively.

The Firebirds and Spartans have one common opponent. At the Pickerington Tournament in late December, both played Pennsylvania’s Archbishop Wood which was ranked number-two in the nation by MaxPreps.

The Firebirds posted a 17-0 run in the second half to pound Archbishop Wood, 69-31. The Spartans lost, 51-41.

“That gives us a little incentive,” Moschella said.

Lakota coach Andy Fishman, who is in his 11th year (177-79), expects Friday’s game to have “some contrasting styles. Ron’s going to have them ready to play.”

In their season opener, the Firebirds defeated state semifinalist Cincinnati’s Mt. Notre Dame, 61-55.

Fishman says his team is not looking ahead to Saturday’s finale.

“Our girls have not mentioned another school other than the school we play in the next game,” Fishman said. “You’ve got a coach with over 500 wins ... There’s no way to look past a living coaching legend like him.”

Moschella said he doesn’t know just how tough the Firebirds’ Greater Miami Conference is but he respects their non-conference slate.

He also believes his Spartans are much better than their record indicates. Three of their losses were against nationally-ranked teams — Archbishop Wood, Oakridge (Tenn.) and Lexington (Ky.). Two were against Hoover, which was ranked fifth in the state’s final Associated Poll of Div. I teams.

In December, the Spartans defeated Div. II regional finalist Canfield, 59-56.

“I think Lakota West is going to know that they’ve been in a game,” Moschella said.

williams@vindy.com