Ursuline bounced in double OT

The Irish came very close to winning in regulation.

By JOE SCALZO

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

CANTON — The play unfolded — although “unraveled” might be a better word, if you’re a Pymatuning Valley fan — about 50 feet from Lakers coach Jeremy Huber, who was too stunned to wince, much less freak out.

“It was more shock and amazement that he was so wide open,” Huber said. “When he missed, I didn’t know what to think.”

Ursuline coach Keith Gunther had a closer look. With five seconds left, he’d drawn up the final play of regulation to fool the Lakers into following his standout senior guard, Nick McCartney, leaving junior LaVance Turnage wide open under the basket.

It worked perfectly, at least at first, as Dominique Cole inbounded the ball to Turnage, who got a wide open look and ... it bounced on the rim, then bounced again, then bounced out.

“I thought the game was over,” Gunther said. “I think somebody blew something up there [in the stands] to knock it out.”

And so it happened that the game-winning shot turned into just another miss.

Two extra sessions — and a little more drama — later, the Irish found themselves on the wrong end of a 76-68 double overtime loss Division III regional semifinal on Wednesday at the Canton Field House.

And all you could think was, What if?

“We had our chances,” Gunther said. “We blew a lot of opportunities.”

The other big What If regarded sophomore forward Jamel Turner, who missed the game after getting tossed from the district final for a flagrant foul. Turner was reportedly baited into shoving a Campbell player — he was kicked first, causing him to shove the player in question, Gunther said — and Ursuline had filed an appeal with the state.

Not wanting to tempt fate, Gunther opted not to play Turner, hoping he could get reinstated for Saturday’s game if Ursuline won. The absence played a big role, particularly after junior Dominique Cole — Ursuline’s only other post threat — fouled out in the first overtime.

The foul occurred on the game’s second-biggest play. With less than 30 seconds remaining in overtime and the Irish clinging to a 65-62 lead, Lakers senior Steve Savel banked in a shot and was fouled by Cole. Savel made the free throw and McCartney then got tied up trying to attempt a game-winner in the closing seconds.

After that, the Irish ran out of magic. Pymatuning Valley outscored Ursuline 11-3 in the second overtime, making 7 of 8 free throws in the process, to put the game away. The Lakers (23-1) will face Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph in Saturday’s regional final.

“The luck went our way,” Huber said. “There’s luck in this game, no doubt about it.”

Savel, one of two 1,000-point scorers for the Lakers, finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds. The other 1,000-point scorer, Corey Shontz, finished with just 10.

Ursuline needed to stop both.

“Savel was the guy who hurt us,” Gunther said. “That’s where we missed Jamel.”

Cole continued his strong tournament run with 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Irish (14-10), while McCartney with 10 points, six rebounds and four assists.

Once Cole went out, Pymatuning Valley shifted to a 3-2 zone that essentially took McCartney’s outside shooting out of the equation. With no post presence, there wasn’t much the Irish could do.

“To get to this game from where we were is a huge accomplishment,” Gunther said. “From freshmen to varsity, we had 12 kids quit this year. I think that brought the team together. The last two or three weeks we’ve been playing really well.

“To have a district title is a thrill for those kids.”

scalzo@vindy.com