In Div. I, Boardman girls win in a rout

By Tom Williams

The Spartans defeated Canton GlenOak, 78-37, to advance to the district.

ALLIANCE — In 29 years of coaching Boardman High’s girls basketball team, Ron Moschella’s has failed to play in district competition just four times.

Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at Alliance High, Moschella will coach in a Division I district semifinal for the 25th time when the Spartans (15-7) take on Massillon Perry (14-8) for the third time this season.

Saturday, the Spartans overwhelmed Canton GlenOak, 78-37, to win another sectional title, while in overtime, Perry ousted second-seeded Lake (17-5), 56-51.

Boardman defeated Perry in the regular season and the Federal League tournament, but both games were tight.

“We play all year for this,” Moschella said of district week. “We practice for this. We have a little tradition of being here and I think the kids realize that. They feel it’s a responsibility.

“This is the best time to be playing and we’re playing our best right now,” said Moschella, explaining that the Spartans’ first game against GlenOak was an eight-point game with three minutes to play. “We’re a different team now.”

Senior point guard Katie Fiffick, who scored eight points on Saturday, said tournament means “the start of a new season.

“This is where we want to be,” Fiffick said. “We’ve worked really hard in practice and we’re really focused.

“All of us know that if we lose, we’re done,” Fiffick said. “And none of us want the season to be over, especially the six seniors. We don’t want it to end.”

Against GlenOak, junior post player Darryce Moore dominated underneath, scoring 23 points, pulling down 10 rebounds and making three steals. Junior forward Monica Touvelle scored 12 points.

Senior guard Emily Abraham scored 18 points, including three 3-pointers, as the Spartans raced to a 37-13 halftime edge.

“Emily Abraham is one of the best players on our team,” Moschella said. “She has played like that in practice every day and finally it has come to fruition that she has put her whole game together.

“Today, she showed what kind of basketball player she is,” Moschella said. “Unfortunately, she hasn’t done it all year. It’s a thrill for me to see her come along so far. She made great decisions today, she hit the 3, she made great passes inside.”

Abraham said this week “is the most important of our season. It’s what we practice all year for, it’s what we look forward and it’s great that we’re playing so well when we should be.”

Abraham said the Spartans “are really disciplined right now, We’re focused on getting the job done and we have great chemistry.”

Last year’s district tournament launched a memorable run for the Spartans after they avenged a 29-point loss to North Canton Hoover with a one-point victory in the semifinals.

About the 38-37 shocker, Fiffick said she remembers that “[Moore] had the ball at the end and we didn’t know how much time was left until the buzzer went off. It was awesome — to come back win was a great accomplishment.”

Abraham called the final seconds “a blur.” That’s when Moore stripped Hoover’s Jessica Carpenter of the ball as she was driving the lane just before time expired.

“It was like the climax of our year, but not really,” Abraham said, reflecting on the state run.

In the regional final, the Spartans defeated Howland in overtime at the Canton Civic Center to earn Boardman’s second state trip in four seasons.

“We were down by five with two minutes to go,” Fiffick said of the regional title game that went to overtime.

“To pull that out and advance, that was a great feeling. And we want to do that again.”

Citing their two close games against Perry, Abraham said, “We have to come out with a chip on our shoulder.”

Moschella said the Spartans will be looking at game footage in the next few days.

“We look at some of our old tapes to see what we did wrong,” Moschella said.

The Spartans won’t spend much time analyzing Saturday’s game.

williams@vindy.com