Hartville beats Norwood to win district title

After surviving No. 5 seeded Bakersfield with a slim two-point win in the Class 2, District 10 semifinals, the Hartville Eagles knew they would need to regroup quickly if they were going to beat state-ranked Norwood in the championship game.
They did just that as they opened up an 11-point lead in the second quarter on the Pirates and controlled Norwood for most of the game to win their 13th district championship in 14 seasons with a 50-41 win.
As the final buzzer was about to sound, Hartville head coach Brett Reed gave injured All-State player Mason Cogdill a big hug moments before handing him the first place plaque.
“Mixed emotions,” Coach Reed noted as he described how he felt in handing the plaque to Mason. “I’m so sorry he didn’t get to play the rest of his senior season…If there ever was a win for him, this one’s definitely for him.”
After Norwood looked so dangerous in the semifinals eliminating state-ranked rival Mansfield in overtime, they were unable to carry that same magic into the finals.
“Obviously, they’re a good team,” Gus Sinning said about Norwood. “Our coaches do a great job preparing us…I feel like we followed our scouting report very well and it all worked out today.”
In the opening quarter, Boone Garrison converted a 3-point play while Gus Sinning scored five points.
The Eagles led 11-6 before opening the second quarter on a 6-0 run with back-to-back 3-pointers from Gus and Boone.
Norwood’s Laken Coatney answered with one of his own to stop some momentum, but the Pirates trailed 19-9 at halftime.
Coatney opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer and Remington Hill added a 3-point play to get the lead down to five. Norwood would get the lead down to three before Gus Sinning hit a pair of free throws.
Coryell then hit a big 3-pointer to push the lead back to eight and it would get to 13 before the end of the third.
Norwood started the fourth with a 5-0 run as Coatney scored all five points.
With 1:20 remaining, Gus Sinning hit a pair of free throws to get the lead to 12.
Brady Vaughan and Hill would each make 3-pointers late, but Norwood could not cut much into the lead.
Brock Jones, who was all over the court in the game, made 1-of-2 late free throws and the Eagles would hold on for the nine-point win.
“He was our MVP tonight,” Coach Reed said of Brock Jones, who was diving, going for steals and getting the most out of his time in the game. “He epitomizes what a Hartville player is all about.”
Gus Sinning led the Eagles with a team-high 17 points, five rebounds and two assists.
“That’s been Gus for us all year,” Coach Reed noted. “It was almost like he stepped his game up to another level…He just did not want to lose.”
Garrison added 15 points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal; Coryell had six points; Jordan O’Quinn had five points, three rebounds, three assists and one steal; Brock Jones had four points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal; and Hayden Johns had three points, four rebounds and two steals.
Norwood was led by Coatney’s 15 points, three rebounds, two steal and one assist; Hill had 10 points, three rebounds, one assist and one block; Carson Vaughan had six points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal; Kelly had four points, three rebounds, one steal and one block; Brady Vaughan tallied three points, two steals and one rebound; while Bradshaw had three points, four steals and one assist.
“I have tremendous respect for Coach (Shane) Chadwell and the job he does at Norwood,” Coach Reed added.
Just after press time, the Eagles took on Eugene in the state sectionals in Lebanon.
A win gives them a state quarterfinals match-up with either Crane or Lockwood at 1 p.m. on March 7 at Buffalo High School.
The season almost came to a surprising end in the district semifinals against No. 5 seed Bakersfield.
Hartville’s offense struggled for most of the contest as they scored more than 10 points just one time in the contest.
Fortunately, they held on late for a 36-34 victory.
In the fourth quarter, Bakersfield made a 6-0 run to tie the game with 4:43 remaining.
The Lions took the lead a couple of times in the frame and went up two after a 3-pointer with 1:52 left.
Garrison responded with a score and forcing a turnover.
After the Lions tied the game at 34-34 with 15 seconds remaining, Johns would score the eventual game-winner as he crashed the basket for a lay-up with 6.7 seconds left in the contest.
The Lions set up a shot near the paint, but the player was unable to get off a good shot and Hartville survived the scare.
Early in the contest, the Eagles made just 2-of-9 shots from the field for a 5-4 edge in the opening frame.
Garrison and Johns both scored four point in the second quarter to take a 14-13 lead into halftime.
Truett Coryell hit a pair of 3-pointers in the third quarter and Garrison added one as the Eagles went on a 13-8 run to start the second half.
Garrison led Hartville with 11 points,six rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block; Gus Sinning had 10 points, six rebounds and two rebounds; Coryell had six points, three rebounds and two assists; Johns added six points, six assists, three rebounds, two steals and one block; while O’Quinn had three points, two rebounds and one assist.