Beaver Local’s Owen Hill was named a Div. IV First Team All-Ohioan boys basketball player on Wednesday. (Photo by Ron Firth)

CALCUTTA — Beaver Local 6-foot-6 junior Owen Hill reached new heights this season.

“He’s a team-first kid,” Beaver Local coach Nick Miller said. “For a long time, we had to force him to shoot the basketball.”

Once he did, no one could stop him.

Hill because the first Beaver Local boys basketball player to capture first-team All-Ohio honors on the Ohio Prep Sports Media Association’s Division IV team released Wednesday.

“He had a great year,” Miller said. “I don’t think he anticipated being where he’s at.”

Hill was the area’s leading scorer, averaging 22.3 points a game, as well as topping the Beavers in rebounds (11.2), blocks (2.9) and field goal percentage (61%).

He was third on the team in assists (2.5) and steals (2.5). He also shot 34% from three-point range and 68% from the foul line.

“Everything we did went through him,” Miller said. “As he went, we went.”

That was evident late in the season. The Beavers lost their last four games to finish with a 14-9 record.

“He turned his ankle at Union Local (on Feb. 7) and sat out fourth quarter,” Miller said. “After that he was very tentative in the things that made him successful.”

The Beavers wrapped up the season with losses to 17-7 Union Local, 17-8 East Liverpool, 18-7 St. Clairsville and 15-8 Carrollton.

“Playoff basketball is brutal,” Miller said.

Hill is the third Beaver Local boy to score 1,000 career points. His total of 1,029 is only 57 points away from surpassing Jake Robinson’s school record.

“We kind of expect the same from him in the future,” Miller said. “I’m proud of him, he’s earned this. We’re glad we get another year with him.”

Hill leads area honorees along with Columbiana senior Seth Struharik, a third-team Division VI All-Ohioan.

Struharik sparked the Clippers to a 19-4 season and a share of the Eastern Ohio Athletic Conference before breaking his leg late in the regular-season finale. He averaged a team-high 21.9 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 53.6% from the field, 36% from three-point range and 70% from the foul line.

He set school records for most points in a season (482) and for highest scoring average in a season (21.9), a mark that stood for six decades.

“Everyone knew he would be a catch-and-shoot kid like he was last year, but he also did a great job of handling the ball and getting to the free throw line,” Columbiana coach Todd Johnson said.

The Clippers lost their last two games after Struharik broke his leg hitting a three-pointer with 6.5 seconds left in regulation against Mathews in the regular-season finale. Without their point guard, the Clippers lost in overtime and then lost the tournament opener against hot-shooting Campbell Memorial.

“As soon as it happened, you feel for him because of all the time and effort he puts in,” Johnson said. “It cost him the last chance to play on his home floor.”

Johnson said Struharik will not need surgery on his fibula and is still wearing a walking boot.

Struharik was the Clippers’ only returning starter and Cooper Brown was the only other returning letterman.

“At the beginning of the season, no one sat there and said Columbiana was going to win,” Johnson said. “They were given an opportunity.”

They kept on winning with Struharik leading the charge.

“We had a lot of kids who are coachable,” Johnson said. “I thought we were going to have to grind out a lot of wins and we did. Outside of those two, I was breaking in all young kids. I thought the team would be hitting on all cylinders come January and February. We started out 10-0 and the kids believed in themselves.”

Struharik hit half-court shot at the buzzer to beat Valley Christian that allowed the Clippers to claim a share the Eastern Ohio Athletic Conference title.

“Just like we drew it up,” Johnson said. “That moment nobody is going to forget.”

Struharik is the first Columbiana boy to be named to an All-Ohio team since Joe Blinsky was a third-team selection in 2008.

Special mention went to Heartland Christian sophomore Collin Kalaher and Wellsville senior Tyrell Watkins in Division VII.

Kalaher was among the area’s scoring leaders, averaging 21.6 points, five rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.6 steals in a well-rounded floor game. He led the Lions to an 18-6 record and a second straight trip to the district finals.

Watkins topped the Tigers in scoring (18.0) and rebounding (10.0) a second straight season. He went over 1,000 career points.

Receiving honorable mention were East Liverpool senior Nate Birch and West Branch senior Cooper Anderson in Division IV and Lisbon junior AJ Ramgeet and Southern freshman Braxton Sloan in Division VI.

Birch guided the Potters to a 17-8 season. Five of those losses were by seven points or less.

Birch averaged a team-high 12.6 points a game along with 2.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists. He made 63 three-pointers and shot 40% from long range.

Anderson led the Warriors in scoring (12.0) and rebounds (7.6). He also averaged 1.1 assists and shot 45.7% from the field.

Ramgeet, another 1,000-point scorer, led the Blue Devils to a 13-win season. He averaged a team-high 19 points along with 6.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 4.2 steals a game while shooting 50.7% from the field.

Sloan’s play sparked the Indians to an eight-win improvement from last season. He set a school record with 98 steals and his 489 points are fourth most in a season in school history.

Sloan, a freshman, averaged a team-high 21.3 points a game with 6.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 4.3 steals and 1.6 blocks.

See inside for the Divisions IV, V, VI and VII All-Ohio boys basketball teams.