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Beavers off to a good start at state

Local Sports

COLUMBUS — Six area Div. II wrestlers won their opening round matches on Friday during the first day of the state boys wrestling tournament at the Schottenstein Center. Beaver Local freshman Jordan Bates, East Liverpool junior Kyle Ingram, Beaver Local senior Bobby Buchheit, West Branch senior Beau Nezbeth, Beaver Local sophomore Jake Hughes and Beaver Local junior Evan Ours all won to advance to the championship quarterfinals. Bates, ranked first at 106 pounds by DubStat, bested Streetsboro’s John Bollinger with a pin in 2:30. Bates will get Alter freshman Blake Foucht, ...

Cowan scores opening pin at state tourney

Local Sports

COLUMBUS — Columbiana County’s top girls contenders took care of business on Friday on the first day of the girls state wrestling tournament at the Schottenstein Center. East Liverpool junior Paige Cowan, United senior Auston Brown and Salem senior Paige Menough all won their first matches to advance to the championship quarterfinals. Cowan opened the tournament with a 20-0 win over Definace’s Isabela Jordan at 106 pounds. Cowan, ranked fifth in the state by DubStat, is slated to take on second ranked Kendleigh Dowalter in the championship quarterfinal. Brown, ranked ...

Heartland Christian comes up just shy of state

Local Sports

BARBERTON — The Heartland Christian Lions knew the challenge of the situation they were facing. And they knew the opponent well. But unfortunately, the Hillsdale Falcons used a strong shooting performance and solid defense to dramatically sneak past the Lions, 58-57, in a Division VII regional final Friday night at Barberton High School. The Lions close the season with a school-best 22-5 mark and their first trip to the regional championship game. They were trying to become the first Columbiana County boys basketball team to reach the state semifinals since East Liverpool in ...

Mobley reigns as state’s best

Local Sports

The first of Sydney Mobley’s 42 offers to play Division I college basketball came when she was in sixth grade, straight from the hometown school in Ohio State. Whether Big Walnut’s star junior forward ultimately ends up a Buckeye remains to be seen, but what stands out to Mobley’s father is how she handled the pressure that comes with prominence then – and continues to do so today. “She’s had a lot of attention on her since she was very young,” David Mobley said. “Some kids tend to get content with where they are, but she has managed to stay the course and keep ...

SPORTSBRIEFING STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

Local Sports

Laurel ends dynasty DAYTON — Laurel’s girls basketball team took out four-time defending state champion Purcell Marian with a 56-54 in overtime of a Div. IV state semifinal on Thursday at the University of Dayton. Tristen Williams’ floater with 2.2 seconds left in overtime gave the Gators the win. Laurel beat West Branch 53-41 in a Div. IV regional final on Saturday in Canton and also topped Div. V district champion Crestview 55-42 in the South Range Holiday Hoops Showcase on Dec. 30 Laurel will play Bellevue at 12:30 p.m. today for the Div. IV title. Canton Central ...

Sacrifices pay off for area grapplers

Local Sports

By MICHAEL S. BURICH Assistant Sports Editor The road to the state tournament for area wrestlers isn’t always a smooth one. Adversity of all kinds can pop up. This season a snowstorm on Jan. 24 into Jan. 25 produced more than a foot of snow for many places in the area. That meant ...