Fun ride at state for Williamstown boys

May 13, 2021

As I was sitting in the media room following Williamstown’s 50-47 Class AA state championship game victory versus Poca on Saturday afternoon and looking up at the podium, it was 100% all smiles for ‘Jacket boss Scott Sauro along with players Sam Cremeans, Xavier Caruthers and Baylor Haught. Albeit a lot more work, covering a state championship win is always better than reporting on a tough loss in the final game of the season. Cremeans was carrying a huge belt when he walked in and promptly kept it over his shoulder during the press conference. At one point I finally had to ask ...

‘Jackets earned stripes in Charleston with grit

May 12, 2021

WILLIAMSTOWN — Fresh off the Williamstown Yellowjackets’ 50-47 win over Poca in the 2021 Class AA boys’ state championship basketball game, the feeling of jubilation hasn’t worn off head coach Scott Sauro. The victory came a year removed from when his ‘Jackets were the No. 1 seed in the Class A tournament. The COVID-19 pandemic was sweeping across the state when the 2020 games in Charleston came to a halt. That just meant Williamstown had unfinished business in 2021, and it didn’t matter who they needed to face. Last season’s team was heavy in senior talent, but the 2021 ...

Turner Hill wears the Marietta College pinstripes well

April 30, 2021

Turner Hill is good at hitting baseballs. He’s proven that over the last decade, whether he was playing for the Marietta High Tigers or the NCAA Division II Malone Pioneers. Hill has always known his way around the batter’s box. When Hill transferred to Marietta College before the 2021 baseball season, it was obviously a good get for head coach Brian Brewer and the Pioneers. However, what Hill has been able to do this spring with a bat in his hands has been nothing short of amazing. The left-handed swinging Hill leads the Ohio Athletic Conference in four key offensive ...

Lakyn Joy proved to be invaluable as ‘Jackets punched ticket to state

April 24, 2021

Lakyn Joy was pretty quiet. Nearly silent, in fact. She was one-for-something from the field with just three points. “I didn’t really know how the night was going to go,” she said. But that wasn’t the worst part. St. Marys, predictably, continued fighting in the third quarter of a regional co-final. Howie Meeks and company were clamping down on defense and taking away the Yellowjackets’ two biggest scoring options in Jayla Wiseman and Nicole Reynolds. Now screamed as good a time as any for someone else stepping up and aiding the Yellowjackets in their quest to ...

Prep basketball season delivered excitement to area

March 19, 2021

Another high school basketball season has come and gone. Way back in late November when football season was wrapping up and we began to work on our annual Tip-Off basketball preview their was a feeling of uncertainty from area coaches as to how much, if any, of the 2020-2021 basketball season would be able to be played as the COVID-19 pandemic was in the middle of its second wave. Thanks to the tiresome efforts of athletic directors, coaches, players and fans all across the area, the Ohio high school basketball season was not only able to begin but was able to be completed in its ...

Caldwell sophomore Bede Lori set a state mark for free throw percentage

March 11, 2021

Bede Lori owns the free throw line. The Caldwell sophomore stepped to the foul line 188 times this season. The result was 180 makes, which equals a shooting percentage of 95.74%. That’s the Ohio High School Athletic Association boys basketball state record, as he topped West Saken ...