Mahoning Valley teams in 09-10

• cmhs_pride

  Bulldogs...my man you have had an outstanding basketball team for a long time now. No way anyone can call it any other way. The Dogs have been playing well since i can remember. Heck, I remember them going to the regionals and losing to Renauld Ray and Orriville more than a decade ago. That team was very good. I cannot remember many of the names. Your centers first name was Joel...and the kid whose father sells garage doors...lol......I think Sam Siminaro(sp.), was outstanding. I cannot remember a bad Poland team since before that time.
  
  So I am not shocked at how they are playing with the addition of one of the best guards in the state...Darius Patton. They would have been good without him...they are great with him.
  
  I don't know that Struthers can beat Poland. I know that this Struthers team plans on trying...where before Coach Savko showed up....Struthers basketball was not considered a threat since the days of Shane Fire. So yes I am being biased because I have known Coach Savko personally for a very long time. Therefore I am happy for him and his Wildcats. They have a tall order against the Dogs.
  
  Campbell needs better competition this year than their schedule provides. Mooney is a good team.....heck they hung with Harding the other night. Besides them and Cincinnati Princeton, and hopefully another outstanding team in the Ironton tourney, we are bland on the schedule this year. Lakeview is way down as is the Falls. Not sure about Labrae. So we play three really good teams....and toss in some spice with a dangerous Salem and Struthers squad...and that is the only testing we get. This is why I really would have loved to play Poland and Canfield this year. Win or lose...it adds to the 5 teams I mentioned and gives our kids a better understanding of the level they have to play at come tourney time.
• SQ_Crazies

  

  I used to hate playing against Poland. Fender and Shurilla used to put 100 on us in junior high. Actually Fender wasn't even that great then, Costello was their best player. But Shurilla was unstoppable, he was like a 6'1 guard as a 7th grader lol.
• bulldog8

  cmhs pride...you just made my night haha The 1995 team that lost to Orrville was very talented and was known for Grisdale's traditional style of slowly bringing the ball up the court and setting up the offense. Joel Wartman, Sam Ciminero, Matt Reardon, Scott Bailey, Jason Ziggler, and company were probably one of the most balanced teams in school history. However, they were nowhere near as deep as some of the recent Poland teams have been.
  
  SQ crazies...... Fender, Shurilla, and Costello were very good in middle school and up through high school. Costello ended up moving to Indiana, but Shurilla and Fender continued to mature and led many great seasons at Poland. However, Poland did see a very poor year in 2006 and a somewhat average year last year. Irregardless, I think the Dogs will make significant strides this year but could be vulnerable against an equally athletic team that can run (ASVSM).
  
  I hope that your teams each have successful seasons as well. It's great to see Campbell and Salem making some noise and representing the valley well!
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Yeah I remember when Costello moved--he was the best player in that class IMO. They would have been that much better had he been able to stick around.
• CardsFlyinHigh

  Hopefully Niles gives Salem a good game tonight. i hate sitting through blowouts
• SQ_Crazies

  

  You may not have to--Salem's coach has a history of making stupid decisions that keep other teams in games.
• CardsFlyinHigh

  Well i was way off
• cmhs_pride

  Bulldogs....Scott Bailey....that was your Point Guard wasn't it??? That young man could handle the ball!!! I swear he got hurt at one point though and was in a leg cast???? Or foot brace?? I am getting old and can't remember. I use to go to the games with my Poland buddies all the time. Ziggler....lol. What a riot that kid was on the court. I think his motto was "I have 5 to give!!" Nice to have for rebounds and definitely a fan favorite. They had a blond kid who came from Struthers. He was a very nice player as well. I could swear he came to Poland with Jason Morell the year that Struthers did not have a football program. Was that Reardon?
  
  Nonetheless, all the best to Niko, Darius and the Dogs. Question...does Phil Lipari play basketball?
  
  Cardsflyinhigh...what happened at the game tonight that you were at. Campbell beat Brookfield by 36 or so according to Sonnyblacks message he left me. I think the Warriors are also a team needing to find themselves.
• CardsFlyinHigh

  Salem and Niles played one of the sloppiest first halves ive seen in a while. 16-16 at the half. Second half Niles could just not miss. They won 69-58
• SQ_Crazies

  

  Salem's coach is an embarrassment.
• bulldog8

  cmhs pride.....Reardon played at Poland all throughout his career. He and Sammy Ciminero actually grew up across the street from me. Mr Ciminero built them a half court in his back yard and I used to always go over as a kid and watch them play. The blonde kid you speak of that transferred from Struthers was Sean Guerrero. He came over with Jason Morrell. Although Sean was a great basketball player as well, he and Morrell probably had more of an impact on the football field that year. The 1995 Poland football team went to the regional finals as well that year.....Overall, it was a very successful year for the Dogs!
• cmhs_pride

  AH yes....you are correct. Now the names are coming back to me. I believe Little Dobran played on that team as well, (football). Ummm Rocco? I want to say there was a Modelski on that squad too. I seen them play a day game, but cannot remember against who.
  
  Nonetheless, good luck to this years basketball team. I see they beat the Cats 107- 78??? Obviously the offense is once again a juggerknot. Scary that 78 points will usually get you a win in High School basketball. Cats will be a pain to opponents this year. Poland controls their destiny in my opinion.
  
  Campbell heads down to Southern Ohio over the Holidays to play in the Ironton tourney against the likes of Cincinnati Princeton and I forget the other team. Good Luck to the Devils.
  
  How about Mooney taking down the Irish. Cards are playing bball over on Erie street.
• bulldog8

  cmhs pride.....Rocco Dobran was a phenomenal football player. Only about 5'4", but boy did he hide well behind that offensive line. Chris Modelski was the oldest of the brothers and was on the 1995 regional team, which lost to Kenston at the Akron Rubber Bowl (an ironic finish to their season considering their win over Kenston earlier in the season). Modelski went on to play receiver at Wake Forest, but his career was hindered by injuries.
  
  Poland's victory over the Cats on Friday looks pretty impressive. I'm excited to see them play for the first time this year when they play at Liberty on Tuesday. I've been missing some action being away at school and am pumped to go see some of their games. I agree with you that Struthers should really give some teams trouble this season.
  
  I wish Campbell the best of luck in their holiday tournament. Also, good to see that Mooney's bball team should be bound for success this season. Best of luck to all the local teams!
• QuakerOats

  CardsFlyinHigh wrote: Salem and Niles played one of the sloppiest first halves ive seen in a while. 16-16 at the half. Second half Niles could just not miss. They won 69-58

  Salem played man-to-man in the first half and held them to 16 points; then went zone in the second half and watched Niles lay over 50 on them. I think about a minute and half into the 3rd qtr I would have switched back to man. Some things I'll never understand.
  
  Anyhow we better regroup and show up to play tomorrow night vs Howland.
  
  Go Quakers!!!
• SQ_Crazies

  

  ^You would have switched back. Everyone in the gym including the 3 year old in the 6th row would have switched back. Everyone except the coach--lmao! How much longer does he get? There are at least 5,000 people in this town that could coach that team better than he could, and no I'm not exaggerating.
• cmhs_pride

  Well. The Devils hung around Cincinnati Princeton tonight losing 84-69. Williams had 28 to lead the Devils. Can only imagine how big that team is. Glad to see we went toe to toe. Yeah I know...we lost by 15, but in that situation....you can get discouraged real easily and lose by 30.
• BigDean1

  

  cmhs_pride wrote: Well. The Devils hung around Cincinnati Princeton tonight losing 84-69. Williams had 28 to lead the Devils. Can only imagine how big that team is. Glad to see we went toe to toe. Yeah I know...we lost by 15, but in that situation....you can get discouraged real easily and lose by 30.

  I agree. Campbell got down by 20 a couple of times and could have easily folded the tent. They played hard for all 32 minutes.
  Williams was named MVP for the game. Hodge and Hughes each scored 15. The play by play announcers commented how Williams despite being so small can play against anybody. Chesapeake vs. Campbell tomorrow night. I believe Princeton plays some team known as OAK HILL ACADEMY. Good Luck Campbell. Good Luck to Princeton. One more thing: Kudos to the folks at Ironton. Great people, great class.
• cmhs_pride

  Devils defeat Chesapeake in Ironton classic 71-63. Hodge and Williams both had 21 and Lester Hughes had 16. Devils go to 3-2 as they head back home to begin their run in the AAC. Hopefully they can continue like they did against Brookfield and Lakeview. I believe the Devils have a rough game against Struthers on the 29th???
• QuakerOats

  Salem 64
  Howland 41
  
  The Quakers took over after the first quarter, putting up 30 points in the second period. It seemed like we had better flow and the kids played with some freedom. All five startes hit for double figures. Good game Salem, keep it up.
  
  Go Quakers !!
• wgh raider

  did lanier play for howland?? he was lighting it up earlier then i saw he hardly scored against hubbard. maybe hes hurt??
• GoPens

  

  Lanier played and had 24 of Howland's 41 points. Nice job Salem. Fun game to watch.
• bulldog8

  Poland 83
  Liberty 58
  
  Poland looked very good in the first half leading 50-24 at halftime. The Dogs got a bit sloppy in the second half with several turnovers. A few too many travelling calls for Poland that need to be minimized if this team wants to make a run at states. Overall, I think this is the deepest and most talented team Poland has had in years. They play 12 deep and all are legitimate shooters from the outside. I think Poland had 6 players in double figures last night. The full court press and half court trap cause huge problems for the opposition as Poland forced Liberty into 20+ turnovers last night. However, Liberty did break Poland's press numerous times. I was most impressed by how many guys step up off Poland's bench. Coach Grisdale has his top talent split up into 2 groups and plays each group of 5 guys for about 2 minutes before bringing in a fresh 5. The highlight of last night's game was probably the best dunk i've seen in high school basketball. Colin Reardon of Poland (also their quarterback in football) threw up an alley oop from the 3-point line on a fast break and Poland's center, David Baker, went up and snagged it with one hand to throw it down. The ball was quite a bit behind his body and he reached back and brought it all the way back to the rim. Being a Poland fan, I know my opinion can be slightly biased, but I can honestly say that this is one of the most exciting teams that I have seen play in all my years of watching high school basketball I do believe they will be tested a couple times this year, but they have the talent to win a state championship. They will certainly need to improve the little things, reduce turnovers, and not force the issue too much at times. It seemed they got a little overambitious with some of their shot selections last night, but if this team continues to play smart and unselfish, the sky is the limit.
• stinkin genius

  Howlands team last year had it all and let it slip away. This years squad is a huge Q mark.
• 4cards

  

  ...Tuesday there will be a very good matchup in the valley with Mooney hosting Canfield. Anyone going better get there for the JV game because it should be crowded.
• cmhs_pride

  I agree 4cards. Two teams that are definitely capable of beating anyone in the Valley this year. Should be an outstanding match up. Good luck to the Cardinals....