By Ed Letsinger, Hacksports.com
Special to MaxPreps.com
St. Xavier’s quest for a 10th straight Ohio state swimming title was snapped over the weekend at the C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton as Columbus St. Charles defeated the Aquabombers by a 266-246 margin.
St. Xavier has won a state-record 29 Ohio swimming titles in its history, but was denied No. 30 by a St. Charles program that many thought in the preseason had a good shot at dethroning the Aquabombers.
Indiana University recruit Jim Barbiere was the only St. Xavier swimmer to win an individual event, clocking a time of 50.57 in the 100-yard backstroke to win his third straight state title.
Fab 4 Rolls into Girls Regional Tournament
The top four seeds from Southwest Ohio won Division I district titles on Saturday at Harrison High School and advance to regional semifinal play beginning this week.
No. 1-ranked Lakota West (23-1) had its hands full against Chaminade-Julienne most of the game, but prevailed with a 44-35 win, setting up a contest against Pickerington Central. No. 2 Mount Notre Dame (22-2) continued to stay on cruise control, thumping Walnut Hills, 63-48, to advance to the next round against Springboro. The two-time defending state champion Cougars extended their winning streak to 20 games.
No. 3 Oak Hills (20-4) thumped Beavercreek, 45-33, to set up an interesting rematch against Winton Woods (23-1). The Highlanders are the only team to beat the Warriors this season, a 58-47 win back on Dec. 28.
The Cincinnati smaller-division schools took it on the chin over the weekend, with only Badin advancing to regional play in Division III with a 50-39 win over Georgetown. Miami East ended Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy’s perfect season with a 43-26 win over the Eagles, while Roger Bacon fell to Versailles, 42-33.
In Division II, Carroll took care of Wyoming, 60-37, while Alter hammered Taft, 66-34. Seven Hills bowed out in Division IV, losing 70-63 to Franklin-Monroe.
Cinderella Emerges in Boys Division III Sectional Tournament
Upstart Shroder has emerged as this season’s Cinderella story to date. The Jaguars (7-16), seeded 10th, upset No. 1-seed Deer Park, 61-59, to win their first-ever sectional basketball title on Saturday. Shroder defeated No. 3-seed Madeira, 63-54, in the first round followed by a 62-50 win over No. 5 Clark Montessori in round two. The Jaguars finished the regular season with a record of 4-16 and were 0-12 in the Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference. Up next in the district tournament for Shroder is Badin.
Woodward is not the Cinderella story Shroder is, but the No. 17 seed Bulldogs (12-8) have pulled off a couple of upsets in the Division I sectional tournament, knocking off No. 9 Milford in the opener, followed by a 73-67 win over No. 9 Winton Woods over the weekend. Woodward, which bumped up to Division I this year from DII, faces a tall task in No. 5 Elder tomorrow night in a sectional title game at University of Cincinnati.
The Miami Valley Conference boasts two of the hottest teams in the tournament in Seven Hills and Lockland. The Stingers (21-1) have won 21 straight games since losing their season opener to North College Hill and take on Russia tomorrow night in a district tournament contest at University of Dayton Arena.
Lockland (22-1), whose lone loss on the season is to Seven Hills, has won 12 straight games since losing to the Stingers and face Jefferson in another district contest at UD Arena.
News & Notes
Lakota West senior and University of Tennessee recruit Amber Gray was officially named to the McDonald’s All-American basketball team last week. Gray becomes just the third Cincinnati-area player to be selected, joining Mount Notre Dame’s Mel Thomas (Connecticut) and Princeton’s Dee Davis (Vanderbilt).
Moeller 45, Edgewood 16. That was the final score of the top-ranked Crusaders' Division I sectional championship game on Saturday. The Cougars scored 4, 2, 1 and 9 points by quarter, respectively, in the game. If you are scoring at home, Edgewood's football team put up more points in every one of its games this season by at least 11 points.
Ed Letsinger is the editor of Hacksports.com.
