03/10/2007

Roundup

Rayders topple Red Devils

Charlevoix will face St. Francis in regionals

FROM STAFF REPORTS

MANCELONA — Charlevoix and Traverse City St. Francis will face off again this season, this time in regionals.

The Rayders knocked off East Jordan 82-58 in their district title game to set up an opening-round regional matchup with the Gladiators Tuesday in Gaylord.

"That'll be fun,” Charlevoix coach Keith Haske said. "We've seen them several years in a row now.”

The Rayders and Glads split their two meetings in the regular season, with Charlevoix going on to win the Lake Michigan Conference.

On Friday, it was all Mitch Crandall, who led Charlevoix with 29 points and 5 assists.

Justin Friske added 13 points and 8 rebounds, Corey Gotshall had 9 boards and Tyler Haske contributed 6 assists and 5 rebounds.

Jeff Keyser led East Jordan (10-12) with 32 points and Scott Hansen added 12.

Charlevoix (20-3) jumped out to an 18-9 first-quarter lead and was in control 35-23 at halftime.

"We knew they were going to come out very deliberate and we came out and put on some defensive pressure,” Keith Haske said.

CLASS B

Manistee 55
Ludington 50

Jake Kiss scored 20 points to lead Manistee to its first district crown in four years and a spot in the school record books.

The Chippewas won their 20th game of the season, equalling the school record set by the 2000 team that went 20-3.

Jason Dontz added 9 points and 6 rebounds for Manistee (20-2), Ryan Tiefenthal contributed 8 points and 3 assists and Andrew Tighe had 6 boards.

Jeff Urka and Gabe Rivera had 16 each for the Orioles (9-14), who had won the district the last three years.

The Chippewas move on to face Standish-Sterling in regionals at Petoskey. Standish defeated Gladwin 68-59 to win its district.

CLASS D

Leland 80
TC Christian 32

Host Leland had it all working in an 80-32 victory over Traverse City Christian in a district title tilt.

The Comets (18-4) jumped out to a 19-9 lead after the first quarter and the margin ballooned to 45-13 at halftime. Leland led 56-30 after three quarters and were well on its way to a game against Bellaire in the Class D regional at Traverse City Central.

"We played a great defensive game,” Leland coach Jason Stowe said. "We really shut them down and controlled the boards (with a 44-18 advantage).

"The biggest key was our offense. Our players were running the floor well and our guards were finding them, so we were able to control the tempo of the game.”

Leland, which had 25 assists compared to 13 turnovers, were led by 26 points and 15 points from Marcus Whittaker. Jordan Gibson added 16 points and seven assists and Michael Nachazel 16 points.

Michael Rudolph paced TC Christian with 10 points.

Bellaire 60
Ellsworth 30

Bellaire jumped out quickly against Ellsworth en route to winning the Class D district at Central Lake.

The Eagles (22-0) led 19-4 after the opening period and 38-11 at halftime.

Mike McClary had 14 points, Scott Mason 12 and Cody Bock nine for the Eagles, who play Leland in Tuesday's regional at Traverse City Central.

Dustin Flory and Ben Ernst each had six points for Ellsworth.

Gaylord St. Mary 54
Vanderbilt 43

Gaylord St. Mary outscored Vanderbilt 18-6 in the final quarter to win a see-saw battle for a Class D district title.

The host Snowbirds (12-9) jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but trailed 24-23 at halftime. Vanderbilt then scored the first 10 points of the second half to lead by 11.

But St. Mary came through in the end to earn a berth in the TC Central regional.

Alvin Sitkviewicz had 20 points and Andy Borowiak 12 for St. Mary. Sean Webber had 17 points and Cory Runge 15 for Vanderbilt.

Posen 73
Johannesburg 36

Jordan Hincka scored 23 points as Posen defeated the host Johannesburg-Lewiston Cardinals 73-36 in the Class D district final.

James Hampton had 11 for Johannesburg.

Mackinaw City 65
Pellston 61

Trevor Closs netted 23 points, Logan Paquet 14 and Chase Closs 11 as Mackinaw City captured the Class D district at Pellston with a 65-61 win over the host Hornets.

Jake Campeau scored 22 and Justin Litzner 16 for Pellston.