Jackson Center’s Reed Platfoot, left, and Nolan Fark celebrate after defeating Fort Loramie 52-46 in a Division IV district semifinal on Saturday at Garbry Gymnasium at Piqua High School. It’s the fifth consecutive district final berth for Jackson Center, which has lost in district finals each of the last two years.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
Fort Loramie senior guard Ryan Hoelscher drives as Jackson Center’s Jace Mullenhour defends during a Division IV district semifinal on Saturday in Piqua. Mullenhour led the Tigers with 13 points.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
PIQUA — Jackson Center has lost in district finals each of the last two years. With one of the best winning streaks in program history still going and longtime coach Scott Elchert set to retire at the end of this season, the squad’s six seniors are dead set on not losing at UD Arena this time.
“I’ve never won there. That has to change soon,” Jackson Center senior guard Jace Mullenhour said.
Jackson Center took control in the third quarter and held off Fort Loramie late to win a Division IV district semifinal 52-46 on Saturday at Piqua High School’s Garbry Gymnasium and advance to its fifth consecutive district final.
“You talk to any coach that plays (in the Piqua D-IV sectional), and they’ll say it’s just so difficult to get out of here,” Elchert said. “This is our 12th straight year (playing in a go-to district final game) and 10 out of the last 12 years winning. But it’s so tough. Our guys know it’s a true blessing, and we have a lot of gratitude for that.”
The Tigers, which haven’t lost since a one-point loss at Russia in a season opener, are scheduled to face Cincinnati College Prep in a district final on Friday in Dayton.
It was the third victory this season for Jackson Center (24-1) over Shelby County Athletic League rival Fort Loramie and was the closest matchup between the two squads this season.
The teams were tied 18-18 at halftime before Jackson Center, which was ranked No. 2 in the final Associated Press D-IV state poll, hit three 3-pointers in the first two minutes of the third quarter to take control.
Fort Loramie battled back, though, and pulled as close as two points before Jackson Center pulled away late at the free-throw line.
“We have the upmost respect for Loramie as a team and a program,” Elchert said. “The 10 guys that started tonight, all 10 are seniors. These guys have been going head-to-head with each other since they were in fifth grade. I knew no lead was safe. We could have been up 25, and no lead was safe.
“And one of the reasons is they have a hellacious player in (Caleb) Maurer. He’s a phenomenal player, and I mean this, and that’s why I was talking to him so long after the game: not only is he a great player, he’s a better person than he is a player.”
Maurer, who scored a game-high 30 points, made a basket with 57 seconds left to pull Fort Loramie within 46-43.
But Jackson Center sophomore forward Reed Platfoot made two free throws, and senior guard Nolan Fark grabbed a rebound after a Loramie miss and drew a quick foul. Fark hit two free throws to push the gap to seven points.
The Tigers made 16-of-19 foul shot attempts, including 11-of-12 in the fourth quarter.
“Maurer is a great player, and our goal was to get the ball out of his hands (late),” Mullenhour said. “We had to just go up with their big guys, go get (rebounds), and make free throws.”
Mullenhour made the first 3 of the third quarter, then Grant Elchert and Nolan Fark each made one to give Jackson Center a 27-18 lead.
“During halftime, we had talked about how to (get open), and we came out, hit them, and got off to that hot start,” Mullenhour said.
Jackson Center led 35-28 at the end of the third, but Fort Loramie battled back. Ethan Keiser made two free throws and Maurer made a 3 to close the gap to 37-33. After the teams each made two baskets, Ryan Hoelscher made a layup after a steal to pull Fort Loramie within 41-39 with 3:31 left.
The teams traded points to a 43-41 score, but Platfoot made 3-of-4 foul shots over a 60-second span to push the gap to five points.
“I talked to Reed heading into tournament and said that as a sophomore, it’d be his easiest year playing in a tournament game, playing with five seniors,” Elchert said. “A lot of those guys are getting a lot of attention. We feel good about what he brings to the table.”
Mullenhour scored 13 points for the No. 1 seed Tigers, while Bryson Roberts scored 11, Camdyn Reese scored 10 and Platfoot scored eight.
The Redskins, which were the sectional’s No. 3 seed, finish 18-7 overall. They will lose eight seniors to graduation: Maurer, Hoelscher, Keiser, Logan Eilerman, Darren Eilerman, Aiden Wehrman, Austin Pleiman and Isaac Raterman.
Cincinnati College Prep (16-6) beat 21-win Cincinnati Christian 52-49 in a semifinal on Wednesday to advance.
College Prep, which is a member of the Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference, is led by senior guard Josh Marshall, who averages 25.5 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. Three other players average over 10 points per game, including senior forward Donald Bailey, who averages 12.8 points and 11.9 rebounds per game.
“We feel like we’ve got motivation,” Elchert said. “We were going to be in a regional final (at UD) in 2020 before the state stepped in and shut us down (due to COVID-19), and the last two years, those have been a couple of tough losses. I know these kids are chomping at the bit.”
