WILLARD — Ontario coach Joe Balogh wanted his Warriors to get off to a strong start Friday night against Vermilion.
But he was happy instead with a strong finish as Ontario, which trailed 19-6 late in the first quarter, came back to beat the Sailors, 64-56, in a Division II sectional title game at Willard High School.
The win improved Ontario’s record to 20-3 and moved the Warriors into Wednesday night’s district semifinal against Sandusky at 8 p.m. The Blue Streaks (18-3) eliminated Shelby in the second game on Friday night. Both Ontario and Sandusky finished 11-1 in the Northern Ohio League.
“As a coach, you want to get off to a strong start,” Balogh said. “But I have a pretty good feel for my team. We weren’t very good those first four minutes, but the kids didn’t panic.”
The smaller Sailors (14-10) harassed the Warriors all night long, but especially in the first quarter when Ontario struggled to get the ball up court and into its offense.
“Their press really hurt us in the first quarter,” Balogh said. “We were trying to do too much with the basketball instead of just dribbling past them.”
RALLY BEGINS
Down 19-8 after one quarter, Ontario outscored Vermilion 18-5 in the second quarter to take a two-point lead at the half.
“We locked down better on defense in the second quarter and we were stronger with the basketball. We just decided to go by people instead of dribbling behind the back or throwing a tough pass,” Balogh said.
But Vermilion wasn’t finished. The Sailors righted their own ship and trailed the Warriors by just five entering the final period. Vermilion’s aggressiveness took its toll though, resulting in foul trouble for key players and sending Ontario to the line 33 times. The Warriors hit 23 of those free throws.
“Their pressure on the perimeter made it tough for us (to take advantage of a significant size advantage inside),” Balogh said. “But being strong with the ball led to them fouling and got us to the line. That took away a bit of their aggressiveness.”
Ontario hit just two field goals in the fourth quarter, but the Warriors were 12 of 14 from the line in the fourth quarter.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Three Ontario players finished in double figures. Senior Corey Thomas led the Warriors with 17 points. Junior Quan Jackson added 15 and senior Andrew Rathburn had 10.
Sophomore Joby Pfeil led Vermilion with 25 points, including three of his team’s eight triples. Senior Caleb Waller had 15, including three treys.
Ontario shot 43 percent from the field (20 of 46) and 67 percent from the line. The Warriors had a huge 33-9 rebounding edge, including 16 offensive boards. Vermilion shot 51 percent from the field (19 of 37) and added 57 percent from the line (8 of 14). Ontario committed 10 turnovers, compared to 15 for the Sailors.
While waiting for the second game to start, Balogh said he had no preference for an opponent in the next round.
“Last year, looking at the bracket, we knew we had a couple of easy games to start. There are no easy games this year, starting with tonight. We are just glad to get back to the district tournament. Whoever we play will be tough … and exciting.”
