LOUDONVILLE — To the victors go the spoils, and the Loudonville girls basketball team has piled up an awful lot of victories this season. The seventh-ranked Redbirds are in a state semifinal Thursday at 11 a.m. against sixth-ranked Waterford in Dayton. Individually, the postseason accolades have followed. On Tuesday, senior standout Corri Vermilya was selected […]
mapleton mounties
Posted inSports
True Grit: Ontario’s Ohl, Galion’s Harding headed to state wrestling finals
COLUMBUS — Ontario’s Aiden Ohl and Galion’s Gradey Harding did the dirty work Saturday night inside Ohio State’s Schottenstein Center. Ohl held on for a gritty, 2-1 win over St. Paris Graham’s Jake Landis in the 106-pound semifinals. Harding then followed suit with an equally resolute 5-1 win over Columbus Watterson’s Neal Krysty in the […]
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Mansfield-area wrestlers shine on 1st day of state tournament
COLUMBUS — Luke Schlosser spoke for the entire north central Ohio state-qualifying wrestling contingent after an impressive opening day in Columbus. “I expected to come down here and win,” Schlosser said after dispatching Beaver Local’s Justin Cox 7-2 in the opening round of the Division II state tournament. “That’s the mindset you’ve got to have. […]
Posted inSports
District tournaments await area’s top wrestlers
MANSFIELD — Wrestling’s second season began last week, but things will get really interesting this weekend. District tournaments around the state begin Friday and culminate when state berths are determined Saturday afternoon. The top four finishers in each weight division at the district tournaments qualify for the state tournament. North central Ohio is traditionally well-represented […]
Posted inBoys Basketball
Hillsdale holds down Mapleton, stretches win streak to 7
JEROMESVILLE – Traditionally, a Hillsdale vs. Mapleton matchup in boys basketball wouldn’t send fans running to the ticket booth. The two Ashland County programs have had their fair share of down seasons, but Tuesday in Steve Dickerson Gymnasium the nonconference foes paired up in one of the most intriguing meetings in the history of the […]
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Mapleton’s Durbin wins third Gorman crown
MANSFIELD — Mapleton’s Brock Durbin hit the trifecta. A 144-pound senior, Durbin won his third consecutive J.C. Gorman Invitational championship Saturday evening inside Mansfield Senior’s Pete Henry Gym. Unofficially, Durbin is one of just 22 wrestlers to three-peat in the 61-year history of the Gorman. He won his first title at 126 pounds as a […]
Posted inAshland University
Ontario, Galion, Ashland grapplers headline Gorman field
MANSFIELD — This weekend’s 61st annual J.C. Gorman Invitational is the crown jewel of north central Ohio’s regular-season schedule, as usual. Action begins Friday at 3 p.m. and continues Saturday at 10 a.m. at Mansfield Senior High School. Saturday’s Parade of Champions is slated for 4:20 p.m., with the finals begin at 4:30 p.m. This […]
Posted inAuto News Desk - Boys Basketball
Crestview turns tight game into rout of Mapleton
OLIVESBURG – The Crestview boys basketball team’s New Year’s resolution is looking like a two-years’ resolution. Unwilling to take a foot off the gas against potential Firelands Conference challenger Mapleton on Saturday night, the Cougars turned what was a tie game after one quarter into an all-out, 78-39 drubbing. Crestview, which stretched its FC win […]
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1990 Loudonville football team headed to Ashland County Sports Hall of Fame
ASHLAND — The Ashland County Sports Hall of Fame has chosen its Class of 2024, and it includes 11 individuals, a trustee achievement couple, and a storied football team. There are individual biographies of each of these high-achievers below. But the inductee that resonated with me was the 1990 Loudonville football team. Those Redbirds, coached […]
Posted inGirls Soccer
Ontario, Clear Fork, Mapleton standouts earn All-Ohio first-team nods
ONTARIO — North central Ohio’s reputation as a girls soccer hotbed was confirmed again when the Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association unveiled the All-Ohio teams. Ontario’s Hattie Yugovich, Clear Fork’s Annika Labaki were selected to the OSSCA first-team in Division II, while Mapleton’s Brinlee Youngen was a first-teamer in Division III. Ashland’s Claire Plank (Division […]