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Gerace takes MVP honors, but Red gets win

Salem’s Jon Gerace (in blue) and Crestview’s Dalton Palmer battle for control of the ball in the County Classic on Tuesday. (Salem News/Patti Schaeffer)

LISBON — Columbiana’s Burdette Baker finally found out what could happen if he played in Wellsville’s lineup.

“I would be hoping state title if I played with these guys,” Baker said.

Baker scored a game-high 32 points and captured MVP honors in leading his Red team to a 130-117 win in the 32nd annual Columbiana County Classic on Tuesday.

“I was hoping me and Justin Miller and all the Wellsville guys would do well,” said Baker, whose point total was the second-highest in Classic history. “We had a great lineup.”

Baker joined Wellsville’s quartet of Justin Miller, Michael Shope, Jake Green and Branzen Grodhaus in a lineup that accounted for 84 points at Nace Gymnasium.

“It was wonderful,” Baker said. “I’ve always wanted to play with them because they are always winning in our league. It was way up-tempo from what I’m used to playing.”

Miller totaled 27 points and Shope 11.

Crestview’s trio of Chance Mustake, Dalton Palmer and Peyton Wolfe scored 13, 10 and eight points, respectively, and teamed with Heartland Christian’s Zach Barnes and Ben Burgess to keep the Red team close enough before the bringing Baker and Wellsville’s foursome.

“I was happy with how they played,” Baker said. “They kept the tempo up.”

Salem’s Jon Gerace scored 25 points and captured Blue team MVP honors.

“I just wanted to go out and have fun,” Gerace said. “I enjoy these games, where everyone plays carefree.”

Gerace, a high jumper for the Quakers, missed Tuesday’s season-opening track meet to play in the game.

“I skipped the track meet,” he said. “Basketball is my main sport.”

He didn’t have a chance to see most of the basketball players in Tuesday’s game before.

“Salem doesn’t play many of these guys, but you see them in the paper,” Gerace said.

Southern Local’s Dakota Wetzel had a late three-point barrage to finish with 18 points, followed by United’s Jake Clark and Beaver Local’s Nathan Kline with 14 points apiece, Lisbon’s Colin Sweeney with 13, East Palestine’s Tom Dumbauld with 10 and Salem’s Garrett Dickey with eight.

The Blue team went up 10-2 and 12-9 behind 10 points from Gerace before the Red team brought in their stacked lineup.

“It doesn’t matter,” Gerace said. “They are just out having fun like the other guys.”

Miller and Shope hit back-to-back three-pointers right off the bat to begin a 23-7 run that gave the Red team the lead for good at 32-19. Miller accounted for 11 of those points.

The Red team pulled away late in the second half as Baker scored 10 points and Jake Green added five.

“I did as much as I could and tried to follow up shots,” Baker said.

Green had a dunk and, right before halftime, had a steal and hit the halfcourt shot at the buzzer to push the lead to 67-46 at halftime.

The lead got as high as 26 points at 99-73 with nine minutes remaining in the game following two free throws by Mustake and an offensive rebound by Burgess.

Clark and Wetzel each hit three three-pointers to close the gap to 115-106 with 3:15 remaining. It would get no closer as Grodhaus connected on a three-pointer and Baker had five baskets, including two dunks, to close out the Red team’s victory

Game notes

• East Liverpool’s Dave Ward holds the County Classic scoring record with 36 points in a 125-78 win in the 1995 contest.

• Basketball is the only sport Baker plays.

“I’m strictly basketball,” he said. “It’s the sport I’ve stuck with since I was 8 years old.”

Baker said he will be feeling nostalgic during the Inter-Tri County League all-star game at Mineral Ridge on Thursday.

“It’s going to be very emotional, being the last game I play in high school,” he said.

• Baker became Columbiana boys’ sixth MVP in 10 years.

• Gerace said he was impressed by Wellsville’s top player.

“Justin Miller is pretty tough,” Gerace said. “He could play for us. He could come to Salem any time.”

• The Red Team shot 57 of 111 from the field (51 percent), while the Blue team shot 48 of 105 (46 percent). The Blue team finished 21-of-67 from three-point range, which included 10 three-pointers in the final 8 1/2 minutes.

RED: 67-63–130

BLUE: 46-71–117

RED TEAM SCORING: Chance Mustake (Crestview) 4-2-13, Dalton Palmer (Crestview) 5-0-10, Peyton Wolfe (Crestview) 4-0-8, Zach Barnes (Heartland) 2-0-6, Ben Burgess (Heartland) 2-1-5, Burdette Baker (Columbiana) 16-0-32, Jake Green (Wellsville) 2-1-6, Branzen Grodhaus (Wellsville) 3-0-8, Justin Miller (Wellsville) 11-2-27, Michael Shope (Wellsville) 5-0-11. TOTALS: 57-111, 4-6: 130.

BLUE TEAM SCORING: Tom Dumbauld (East Palestine) 4-0-10, Tanner Barr (Leetonia) 2-0-4, Garrett Dickey (Salem) 3-0-8, Jon Gerace 11-0-25, Jake Clark (United) 6-0-14, Nathan Kline (Beaver) 5-0-14, Chase Wilcox (Beaver) 2-0-5, Robbie Davis (East Liverpool) 3-0-6, Colin Sweney (Lisbon) 6-0-13, Dakota Wetzel (Southern) 6-0-18. TOTALS: 48-105, 0-0: 117.

Three-point goals: Red 12-38 (Mustake 3, Miller 3, Barnes 2, Grodhaus 2, Green, Shope), Blue 21-67 (Wetzel 6, Kline 4, Gerace 3, Dumbauld 2, Dickey 2, Clark 2, Wilcox, Sweeney).

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