×

Roach’s shot lifts Potters

Morning Journal/Joe Catullo East Liverpool’s Gabe Roach shoots a three-pointer over Beaver Local’s Chase Wilcox in front of Beaver Local coach Jason Pacanowski on Friday.

EAST LIVERPOOL — When East Liverpool sophomore Gabe Roach practices at the downtown YMCA, he occasionally shoots from half court for the fun of it.

It was a good thing Friday night that he practices those shots. It also helped that the Potters practice those just in case.

With 2.3 seconds remaining in a tie game against Beaver Local, the Potters inbounded near Beaver’s bench. Roach reached half court and let it fly. Roach never heard Potter Fieldhouse that loud before.

“Whenever I released the ball, I was confident it was going in,” he said. “I knew I was going to get the ball and get a shot off. I was very confident in myself. I was trying to get as close as I can.”

Roach’s half-court buzzer beater lifted the Potters to a 67-64 win on Military Appreciation Night for their third consecutive victory.

“We run that game-ending play during practice all the time,” East Liverpool coach Nate Conley said. “We still have to execute better down the stretch. We missed foul shots. We had the advantage but lost it. It was a great game from these two towns.”

If the Beavers (0-3) and coach Jason Pacanowski could run that play again, they would not run a 2-2-1 defense.

“We thought to go 2-2-1 to keep him in front of us and protect the middle,” Pacanowski said. “We didn’t get to the middle of the floor. He kind of got a running start after the inbound. In retrospect, maybe we should have gone with a full court pressure just to keep him honest.”

“I was shocked they went with a 2-2-1 because it made things a lot easier,” Conley said. “I thought he could have made one more dribble, but he made it anyway. That’s a big time shot. That is a once in a lifetime shot.”

Shortly before Roach’s heroic shot, the Beavers nearly erased a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Beaver cut the deficit to 64-61 with 10 seconds left. Nathan Kline found an open Chase Wilcox at the top of the key, and he nailed the game-tying three-pointer with 2.3 seconds left.

“Our biggest thing is our fight in us. We always have the fight,” Pacanowski said. “We were down by 10, but we still had the belief. We put ourselves in a position to win the game. Shots like that happens.”

Tied at 41-41 heading into the final quarter, freshman Tresean Jackson lifted the Potters (3-1).

Jackson nailed three three-pointers that helped give East Liverpool a 59-49 lead at one point. He finished with 16 points overall (10 in the fourth quarter).

“He has a great shot. Now he just needs to get better defensively,” Conley said.

Roach finished with a team-high 19 points, four rebounds and two assists. Logan Dawson tallied 15 points, four rebounds and four assists before fouling out late in the fourth. Aaron Bombich added 10 points and five rebounds.

For the Beavers, Wilcox recorded a game-high 22 points and two rebounds. Drew Theiss had 17 points and five rebounds. Nathan Kline added 10 points, four rebounds and four assists.

East Liverpool travels to St. Clairsville to face Fort Frye at 2 p.m. today. Beaver heads to Buckeye Local on Tuesday.

“Players make plays, and he (Roach) made a play down the stretch,” Pacanowski said.

Game notes

¯ East Liverpool also won the jayvee game 50-37. The Potters’ Peyton Reed and Beaver’s Grant Hall tallied 11 points each.

¯ Friday marked the second Military Appreciation Night in East Liverpool. Players, coaches and cheerleaders from both teams showed their appreciation by shaking all the veterans’ hands as well as taking a group photo.

“I had both of my grandparents here to celebrate with, and it was awesome,” Conley said. “I tell the kids all the time that this is an awesome event.”

BEAVER:           13-16-12-23–64

E. LIVERPOOL: 16-14-11-26–67

BEAVER LOCAL SCORING: Drew Theiss 6-5-17, Nathan Kline 3-2-10, Chase Wilcox 6-8-22, Logan Bouscher 1-2-4, Michael Clendenning 0-0-0, Zach Boni 3-0-6, Zak Pappas 2-0-4, Terry Adkins 0-1-1, Torey Calio 0-0-0. TEAM TOTALS: 21, 18-29: 64.

EAST LIVERPOOL SCORING: Gabe Roach 7-4-19, Josh Recktenwald 0-0-0, Robbie Davis 1-0-2, Aaron Bombich 4-0-10, Logan Dawson 6-2-15, Tresean Jackson 5-1-16, Evan Dieringer 0-0-0, Petyon Reed 2-1-3. TEAM TOTALS: 25, 8-12: 67.

Three-point goals: Beaver Local 4 (Kline 2, Wilcox 2), East Liverpool 9 (Jackson 5, Bombich 2, Roach, Dawson).

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.39/week.

Subscribe Today