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Wellsville’s Miller scores All-Area player of year

Wellsville senior Justin Miller is the Morning Journal's 2016-17 All-Area player of the year. (Morning Journal/Joe Catullo)

It seems Wellsville senior Justin Miller could score from the time he could hold onto the ball.

Miller, a second-team Division IV All-Ohioan, is the Morning Journal’s 2016-17 All-Area boys basketball player of the year.

“Justin was Justin,” Wellsville coach David Thompson said. “He was a great scorer and he led the team for three years.”

Miller finished as the fourth-leading scorer in Columbiana County history with 1,473 career points.

“As a kid when they played in the Y league, he scored then,” Thompson said. “I saw a game he scored seven threes in overtime.”

Miller kept going through his high school career as he led the Tigers to 20-6 and 19-4 records the last two seasons.

He was Columbiana County’s top scorer for a second straight season as he averaged 21.4 points, 7.3 rebounds and 6.3 assists a game — all team highs.

He also shot 64.4 percent from two-point range, 35 percent from three-pint range and 80 percent from the foul line.

“He was always good to shoot the ball,” Thompson said. “His teammates put him in a position to score.”

South Range’s John Cullen is the All-Area coach of the year after leading the Raiders to a school-best 24-2 season.

After going 37-38 in his first three seasons as South Range, Cullen turned the Raiders around as they won their first 21 games this season.

“It was very important for our seniors (Dan Ritter, Anthony Ritter, Mark Vennetti and Taymer Graham) to change the culture, and they’ve done that,” Cullen said. “There were some bumps along the way, but they kept working at it. Those four guys decided that they were going to be selfless and be examples for everyone else. There are no cliques on this team; that only happens when you have kids that understand the importance of chemistry.”

South Range finished sixth in the final Division III state poll and captured its first league title in 18 years, running away with the Inter-Tri County League Red Division. The Raiders also handed Division IV state poll champion McDonald its only regular-season loss.

Miller returns to the All-Area first team and is joined this year by Salem senior Jon Gerace, Columbiana senior Burdette Baker, United senior Jake Clark, Springfield senior Jake Ford, Lisbon sophomore Justin Sweeney and South Range senior twins Dan Ritter and Anthony Ritter.

Here is a look at the All-Area honorees:

FIRST TEAM

JON GERACE (Salem) — Gerace was Salem’s lone returning starter and led the youthful Quakers to 13 victories. “Jon is a three-year starter and he’s gotten better every year,” Salem coach Rich Hart said. “That just shows he works so hard. He has improved his game every year to get to this level.” Gerace averaged 15.0 points and 6.5 rebounds a game, while shooting shot 48.6 percent from the field, a team-high 37.9 percent from the three-point line and 66.2 percent from the foul line.

BURDETTE BAKER (Columbiana) — One of the area’s top post players, Baker averaged a team-high 17.6 points and six rebounds a game while shooting 61 percent from the field and 74 percent from the foul line. “Burdette was a force for us this year,” Columbiana coach Todd Johnson said. “He is one of the kids we relied on during the season. An outstanding you man and a great player for our team and for Columbiana for four years.” Baker finished with 1,009 career points.

JAKE CLARK (United) — Clark led the Eagles in scoring all four seasons on the way to becoming United’s all-time leading scorer with 1,432 career points. He guided the Eagles to a 14-10 record in their winningest season in 12 years. “When Jake was younger, he had a goal at a young age to become the all-time leading scorer. That’s a hefty goal,” United coach Chris Kadvan said. “In my three years with him, I was pleased with the progress he made. He became a team player.” Clark averaged a team-high 16.4 points, was second in rebounds (4.5) and free throw shooting (78.3 percent) and was third in assists (1.8) and steals (1.4).

JAKE FORD (Springfield) –Ford, a third-team Division III All-Ohioan, was the area’s leading scorer and carried Springfield to a 16-8 season. He averaged 24.9 points a game along with 4.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 2.3 steals. “Jake had a great year for us,” Springfield coach Eric Fender said. “We knew he would have an opportunity to score this year, but we didn’t how consistent he would be. He wasn’t happy unless we got the ‘W.'” Ford was consistent as he scored 597 points on the season and averaged 10 free throws a game, shooting 78.9 percent from the line.

JUSTIN SWEENEY (Lisbon) — After losing four 1,000-point scorers to graduation, the sophomore Sweeney stepped into the leadership role in sparking the Blue Devils to a 14-9 season. “Justin was our most consistent player and had one of the top seasons in school history,” Lisbon coach Chris Huckshold said. “He went from four points a game to almost 20. We needed someone to step up and be the guy. It was him.” Sweeney led the team in scoring (19.2), assists (3.4) and steals (3.0 steals) and was second in rebounds (6.8).

DAN RITTER (South Range) — Dan Ritter led the Raiders with his all-around floor game. He averaged 15.0 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks — all team highs — as well as 2.6 assists and 1.8 steals a game. He shot 58 percent from the field and 70 percent from the foul line.

ANTHONY RITTER (South Range) — Anthony Ritter was another well-rounded player for South Range. He averaged 11.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 1.7 assists a game.

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SECOND TEAM

CHASE WILCOX (Beaver Local) — After the Beavers got off to an 0-7 start, Wilcox ignited a run where they won nine of their next 12 games. Wilsox, who scored 20-plus points in 11 games, averaged a team-high 17.4 points and 3.5 assists a game to go along with 3.2 rebounds. “He meant everything to us,” Beaver Local coach Jason Pacanowski said. “It was chase who we relied on. The second half of the year he was pretty impressive for us. He gave us everything he could on the floor. He would do anything we asked him to do and exceeded our expectations.”

T.J. DeSHIELDS (West Branch) — The multi-talented DeShields is a standout in whatever season it is. A first-team All-Northeastern Buckeye Conference selection, he topped the Warriors by averaging 17.1 points and a school-record 13.2 rebounds a game.

MICHAEL SHOPE (Wellsville) — Shope was Wellsville’s defensive stalwart and was second on the team behind Justin Miller in scoring (13.4), rebounds (5.7) and assists (2.7). He also shot 60.5 percent from two-point. “Shope was a hard worker and a great defensive player,” Wellsville coach David Thompson said. “He was a blessing to have. When he came from Southern, he was welcome to have. He’s a great kid.”

JACOB JOINER (Southern Local) –Joiner, a first-year varsity player, showed of things to come as he sparked Southern Local to its first district final appearance since 1990. He averaged 18.2 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists a game — all team highs — while shooting 71 percent from the foul line. “Jacob is a really explosive player on both ends of the floor,” Southern Local coach Aaron Blatch said. “He carries us offensively most of the year and showed he could close out games, which he did several times in the postseason.”

MITCH DAVIDSON (Salem) — Davidson led the Quakers with 17.6 points per game, along with 4.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.2 steals and 66.3 percent free throw shooting. “Mitch is another one, too, who has gotten better each year,” Salem coach Rich Hart said. “A good athlete as a junior, he’s growing into his body. He can post up and shoot from the perimeter. The sky is the limit for him. He has unlimited potential.”

GABE ROACH (East Liverpool) — A bright spot for the Potters, Roach averaged a team-high 15.5 points and four rebounds a game while shooting 50 percent from the field. “Gabe has a big upside,” East Liverpool coach Nate Conley said. “He is a very talented sophomore with a lot of offensive ability. We didn’t look for him to do that much, but as the season turned out, we needed him to and he stepped up.”

JAKE GREEN (Wellsville) — Green was steady in his role as Wellsville’s third option. He averaged 12.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists a game. He shot 58.1 percent from two-point range and 69.8 percent from the foul line. “Jake was always a steady player and never complained,” Wellsville coach David Thompson said. “He did his job the best he could. He was always ready to go.”

BRANDON YOUNGS (South Range) — Youngs was South Range’s second-leading scorer, averaging 12.2 points a game along with 3.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 steals. He also shot 48.7 percent from the field.

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