GAME PHOTOS: http://smu.gs/2t72cNX
The game marked the 60th anniversary of The Barn, the nickname given to Chardon High School’s gymnasium. With cake in the cafeteria it was also Senior Night for the Hilltoppers most decorated class in years, as Mike Laudato, Jake Niehus, Robbie Hemly, Joe Scerbo and Alex Sulka.
Sulka will leave Chardon as the school’s all-time leading scorer over the course of his four-year career.
The game itself was controlled by Edgewood, one of the area’s top Div. 2 teams. The Warriors won 84-65 behind the play of junior Hayden Kanicki, who scored 44 points in front of the Chardon crowd.
“When someone has a career night, all of our mistakes are compounded and compounded,” Chardon coach Chad Murawski said. “When someone is that good, now I know what other teams feel like when Alex (Sulka) goes off.”
Sulka led the way again for Chardon with 21 points. Laudato, who left the first quarter with a knee injury but returned, had nine points on 3 of 3 shooting from 3-point range.
Chardon scored just 29 points in the first half, a low number for a team that has been strong offensively this season. The Warriors ran a 2-3 zone for all four quarters.
Chardon’s Jacob Hougan played quality minutes. The 6-foot-6-inch junior had a tough task against Edgewood’s Tye Rood, but Hougan rose to the challenge, even blocking Rood three times.
“I think I was tougher than him, but he was a little better than me, and I had to stick on the defensive end because I don’t have that offensive skill,” Hougan said.
“As a team, we will make some adjustments,” he added. “We have to have an all-time confidence. If you don’t have confidence you won’t be able to perform well.”
Hemly will remember his time at Chardon and his teammates during his basketball career.
“It’s a special time,” he said. “I love my teammates, I love our coaches, I love our community. It’s been a great four years. But we still have tournament time.”
“I just try not to think about that now,” Murawski said about replacing this talented senior class. “Because it’s March Madness, and we need to see what he have to do.”
Chardon hosted Conneaut in a tournament game Tuesday finished after deadline. If the Hilltoppers win that game, it would set up a possible rematch at No. 4 Edgewood on March 2.
The Barn was filled because of the anniversary, seniors and a desire to see Edgewood. But because it was almost 70 degrees outside, the gym was hot and humid, which did affect playing conditions.
The game was recorded by GTV and can be watched for free on-demand by visiting www.geaugatv.org.
