Tribe bids Ada adieu (02/28/08)

WAPAKONETA, Ohio - There were some bumps in the road late Wednesday night. Still, Indian fans will get to drive back to Wapakoneta Friday.

Fort Recovery High School's boys basketball team never trailed in the final three quarters and fought off the No. 8 Ada Bulldogs 59-53 in district semifinal action.

"It feels good," said FRHS coach Brian Patch, noting his team's resilient nature this season. "Not a lot of people gave us a chance, and our kids knew that."

The Indians opened the season 8-1 and were ranked in the top 10, but lost junior point guard Toby Metzger for the season to a knee injury Dec. 29 at Coldwater. They dropped their next two games - including a 73-40 loss to top-ranked New Knoxville - but regrouped and have now won eight in a row with the victory over Ada.

Their reward is a rematch against New Knoxville, which defeated Lima Temple Christian 63-39 in the Wednesday's other semifinal contest.

Fort Recovery (18-4) earned its second shot at the Rangers in impressive fashion, trailing the Bulldogs just twice. Ada scored the game's opening basket, and led 15-14 late in the opening quarter before a creative play by Bobby Rammel put the Tribe ahead for good.

With time running down, Rammel shot-faked from beyond the 3-point line and got his defender in the air. He then jumped himself, drawing contact while launching the ball toward the hoop. He got the call, buried all three free throws and the Indians never trailed again.

Rammel finished the game 7-for-7 from the free-throw line, where the Indians outscored Ada 24-6. Greg Kahlig, who shared the game-high of 21 points with teammate Clint Tobe, added a 10-of-11 effort as the Tribe shot 24-of-34 (71 percent) overall.

"That's something we've been talking to these kids about all year," said Patch. "That's what good teams do. They shoot 100 free throws every morning, and tonight that paid off."

Fort Recovery took control with a great defensive effort in the second quarter. After Zac Dysert tied the game at 17, the Indians held Ada scoreless for the next 4:30 and limited them to just four points in the quarter for a 26-19 halftime advantage.

The Tribe lead grew to eight points early in the second half, but Ada was able to claw back within two on an Aaron Cross 3-pointer with 5:41 to play. But following a Bulldog timeout, Fort Recovery reasserted itself.

Kahlig drew Cross's fourth personal foul and hit both free throws to push the Indians' lead to four. A two-minute scoring drought for both teams followed before Tobe scored off a Rammel assist. Rammel added a pair of free throws, giving Fort Recovery a 51-43 lead with 2:34 remaining.

The Indians struggled to put the game away, turning the ball over four straight times. However, they hit eight of their final 10 attempts from the line to hold on for the win.

"Obviously we were just hoping to finish the game off strong," said Patch. "They were pressuring so much that we knew we could get to the hole ...

"If we could break that first trap, we were going to get some good looks ... Unfortunately, we didn't break that first trap a whole lot."

Tobe hit four of his first five field-goal attempts en route to his 21-point effort. Kahlig grabbed nine rebounds to go along with his near-perfect night at the line.

Dysert led the Bulldogs with 16 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Mitchell Faine had 15 point, and Cross added 11.

Fort Recovery now gets to battle the Rangers, undefeated at 22-0, who eliminated the Indians 51-46 in the sectional championship last season.

"We're going to need to play a game similar to this," said Patch. "You've got to handle the pressure. The keys will be the same."[[In-content Ad]]