http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20110309/SPORTS/703099853
Published March 9, 2011 in the Rutland Herald
Mounties wear down Cosmos
By Tom Haley
STAFF WRITER
Playing his last game on his home floor, Mount St. Joseph Academy senior Josiah Corlew connected on all three of his shots behind the arc and the Mounties earned a Division II boys basketball quarterfinal game at Harwood with a dominating 72-40 victory over Springfield on Tuesday night at Martin McDonough Gymnasium.
The Cosmos came to town as a big underdog and No. 12 seed, but they hung around as long as possible. They trailed only 36-26 at halftime.
But that’s when the Academy’s athleticism took over.
The Mounties have outstanding team athleticism, but nobody on the floor was quite as explosive as Jahnathan Mitchell. He blew past the entire Springfield team for layups on two straight possessions in the third quarter. That helped ignite an impressive period that the Mounties won 25-10 to take control of the game.
“We had a lack of intensity in the first half,” Corlew said.
They certainly didn’t lack for that ingredient in the last 16 minutes. Corlew’s outside shooting and Mitchell’s power moves, with a whole lot of help from their friends, quickly turned the competitive game into a rout.
“He’s the fastest player on our team. He just explodes,” Corlew said of Mitchell.
Mitchell led the Mounties with 20 points. Corlew had 12, Robert Cassell 11, Shannon Murray nine and Jaskin Melendez eight.
Ethan McAllister led the Cosmos with 13 points, Kirk Perham added 12 and Billy Wheeler eight.
“This was similar to our first game with them up here,” Springfield coach Pete Peck said.
“We had a good first half and then their athleticism and pressure defense took over.”
You don’t need to tell MSJ coach Mark Benetatos that he’s blessed with speed and athleticism.
“He’s very fast,” Benetatos said of Mitchell. “And Pat (O’Rourke) is quick and Rob (Cassell) is quick. We’ve got some speed.”
The Mounties, though, must go into Harwood’s gym without some of its height. Tyler Ackley, the 6-foot-4 freshman, tore his ACL during halftime warm-ups of the Rutland game.
MSJ, the No. 5 seed, takes a 15-6 record to Harwood. The Highlanders are the No. 4 seed.
Melendez scored on MSJ’s first possession and the Cosmos never saw the lead.
Melendez broke a 4-4 tie with a free throw and the Mounties quickly extended their advantage to 22-10 by the end of the opening period.
McAllister helped keep the Cosmos in the game until halftime with some authoritative drives to the hoop.
But MSJ’s speed and Corlew’s marksmanship soon meant they were out of it.
“I’m not a go-to guy. I just try to get open and get a shot off,” Corlew said.”
“Springfield played hard and we kind of regrouped in the second half,” Benetatos said.
Peck took his seniors — McAllister, Wheeler, Michael Pianka and Nick Koch — out near the end of the game so they could get some special recognition.
“When you are playing your final game, sure it’s emotional,” Peck said.
The Cosmos finish at 8-13.
“When we made mistakes, MSJ was very good at capitalizing,” Peck said. “Their athleticism proved to be the difference.
“Some of our kids were part of that state championship team a few years ago. We talked about what it means to be a Cosmo and our tradition.”
Now, the Mounties will try to add to their own tradition by earning a trip to the Final Four at Barre Auditorium by taking down the Highlanders on Friday night.
MSJ’s Robert Cassell drives down the middle of the Springfield defense between Ethan Mcallister, left, and Michael Muther during Tuesday’s playoff game in Rutland.
Photo: Albert J. Marro / Staff Photo
Mounties wear down Cosmos
By Tom Haley
STAFF WRITER
Playing his last game on his home floor, Mount St. Joseph Academy senior Josiah Corlew connected on all three of his shots behind the arc and the Mounties earned a Division II boys basketball quarterfinal game at Harwood with a dominating 72-40 victory over Springfield on Tuesday night at Martin McDonough Gymnasium.
The Cosmos came to town as a big underdog and No. 12 seed, but they hung around as long as possible. They trailed only 36-26 at halftime.
But that’s when the Academy’s athleticism took over.
The Mounties have outstanding team athleticism, but nobody on the floor was quite as explosive as Jahnathan Mitchell. He blew past the entire Springfield team for layups on two straight possessions in the third quarter. That helped ignite an impressive period that the Mounties won 25-10 to take control of the game.
“We had a lack of intensity in the first half,” Corlew said.
They certainly didn’t lack for that ingredient in the last 16 minutes. Corlew’s outside shooting and Mitchell’s power moves, with a whole lot of help from their friends, quickly turned the competitive game into a rout.
“He’s the fastest player on our team. He just explodes,” Corlew said of Mitchell.
Mitchell led the Mounties with 20 points. Corlew had 12, Robert Cassell 11, Shannon Murray nine and Jaskin Melendez eight.
Ethan McAllister led the Cosmos with 13 points, Kirk Perham added 12 and Billy Wheeler eight.
“This was similar to our first game with them up here,” Springfield coach Pete Peck said.
“We had a good first half and then their athleticism and pressure defense took over.”
You don’t need to tell MSJ coach Mark Benetatos that he’s blessed with speed and athleticism.
“He’s very fast,” Benetatos said of Mitchell. “And Pat (O’Rourke) is quick and Rob (Cassell) is quick. We’ve got some speed.”
The Mounties, though, must go into Harwood’s gym without some of its height. Tyler Ackley, the 6-foot-4 freshman, tore his ACL during halftime warm-ups of the Rutland game.
MSJ, the No. 5 seed, takes a 15-6 record to Harwood. The Highlanders are the No. 4 seed.
Melendez scored on MSJ’s first possession and the Cosmos never saw the lead.
Melendez broke a 4-4 tie with a free throw and the Mounties quickly extended their advantage to 22-10 by the end of the opening period.
McAllister helped keep the Cosmos in the game until halftime with some authoritative drives to the hoop.
But MSJ’s speed and Corlew’s marksmanship soon meant they were out of it.
“I’m not a go-to guy. I just try to get open and get a shot off,” Corlew said.”
“Springfield played hard and we kind of regrouped in the second half,” Benetatos said.
Peck took his seniors — McAllister, Wheeler, Michael Pianka and Nick Koch — out near the end of the game so they could get some special recognition.
“When you are playing your final game, sure it’s emotional,” Peck said.
The Cosmos finish at 8-13.
“When we made mistakes, MSJ was very good at capitalizing,” Peck said. “Their athleticism proved to be the difference.
“Some of our kids were part of that state championship team a few years ago. We talked about what it means to be a Cosmo and our tradition.”
Now, the Mounties will try to add to their own tradition by earning a trip to the Final Four at Barre Auditorium by taking down the Highlanders on Friday night.
MSJ’s Robert Cassell drives down the middle of the Springfield defense between Ethan Mcallister, left, and Michael Muther during Tuesday’s playoff game in Rutland.
Photo: Albert J. Marro / Staff Photo
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