Boys basketball: Firelands pulls away to beat Cloverleaf

HENRIETTA TWP. — Just as the Cloverleaf boys basketball team got back within striking distance, Firelands slammed the door. The Falcons scored seven unanswered in the final three minutes to pull away 57-50 in non-conference play Friday night. "It's a possession-by-possession game," Cloverleaf coach Jack Banks said. "We played these guys last year. It went the same way into overtime. "That's what the playoffs are going to be like. We have to capitalize on those possessions and have less turnovers and not give up offensive rebounds. We can't give up extra shots. We gave them some opportunities, and they took full advantage of it." Cloverleaf (6-4) ended the first quarter on a strong note, outscoring Firelands 10-4 and cut the deficit to one point. Ty Kovach was crucial during the stretch, connecting on a 3-pointer and a layup. Those were ultimately his only points of the game. The Falcons responded with five unanswered to open the second, but the Colts limited the Falcons to just one field goal for the next 5:45, closing the half on a 12-2 run that gave them a 27-23 lead. Marty Moran (19 points, 7 rebounds) scored six straight points for the Colts at one point, including a steal that tied the game at 21. "It was very early in the game, but we kept our heads up," Moran said. "We started in a 2-3 zone, but they took advantage of us in that. We switched to man defense and went on a little run from there." That was the first of four straight points off turnovers, as Carter Whitehair (10 points) followed Moran's missed free throw up with a steal, connecting on two free throws of his own. He then drained a 3-pointer on the next possession. "Carter's a senior, so he's one of those guys that does a lot of little things and it doesn't really show sometimes on the scorebook," Banks said. "He made a couple of shots, and we've always known he can hit them. He's a starter. When he's left open, he'll make those shots." Firelands (8-2) came out hot in the third quarter, with Ayden Fortner (18 points, 10 rebounds) scoring five of the team's first seven points, cutting the lead to 31-30. Firelands eventually took the lead with 4:20 left in the period, but the teams exchanged leads on three of the next four possessions with one tie in between. Cloverleaf led 40-38 going into the fourth, but once Firelands took the lead, it never looked back. The Colts cut to 50-47 with 3:12 left, but Carson Lima hit a corner three that launched seven unanswered to seal the game. "This is the second loss we've had this season where a team has had a big run on us down the stretch," Moran said. "We've got to eliminate that down the stretch, and I think we'll learn from this game and get better from here." Contact Chris Sweeney at sports@medina-gazette.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on X. Firelands 57, Cloverleaf 50 CLOVERLEAF 15 12 13 10 — 50 FIRELANDS 16 7 15 19 — 57 Cloverleaf — Marty Moran 8-2-19, Carter Whitehair 3-2-10, Zak Brownson 5-1-11, Ty Kovach 2-0-5, Isaac Smith 2-0-5, Joe Cesareo 0-0-0, Kellen Price 0-0-0, Gavin Forbes 0-0-0. TOTALS 20-5-50. Firelands — Elijah Zidar 2-0-4, Rylan Copen 3-0-7, Jackson Lima 1-0-2, Max Stinson 3-0-7, Ayden Fortner 8-2-18, Carson Lima 6-1-14, Evan Gargasz 1-0-2, Logan Holt 1-0-3, Cameron Mulica 0-0-0. TOTALS 25-3-57. 3-point goals — Whitehair 2, Kovach, Moran, Smith, Copen, Holt, Lima, Stinson. Rebounds — Cloverleaf 19 (Brownson 8), Firelands 27 (Fortner 10). Records — Cloverleaf (6-4), Firelands (8-2). Junior varsity — Cloverleaf 62, Firelands 58.