by Akron, Ohio – Cory Rosenthal hit the game-winning jumper with eight seconds left, propelling Akron Garfield to a 41-40 victory over Uniontown Lake in sectional final play on Saturday evening.
The Lake Blue Streaks pulled off a road upset of Brush to open up tournament play, and were looking for another Saturday evening.
The first quarter was a battle of the defenses, as Akron Garfield led 9-8. Chance Casenhiser, Drew Gullett, and Josh Coffield each found the scorebook for the Blue Streaks, as well as Will Koehl. Koehl sank a triple and converted a four-point play in the stanza.
Lake led 19-14 at the half, as the defensive struggle continued through the second quarter.
Both teams picked up the pace in the third quarter, as they began to trade the lead back and forth. Antoine Wilson sank a triple at the end of the third to put Akron Garfield ahead, 33-30.
In the fourth quarter, Drew Gullett sank a triple to put the Blue Streaks ahead, 37-34 with 4:33 left. After a Lamont Brooks layup, Gullett cashed in another triple to increase the lead to 40-36.
But Akron Garfield was not out of it yet.
A turnover led to an Antoine Wilson triple, making the score 40-39 Lake. On the next possession, a steal by Thomas Wright gave the Golden Rams a chance to take the lead. They worked the clock inside ten seconds, and Cory Rosenthal hit a floater over two defenders, giving the Golden Rams the lead, 41-40.
He also had a steal that gave the Rams back possession with two seconds left. But a foul before the inbound gave Lake a chance to win the game. Garfield’s defense stepped up again, as Thomas Walker came up with the game-ending steal, clinching the game for the Golden Rams.
Junior forward Terrion Chapman finished with 11 points, nine of them in the third quarter. Antoine Wilson and Thomas Walker each finished with eight. Akron Garfield advances take on Brunswick in the Copley District semifinal Wednesday, March 6th.
Lake finishes their season at 6-18. They were led by senior guard Drew Gullett, who finished with 14 points, and senior guard Chance Casenhiser, who finished with 13.
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