Muskingum Valley shoots past Licking County for all-star sweep

On Mar 13, 2023

HANOVER ― After River View’s Owen Emig sank a 3-pointer just inside the half-court line, Coshocton’s Zane Bryant did him one better, banking one in from midcourt.

It was that kind of shooting afternoon for the Muskingum Valley all-stars, who made 25 3s all told in a 136-120 all-star win against host Licking County on Sunday in Licking Valley’s Dick Torbert Gymnasium. It completed the sweep, as earlier, Muskingum’s girls blitzed Licking 37-21 in the second half of a 62-45 victory.

On a day the boys teams combined for 43 from behind the arc, Emig hit eight of them and led Muskingum with 27 points. Crooksville’s Ryan Moore made five for 15 points, while West Muskingum’s Noah Ray scored 18 points, Weston Hartman of Rosecrans had 13, and Bryant and Philo’s Demetrious Strickland added 10 apiece. The winners raced out to a 69-53 halftime lead and never looked back.

Hartman, who broke the Bishops’ longtime single-game scoring record with 48, also won an exciting 3-point shootout at halftime. After Emig and Watkins Memorial’s Ethan Ryan both scored 15 points, Hartman swished a “money” ball 3 from the corner as time ran out to win with 16.

“I was really nervous coming in,” said Hartman, a rare four-sport athlete (basketball, football, golf and baseball) who will play baseball at Walsh University. “I found my spot, but I was shaking on that last one,” he said. “I played pick up ball over the years with a lot of guys on my team. We had a lot of talent, and Emig was definitely one of our best players.”

Utica’s Trenton Collins hit for 26 points and a pair of acrobatic dunks in a losing cause, while the Licking Heights tandem of Kison Cortes-Edmunson (19) and Jayden Griffith (17) teamed for 36. Zanesville’s Xavier Riley tossed in seven of Licking’s 18 3s for 21 points, while Granville Christian Academy’s Eli Cooper added 12 and Cody Siegfried from Johnstown had 11. Licking was a bit undermanned, taking the floor without five players who were on the original roster.

The home team tried to look for a spark in the second half, going to a trap, but couldn’t cool off Muskingum.

“During a timeout, I said to try the trap, something to try to get us back in the game,” Collins said. “It was fun being here, and there was no pressure about it, coming together to play with these guys I had been facing all four years in the LCL, and I even knew some of the guys on the other team.”

In the girls game, Tri-Valley all-time scoring leader Lexi Howe was in a familiar spot with running the offense, albeit with unfamiliar teammates. Muskingum Valley actually trailed 19-11 early in the second quarter before finding its footing, as Newark’s Syncere Royster made a 3 and Watkins Memorial’s Cameryn Wheeler converted a 3-point play off a steal for Licking. But Muskingum closed the half on a 14-5 run to take a 25-24 lead, with Howe scoring six points and Coshocton’s Savannah Bartlett adding a pair of late buckets. An 11-0 third-quarter run, with New Lexington’s Aubri Spicer hitting for six points, pushed the winners up 36-30, and their defense finished the job.

“In the first half, we were a little nervous, because we weren’t used to playing with each other,” said the Ashland-bound Howe, who scored 10 points, had numerous assists and won the 3-point shootout with 14 points, edging out Watkins Memorial’s Kalleigh Rennie (11). “The second half, we were more together. The New Lexington players stepped up and they were super fun to play with.”

“It was pretty awesome to play with Aubri one last time,” said Kim Kellogg of the Panthers. “It’s gone by too fast. We did not even practice for this game, but we finally got it going, and our defense took over.”

West Muskingum’s Caitlyn Drake, and Spicer, led the winners with 11 points each. Heath’s Taliyah Holmes made a trio of 3s and led Licking with 15 points. Newark’s Ally Carr hit a pair of 3s.

Carr and Royster got to team up one last time, as did the Watkins duo of Wheeler and Rennie.

“It brought back a lot of memories,” said Wheeler, who will attend Davis-Elkins in West Virginia and will run track and cross country. “It’s hasn’t really hit me yet,” Rennie said. “It was fun to see a lot of familiar faces, that we had played against since we were younger.” She will attend the Police Academy, following in the footsteps of her mom and sister.

Granville’s Ava Gossman and Michaela Perfors received girls scholarships from the LCL, while boys’ scholarships went to Ryan and Utica’s Tyler Chinn. The MVL awarded its scholarships to Lily Yoder of River View and New Lexington’s Lukas Ratliff.