COLUMBUS - When Southeastern placed 2 defenders on Studer, Rusk got the call and he sure rang the bell. Win or lose today, Strasburg has accomplished something no other Tuscarawas County Class A team can claim. They've reached the State Championship Game. But, there are 3 teams of yore who won 2 State Tournament contests without taking the crown. That goes back a few years to the days when the Columbus fields were considerably larger. Midvale's 1941 team, coached by present Claymont Superintendent Clayton (Pete) Wolfe, defeated Waterloo 42-37 and Cridersville 30-23 before bowing 44-36 to Canfield in the semis. In 1939 Dennison, tutored by the late Glenn Furbay, downed Harpster 39-24 and Dillonville 27-22, then fell 25-21 to Sandusky St. Mary's in the semis. Another team copping 2 State wins was Midvale's 1937 squad coached by Maurice Helwick, veteran Strasburg Superintendent. It topped South Amherst 42-36 and Bluffton 39-32, but dropped a 27-25 semi-final verdict to Lockland. Sgarcreek's 1932 quintet also advanced to the semi, but it only had to win one game to do it. The pirates defeated Steward 28-27, then fell 25-21 to Ostrander.
Other Class A (B) teams from the county who made it to Columbus were Midvale in 1940 and 1957, Dennison in 1936, Gnadenhutten in 1942 and Strasburg in 1928, 1933 and 1938. Official scorer for the Class A games was Bob Espenschied, a 1942 Sugarcreek-Shanesville High School graduate now residing in Ashland. He teaches at Ashland High.
Sam Fausto of Dennison made his initial appearance as a state tournament referee. He officiated the Cleveland East Tech-Cincinnati LaSalle game and the fans back home said Sammy looked good on TV.
Ohio State basketball players served as team escorts to assure that everyone found their places correctly. Dan Andreas, Garaway's All-Ohioan who played for the Buckeye Freshman Team this season, was Strasburg's escort. Tiger members fondly call Dr. James Hougian, their team physician "Doc Holiday" and consider him a solid member of the clan.
Arcanum Coach Dick Graeff, a 1946 Dover High School graduate was praised by Ohio High School Athletic Commissioner Paul Landis when Graeff stood up and signaled his fans to quiet down after they showed their dislike for a third-quarter call. Graeff said last night he sends greetings and regards to all his Tuscarawas County fans and friends. He remarked, "It's an honor to be playing the top-ranked team in the State."
Vince Costello, Cleveland Browns linebacker from Magnolia, was encircled by a large group of local fans and friends. Vince played it cool as he evaded the football questions and stuck strictly to talking about basketball.
A very dejected Ken Newlon stated after Lincoln's loss to Columbus Linden-McKinley, "Turnovers beat us. We haven't thrown the ball away that many times all year. I guess you can say it was their quickness that maybe caused it," the former Stone Creek and Strasburg coach observed. "I really don't believe Linden improved that much since we beat them earlier in the season. Everyone must learn to lose, but it sure hurts more down here."
One of the wildest (and I mean wildest) celebrators in the Tiger dressingroom was former Bengal coach Warren Binder, who throughout the 4th quarter was the leader of Strasburg's cheering section. Warren said he couldn't stand the way the cheering section was yelling so he went over and got them going for the 2nd half. He was probably one of the happiest guys here.
Saturday, March 18, 1967
The Daily Reporter
Dover, Ohio
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