The Canton Timken boys basketball team will play Toledo Whtimer tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Rhodes Arena in a Division I regional championship game at the University of Akron.

The winner of tonight’s game advances to Columbus for the state final four at Value City Arena on the campus of Ohio State University.

Timken, 24-0 this season, is seeking its first appearance in the state final four since 1960.

Timken and Whitmer have had to wait to play this game, orginally scheduled for Saturday, due to the heavy snowfall that recently hit Northeast Ohio.

Timken has defeated Massillon Washington, Jackson, Perry and Firestone so far in the tournament.

Senior guards Johnie Davis and Christian Alston and junior forward Chaz Moore led the Trojans past the Falcons this past Thursday.

If Timken wins the regional title it will mark the fifth consecutive season the Canton district winner will qualify for the state final four. GlenOak advanced to state in 2007 and Canton McKinley advanced to state in 2004, 2005 and 2006. McKinley won state titles in 2005 and 2006.

Firestone senior Leeanna Hoover won the Division I girls state diving championship Thursday morning in Canton. Her teammate, senior Bethany Haver, placed second.

Walsh Jesuit senior Tia Marquinez placed ninth in the Division II girls diving championship.

The boys diving championship is scheduled to start tonight at 7 p.m.

Look for a story in Friday’s Akron Beacon Journal about the state diving meet.

This morning, I attended a banquet for the Jack Greynolds Memorial Classic.

At the banquet, the late Jack Greynolds was honored for the impact he made in Northeast Ohio. Greynolds compiled a 549-121 record in 29 seasons as a head boys basketball coach at Revere and Barberton. He led the Magics to a state title in 1976.

The third annual Jack Greynolds Memorial Classic is scheduled to feature seven boys basketball games Dec. 28-29.

Here is the schedule: (Friday, Dec. 28) Copley vs. Medina 5:15 p.m., Green vs. Jackson 7 p.m. and GlenOak vs. Warren Harding; (Saturday, Dec. 29) Norton vs. Wadsworth noon, Revere vs. Kenmore 1:45 p.m., Manchester vs. Northwest 3:30 p.m. and Barberton vs. Firestone 5:30 p.m.

Click here for more information about the Jack Greynolds Memorial Classic.

Several of the coaches whose teams will be competing in the showcase were at the banquet. Firestone coach Jerry Laria brought his senior point guard Ramel Mitchell with him.

I talked to Mitchell about the Falcons’ 3-0 start and his plans for college. He said he is receiving interest from Kent State University, but he is still undecided about which college he will attend.

I think Mitchell would be a good fit in KSU coach Jim Christian’s system. I think Mitchell is one of the best high school guards in the area, and perhaps the best pound-for-pound local player.

Ta-myra Davis, a 2006 Firestone graduate, has transferred to Wright State to continue her basketball and academic career.

Davis will have three years of eligibility remaining with the start of the Raiders 2008-09 season. She played her freshman season at Youngstown State.

Davis, a 6-foot-1 forward/center, appeared in 24 games for the Penguins and averaged 3.9 points and 4.3 rebounds while shooting 50 percent in field goal attempts.

Davis led Firestone to the City Series title as a senior, averaging about 17 points, 15 rebounds and three steals per game. She was named City Series Player of the Year that season and was a Division I Special Mention All-Ohio and a first-team all-district selection.

The Falcons won City Series titles in each of her four seasons and she amassed over 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in her high school career.

High School Football Playoff Schedule

Note: These are probable playoff matchups according to www.joeeitel.com and the matchups have changed several times on Saturday, which means they might be different on the website on Sunday. Official OHSAA playoff pairings will be released Monday.

Friday’s Games
(All games 7:30 p.m., unless noted)

Division II, Region 5
Firestone (7-3) at Tallmadge (9-1)

Division II, Region 7
Lake (7-3) at Louisville (8-2)

Division III, Region 9
Field (9-1) at Walsh Jesuit (8-1)
Cortland Lakeview (8-2) at Aurora (9-1)
Ravenna (8-2) at Mentor Lake Catholic (6-3)

Divison III, Region 11
Poland Seminary (7-3) at Northwest (10-0)
New Concord John Glenn (8-2) at West Branch (8-2)
Canton South (6-4) at Dover (7-3)

Divison V, Region 17
Northwestern (9-1) at Waynedale (8-2)

Saturday’s Games
(All games 7 p.m., unless noted)

Division I, Region 2
GlenOak (6-4) at Brunswick (10-0)
Toledo St. John’s Jesuit (6-4) at North Canton Hoover (8-2)
Perrysburg (8-2) at Nordonia (9-1)
Wadsworth (9-1) at Toledo Whitmer (8-2)

Division IV, Region 13
CVCA (9-1) at Stuebenville (10-0)
Tusky Valley (8-2) at Canton Central Catholic (9-1)
Lake Co. Perry (9-1) at St. Vincent-St. Mary (8-2)

Division VI, Region 21
Columbiana (7-3) at Mogadore (9-1)

The Firestone football team defeated host Kenmore 44-0 Saturday afternoon.

The victory allowed Firestone (7-2, 6-0) to clinch their first outright City Series football championship after sharing four City titles since the school opened in 1963 and began playing varsity football in 1964.

Firestone dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball with seniors DeAndre Tucker, Deshawn Cole, Jeffrey Brantley, Robert Trunck and Alex Paul standing out defensively with juniors Brandon Moore and Evan Robinson and sophomore Jeremy Brantley.

Juniors David Henderson, Max Henry and Richard Braucci compose the Falcons offensive line with Tucker and senior Ben White.

Falcons senior quarterback Trevor Kennedy led the offense with a rushing touchdown and two passing touchdowns to senior receiver Gray Franklin. Kennedy completed 9-of-19 passes for 133 yards and rushed for 26 yards on five carries.

Senior Ross Davis scored two touchdowns and gained 102 rushing yards on 18 carries in place of senior Darshawn Thomas, who was out with a minor injury.

Junior DeShawn Grice gained 58 yards on five carries and freshman Cody Grice scored a 23-yard touchdown. Junior Brian Lewis gained 25 yards on five carries and sophomore Ricky Powers rushed for 22 yards on four carries.

The Falcons defense forced the Cardinals (0-9, 0-5) into a safety. Falcons senior kicker Dominic Moore made all six extra point attempts.

The victory also allowed coach Tim Flossie to win a City Series football championship at three different schools: Central-Hower, Buchtel and Firestone. Flossie is a former standout quarterback at Garfield.

Firestone is currently No. 5 in the Division II Region 5 computer rankings with the top eight in each region making the playoffs. Firestone plays at Walsh Jesuit in Week 10. The Warriors are ranked second in the Division III Region 9 computer rankings.

The Firestone football team ended 21 years of frustration Saturday by defeating their West Akron rival Buchtel 27-26.

The Falcons improved to 6-2 overall and 5-0 in the City Series under coach Tim Flossie. Buchtel drops to 1-7, 1-3 under coach Ricky Powers.

The Falcons held a 27-12 lead in the third quarter and held onto win despite a valiant Buchtel rally.

Senior Trevor Kennedy led the Falcons with two rushing touchdowns and a passing touchdown to senior Alex Paul. Kennedy completed 8-of-9 passes for 82 yards, and rushed for 70 yards on 10 carries.

Firestone senior Darshawn Thomas rushed for a touchdown and gained 76 yards on 21 carries.

Buchtel was led by senior Johnny Adams, who had an 84-yard touchdown reception and finished with 160 yards receiving on six catches. Griffins junior Tahj Dent passed for 218 yards and sophomore Johnathan Coleman rushed for two touchdowns.

Firestone’s last victory over Buchtel came in 1985.

Here is some cross country analysis as leagues/conferences hold their championship meets and the state championships approach.

Louisville senior Kyle Kling and Medina junior Donny Roys have each been impressive runners this season, but there are still several teams that have a good collection of talent and other individuals that are having success.

The cross country teams at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy and Woodridge are two examples of squads that have consistently fared well at invitationals this season, in addition to Louisville, Medina, North Canton Hoover Green, Jackson, Louisville, Hudson, Crestwood, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Vincent-St. Mary and Walsh Jesuit.

CVCA and Woodridge have front-end talent and depth that make them a contender at each meet.

CVCA has been led by juniors Katie Gillespie and Kyle Sullinger. The girls and boys teams each placed first recently at the Legends Meet at the Trumbull County Fairgrounds.

Gillespie and junior Carolyn Case have paced the Royals girls squad with freshmen Joy Talbott, Irene Frangos and Hannah Lyons also being key contributors. The girls team placed first in September at the Division II Boardman Spartan Invitational.

Sullinger and sophomores Ross Crocker and Mark Talbott have paced the Royals boys squad.

The Woodridge girls’ squad was second to CVCA at Boardman. The Bulldogs have been led by juniors Emily Sabo, Erin Mercer and sophomore Becca Howdyshell.

The Woodridge boys’ team won the Division II Boardman Spartan Invitational in September behind senior Brian Himelright, who placed first. The Bulldogs have also received significant contributions from juniors Michael Rhodes and Joe White, seniors Tony Marette and Matthew Weiss and freshmen Jimmy Charles and Vibus Sivakumaran.

This Saturday several leagues will be holding their championship. The City Series and Suburban League will be running at Goodyear Metro Park in Akron.

The Firestone boys will look to defend their title after winning the past four titles and five out of the past six. The Ellet girls will look to win the title for a sixth season in a row.

Football

GlenOak 7, North Canton Hoover 6

Varsity Letters Player of the Game: GlenOak senior running back Anthony Smith. Smith carried the ball 36 times for 145 yards to help the Golden Eagles keep drives alive, run the clock and limit the number of possessions that Hoover’s high-powered offense received.

GlenOak improved to 5-2, 2-2 in the Federal League. Hoover fell to 5-2, 3-1 in the Federal League.

“He’s our guy,” GlenOak coach Scott Garcia said. “He’s the guy that we’ve been riding all year long. And we said, ‘If we’re going to have any success, we have to let Anthony carry the load.’ He did that for us tonight.”

Here are a few quick notes regarding City Series football, which has certainly been surprising this season.

The madness began Sept. 15 when Ellet defeated Buchtel.

With Buchtel (0-5, 0-3 City Series) struggling, the race for the title is wide open. It appears that (listed alphabetically) Firestone (3-2, 2-0), Garfield (3-2, 1-0) and North (4-1, 2-0) are the favorites to win the City Series title.

These notes were gathered via Beacon Journal records.

– The Firestone win over Ellet (27-7) on Friday (Sept. 21) was the Falcons first victory over the Orangemen (3-2, 1-1) since 1996. Ellet had won 10 in a row over Firestone from 1997-2006. The Falcons defeated the Orangemen twice in the 1995 season, once in the regular season and once in the City championship game. It should be noted that Buchtel played in the state playoffs that season and that is why Firestone and Ellet met in the title game.

– The North win over Buchtel (24-0) on Friday (Sept. 21) was the Vikings first victory over the Griffins in 23 years, according to people within the North football community.

– Firestone and North meet this Friday (Sept. 28). The Falcons won last year 21-6, but the Vikings won the previous four meetings (2002-2005). Since 1994, North has won seven times and Firestone has won six times.

– Firestone and Garfield meet next Friday (Oct. 5). The Falcons won 37-21 last year, but the Golden Rams won the previous nine meetings (1996-2005). Since 1994, Garfield is 10-2 against Firestone (wins in 1995 and 2006). They did not play each other in 2004.

– Garfield and Buchtel meet Oct. 19. The Golden Rams last beat the Griffins in 2001 and 1998. Buchtel has won the past five meetings (2002-2006).

I will look for other trends and streaks within the City Series and post them at a later date. Stay tuned.

ED SUBA JR./Akron Beacon Journal

Firestone senior wide receiver Gary Franklin tries to avoid Ellet defenders after making a catch during the Falcons’ win over the Orangemen Friday night.