Catholic Central junior Tyler Galluch had a game-high 20 points and senior Ian Galluch added 12 points for the Irish, who finished the season 24-3.
“There’s nothing for us to hang our heads about,” said Irish coach John Detling. “We left it all out there and we played hard for the entire 32 minutes.”
Senior Jacob Pleiman scored 19 points, junior Carter Pleiman had 13 and Jameson Meyer added 11 as Botkins improved to 25-2. They advanced to face Tri-Village (24-3) in a D-IV regional final game at 7 p.m. Friday in Kettering.
Botkins led 15-10 after the first quarter and held Catholic Central to just two points in the second quarter to take a 23-12 lead in the locker room at the half.
“They’re a very good team and a very well-coached team,” said Botkins coach Phil Groves. “We know they can attack well off the dribble and we know they can knock down 3s. We wanted to make sure we made them earn everything off the dribble. If they wanted to drive down into the trees, we’d have people protecting the rim. At the same time, we didn’t want to give them any paint looks.”
The Trojans worked the ball inside to 6-6 post Jacob Pleiman early in the game, which eventually led to open 3-pointers in the second half.
“I thought we did a pretty decent job overall, but then they would kick it back out to the Wendel and Meyer kid and they’d hit a 3 and it would be a dagger,” Detling said.
Botkins led 23-12 at the half. They hit three 3-pointers in the third quarter and eventually extended their lead to as many as 22 points in the second half.
“We have a bunch of kids who can step up at any time,” Groves said. “When you focus on (Jacob Pleiman) in the post and they send doubles, guys are open on the perimeter as a result. They stepped up and knocked down shots when they needed to. I’m proud of the guys.”
Trojans senior Jaydon Wendel scored nine points, hitting three 3-pointers, while Meyer hit two 3-pointers.
“If you just give them a slight second to get it off, they can hurt you,” Detling said.
The Irish trailed by as many as 22 points in the second half. They cut the lead to nine points with 1:30 remaining, but couldn’t get any closer.
“There were times they could’ve rolled over and gotten beat by 20 or 25,” Detling said. “They fought to the very end and left it all out there on the floor.”
The Irish won both the Ohio Heritage Conference South Division champions and a district championship this season for the first time since 2019. The program will graduate eight seniors — Young, Ian Galluch, Jaeden Threats, Tim Chu, Tre King, Patrick Kavanagh, Thomas Sheehan and Jack Bramel. They’ll return two starters next year in Tyler Galluch and Cole Ray.
“There’s a lot of teams out there that would love to be 24-3 and have that type of season,” Detling said. “The saddest part is saying goodbye to those seniors I’ve had since seventh grade.”
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