By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
The white medical tape wrapped tightly around Ben Weyer’s sprained right wrist, didn’t hamper his playing ability in the championship game of the 9th Region All “A” Classic on Saturday at Lloyd High School.
The Newport Central Catholic senior forward scored a game-high 26 points, snagged 10 rebounds and blocked four shots to lead his team to a 70-52 win over Holy Cross.
This is the fourth straight year that the Thoroughbreds have won the regional final in the small-school playoffs. Weyer was glad to be part of it after sitting out his team’s first-round game against Lloyd on Tuesday due to his wrist injury.
“I think Lloyd might have been the first game I missed my whole career,” he said. “I was dressed for that game and I was asking coach to put me in, but he wouldn’t. I just hate not playing.”
Weyer said his wrist was sore after Saturday’s title game. The 6-foot-6 senior will continue therapy treatments with the team trainer before NewCath plays the 11th Region champion in the first round of the Kentucky All “A” Classic state tournament at 1 p.m. Thursday at Frankfort Civic Center.
Holy Cross senior forward Tyler Bezold is another player who will be needing medical attention this week. He sprained his right ankle early in the second quarter of Saturday’s regional final and spent the rest of the night on the bench.
Bezold is the leading scorer and rebounder on the Holy Cross team. His teammates just weren’t able to win the game without him.
“When your best player goes down, it’s tough,” said Holy Cross coach Ryan Schrand. “We told our kids to keep battling and see what happens. But Ben Weyer was just having too good of a night and we didn’t have an answer for him.”
After Bezold was helped off the floor, NewCath scored eight straight points to take a 26-15 lead. Weyer started the run by making a steal and scoring a breakaway basket with a two-handed dunk.
Holy Cross reduced the margin to 29-21 at halftime and pulled to within three points, 36-33, late in the third quarter. But the Thoroughbreds responded with a 14-6 run that put their lead back in double digits, 50-39, early in the fourth quarter.
That’s when NewCath started putting two defenders on Holy Cross senior guard Leighton Schrand, who had kept his team in the game with his long-range shooting. It worked so well that NewCath was able to outscore Holy Cross, 20-13, in the final five minutes.
After the game, NewCath coach Ron Dawn had no problem picking his team’s most valuable player.
“Ben does so much for us at both ends (of the court),” Dawn said of Weyer. “He changes so many shots that towards the end they got really hesitant about even going up and shooting the ball because he had blocked a few. And he rebounds like crazy, helps out with the press, and he can score inside or out. I just think he’s a heck of a player.”
NewCath ended up shooting 51.1 percent (24 of 47) from the field and scored 23 points off turnovers. Holy Cross shot 33.3 percent (16 of 48) with five of its eight baskets in the second half coming on 3-point shots.
Schrand was the Indians’ leading scorer with 17 points and junior guard Will Volpenhein scored 11 points off the bench. Weyer was the only double-figure scorer for NewCath. The team’s other four starters combined for 26 points to match his total.
“Ben is the soul of our team,” said NewCath junior guard Luke Moeves. “He strokes it (as a shooter) and he’s a big post presence who blocks shots. Every time we get on offense everybody worries about him and that creates open shots for the rest of us. I don’t know if we could have won this tournament without him.”
Later this week, the Thoroughbreds will be counting on Weyer once again when they make a bid for their fourth straight title in the Kentucky All “A” Classic state tournament. Their first-round opponent won’t be determined until the 11th Region title game is played on Monday.
“I feel like overall this is the strongest the ‘A’ state has ever been,” coach Dawn said. “There’s seven or eight teams this year that are pretty good. It’ll be a good challenge for us.”
HOLY CROSS 15 6 15 18 – 52
NEWCATH 15 14 15 26 – 70
HOLY CROSS (16-5): Schrand 7 0 17, Barnes 1 0 2, Bezold 2 0 5, Jakobowski 1 2 5, Scott 1 6 8, Williams 1 0 2, Niehaus 0 2 2, Volpenhein 3 3 11. Totals: 16 13 52.
NEWCATH (15-3): Weyer 10 4 26, Hall 2 4 8, B. Anderson 2 0 5, Moeves 2 4 8, E. Anderson 2 1 5, Pangallo 1 2 5, Ludwig 3 0 7, Iles 0 2 2, Wurtz 2 0 4. Totals: 24 17 70.
Three-pointers: HC – Schrand 3, Volpenhein 2, Bezold, Jakobowski. NC – Weyer 2, B. Anderson, Pangallo, Ludwig.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
NewCath – Ben Weyer (MVP), Luke Moeves, Eric Anderson. Holy Cross – Leighton Schrand, Tyler Bezold. Bellevue – Cameron Chase. St. Henry – Adam Goetz. Newport – Ethan Snapp. Lloyd – Sterling Hamilton. Beechwood – Ben Toebbe. Dayton – Travon Garcia. Villa Madonna – Thomas Schutzman. Ludlow – Marcus Roark. Heritage – Isaiah Liske.