Muskies Conquer Irish To Win First State Championship

The John Glenn Muskies have lived up to expectations all season long.

Saturday afternoon at the Schottenstein Center was no exception.

The Muskies seldom trailed perennial power St. Vincent-St. Mary and held on to win the first state title in program history, 76-72.

Senior guard Drew Rackley led the way for John Glenn with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Rackley was named the tournament MVP for his efforts, joined on the all-tournament team by teammate Matt Weir.

John Glenn raced out a 15-7 edge at the end of the first quarter, relying on scoring from Weir and sophomore Jah Blevins. The Fish upped their lead to double-digits by halftime, 34-23. 

A resilient Fighting Irish squad used the third quarter to mount a comeback. St. Vincent-St. Mary trailed by just four points entering the final stanza.

From there, the crowd of over 14,000 in attendance was treated to a back-and-forth battle between two deserving programs.

The Irish opened the final eight minutes on a 7-2 run to momentarily take the lead, 54-53. But the Muskies were not trailing for long.

A three-point play by Weir gave John Glenn a two-possession edge, 65-59, with time winding down in the fourth. The Fighting Irish would convert on a three-point play of their own , though, to cut the deficit to a pair.

Enter the Muskies’ clutch free throw shooting.

Rackley and Weir combined to shoot 88.2 percent (15-of-17) from the charity stripe for the contest, and were called upon to deliver from the line in the final moments. Despite taking 24 fewer shots than St. Vincent-St. Mary, the Muskies hung on to make history.

John Glenn’s hot shooting from the field also played a key factor in the win. The Muskies shot a scorching 65.8 percent (25-of-38) from the field compared to 37.1 percent (23-of-62) from the Fighting Irish.

Behind Rackley on the score sheet were Weir (18 points), Tanner Slack (15), Blevins (9), Austin Blatt (7) and Matt Stewart (2).

John Glenn High School plans on celebrating the win with a community pep rally Wednesday night at 7, according to a tweet from Storied Rivals.