Titans outshoot Tomcats in regional quarterfinals to win, 67-37
By: Andrew Rowan
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PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (WOUB) — The 4th-seeded Notre Dame Titans hosted the 12-seeded Trimble Tomcats Thursday night in the boys Division VII Region 23 Southeast Quarter-Finals. The two had faced one another back in 2024 at the Convocation Center in Athens in the playoffs, where it was the Tomcats who walked away the winners in double overtime, and Notre Dame aimed to flip the script. The Titans took control early, shutting down Trimble with efficient shooting, winning 67-37.
Notre Dame got things rolling right away, winning the tipoff and making the first shot of the game off a three-pointer from Bryce McGraw to go on a six-point run, which was broken up with a steal from Hunter Brandeberry, who made a three of his own. The Titans’ full-court press overwhelmed the Trimble offense, helping to finish the quarter up 15-7.
Missed shots and turnovers were a problem for the Tomcats all regular season and continued to be so in the second quarter. One of the keys to Notre Dame’s early success was the fact that they shut down Brady Jajczyk, holding him to only nine points on the night, and he didn’t score his first point until late in the quarter, getting fouled and nailing back-to-back free throws. Trimble still struggled to have shots fall, going into halftime down 28-11.
The Titans kept their foot on the gas, getting the new half started with yet another three from McGraw. He went 5/5 on three-pointers and finished the night with 22 total points. Notre Dame as a whole had an impressive shooting performance, with 27 of their total points of the night coming from beyond the arc.
In the fourth, Trimble continued to fight to stay alive, but the missed shots had caught up with them, and in the waning moments of the game, Notre Dame would hold onto the ball to walk away the winners.
With the win, the Titans will head to Southeastern High School to take on the Latham Western Indians in the regional semifinals, with that game scheduled to start at 8 p.m. on March 2.
This loss ends the Tomcats’ season; they finished with a 6-17 record overall and went 2-8 in conference play.