The season came to a close for Bison Basketball on the night of Friday, March 9 at Garfield Heights High School with a loss in the district final to Lutheran East by a score of 72-62.

The Bison, who had earned a record of 13-11, entered the game without senior guards Josh Sizemore and Errick Sanders. Sizemore had put up a team-leading 23 points in Beachwood’s 68-63 win over Elyria Catholic in the district semifinals.

In addition, the team was without head coach Jon Mannarino, who was out on paid leave. Leading the team was assistant coach Sean Witherspoon.

In spite of all this adversity, the team’s fast-paced play, prestigious rebounding performance and ability to move the ball provided the Bison with a ten point lead at halftime. After scoring the first five points in the second half, however, Lutheran East managed to outscore the Bison by ten points in both the second and third quarters.

In the losing effort, junior guard/forward Jayson Woodrich led the team in scoring, putting up 18 points, followed by freshman Collin Albert with 14. Both players were named Special Mention All-Ohio on Mar. 19.

This game marked the end of the road for seven senior players, including First Team All-CVC guard Cam Thomas and Honorable Mention All-CVC forward Michael Gordon.

However, the future is looking bright for the Bison. In addition to Woodrich and Albert, the team is returning junior Allon Hardin, a starter in the Lutheran East game, as well as contributors in junior Jimmie Mitchell and freshman Sirr Hughes.

With such a studded returning class, it would not be surprising to see the Bison back in the District Final next year.