By Tom Nader

Publisher and Editor

Ari Tompkins is not ready for the basketball season to end.

Ari Tompkins, who scored a game-high 20 points, releases a short jumper over Western Reserve’s Isabella Mauro.
Paisley Nader/Portage Sports

The Mogadore senior is not ready for her career to end.

The finite reality fueled Tompkins to push her determination and competitive spirit to a new level on Thursday night.

And what a night for it, with the Wildcats competing in the regional semifinal for the first time since 2013.

Tompkins helped spark Mogadore to a 15-0 lead in the opening minutes and 18-2 lead after the first quarter to propel the program to a 44-27 Division VI regional semifinal victory over Berlin Center Western Reserve.

The win advances the Cats (22-4) to Saturday’s regional championship game against Danbury, which defeated Warren JFK, 62-36, at Perry High School at 7 p.m.

For Tompkins, her actions spoke loud enough, but her words provided a peek into the mindset she entered Thursday’s game with.

“I did not want to lose tonight. Not yet. I am not ready for this to be over,” said Tompkins.

To ensure that, Tompkins stacked together an impressive stat line that included 20 points, 12 rebounds, two assists, seven steals and three blocked shots.

All despite missing time throughout the game because her all-out gameplay led to frequent visits with the Wildcats’ trainer.

Tompkins entered the game with her arm wrapped to protect a bruised elbow, then needed an additional wrap on her shoulder to stop a cut from bleeding, wrap around her knee to stop another cut from bleeding and spent halftime stretching and icing her ankle that she injured at the tail end of the second quarter when it got rolled under a Western Reserve (18-7) defensive player.

Mogadore’s Julie Tompkins releases a layup during Thursday’s regional semifinal.
Paisley Nader/Portage Sports

“She is so competitive, I love it,” Mogadore girls basketball head coach Jen Ritch said. “She wants to win and she wants it so bad that it is like she is possessed out there sometimes.

“All of our girls have that fire in them and at any point, they all can put the team on their back, and we have seen that all year. Even recently, we saw it the other night with Kasey (Bolyard) in our district-final game,” Ritch added.

In Thursday’s first quarter, the Wildcats’ shared production was on full display.

All five starters — Julie Tompkins, Bolyard, Hayli Clester, Amelia Morris and Ari Tompkins — had a part in the team’s roaring start.

Mogadore turned defense into offense and forced the Blue Devils into a timeout after jumping ahead 6-0 on a pair of baskets by Ari Tompkins and another by Morris. The Devils’ attempt to regroup did not work and after an Ari Tompkins 3, the Cats’ lead grew to 10-0. It kept ballooning, growing to 15-0 when Clester found Bolyard for a transition layup.

“The adrenaline was going and we were pumped up,” Ritch said. “I think our girls were prepared for tonight and not nervous. They were ready to go.

“We talk a lot about being the team that punches first, because we have fed off that and it has carried us in a lot of games. If we wait, sometimes we are not sure what is going to happen or how we are going to react, so we always want to be the aggressor early,” Ritch added.

During the crucial first-quarter stretch, as well as throughout the entire game, Mogadore’s defense was nearly flawless.

Quick lateral movement allowed for superior perimeter defense and the few times the Blue Devils got to the basket, Mogadore’s rim defense was elite.

Mogadore’s Kasey Bolyard (2) lifts for a jumpshot over Western Reserve’s Kyle Busch and Isabella Mauro.
Paisley Nader/Portage Sports

For the game, the Cats finished with 12 blocked shots — most of which occurred by being in good defensive position at the time of the shot release and maintaining verticality without fouling.

“We have really spent a lot of time working on defensive verticality,” Ritch said.

All of the defensive activity turned 28 Western Reserve offensive possessions into opportunities for Mogadore, with 16 steals and 12 blocked shots for the Cats. Even when the Devils did get a shot attempt off, the Cats were nearby and consistently kept the Devils from getting comfortable on offense.

Western Reserve connected on just 10-of-57 (18 percent) from the field and were only 1-for-19 from 3-point range, with the lone make coming late in the fourth quarter.

Mogadore also struggled from the field, connecting on only 17-of-60 (28 percent) shots. The Cats were an efficient 7-of-18 shooting in the first quarter, but then managed to hit on only 10-of-32 shots the rest of the game.

Morris nearly had a double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds. She also had four blocked shots. Bolyard added seven points and Julie Tompkins had five steals and five assists for the Wildcats.

Western Reserve’s top performer was Isabella Mauro, who had a double-double with 10 points and 20 rebounds.