Genoa stuns Fostoria at the buzzer

GENOA - The opportunity was there for the taking. Fostoria led by 10 points with four minutes to play. The Redmen were still clinging to a lead with less than five seconds to play. But, a play not executed just right allowed Genoa to draw a foul with no time remaining on the clock. Jon Huston made both free throws to send Fostoria to a heartbreaking 55-54 Northern Buckeye Conference loss to the Comets on Tuesday. "We did what we told them in the timeout except for the foul," FHS coach Thom Loomis said. "We didn't tell them to foul on the shot. We told them to foul on the catch. Kristian (Carter-Stokes) had four (fouls) and he didn't foul, but the other guys didn't foul." It looked like the Redmen (13-4 overall, 8-3 NBC) had a chance to escape the blown lead when Machi Johnson was fouled in front of the Genoa bench with 4.4 seconds left. He calmly made both free throws to give Fostoria a 54-53 lead. The Redmen used a timeout and had a foul to give. The Comets (13-4, 8-3) used a deep pass to Denver Stewart who flipped the ball over his head to a streaking Huston. Huston bypassed the defenders and got to the rim and was fouled as time expired. After another Fostoria timeout, he made his only two free throws of the night to send the Redmen home disappointed. "We wanted to stop the clock and make them take it out again," Loomis said. "We didn't execute down the stretch on that defensive possession." Fostoria led just 27-26 with 4:22 left in the third quarter when it really took control of the game. Lance Miller hit a 3 before scores from Jayceon Tucker and Jordan Ferguson pushed the advantage to 34-26. Two free throws by Ferguson extended the lead to double digits. A triple from Ryan Routson helped Genoa get within 38-31 after three quarters. "We changed defenses," said Loomis of the key in the third quarter. "That was a plan. We didn't want to show zone in the first half. We changed to zone in the third and I thought that made a big difference. They kind of stood around a little bit. "That made the shot selection they got a little different than what they were getting against the man." Stewart opened the fourth-quarter scoring for the Comets, but tallies from Ferguson and Tucker pushed the lead back to 42-33. The Redmen went up 46-36 following a Ferguson score. It was still 48-39 following a tally by Machi Johnson. But, Walter Plantz -- Genoa's 6-foot-7 lanky stud -- finally got going. He hit a pair of triples to bring the Comets within 51-46. A pull-up jumper by Plantz sliced into the lead further. After a Fostoria turnover, Routson's driving lay-up brought Genoa within 51-50. Ferguson was fouled on the other end, but missed both free throws. Genoa committed a turnover and Ferguson was again fouled. He made one to give Fostoria a 52-50 lead with 21.6 seconds left. Plantz then pushed the Comets ahead with another 3. "(Aiden) Brunkhorst and Stewart, they hurt us," Loomis said. "Second-chance points was the difference in the game. Plantz made 3s, but that wasn't it." Genoa topped the Redmen, 59-45, back on Dec. 5 in Fostoria. The Comets had a rebounding edge that night and it was again a disadvantage for the Redmen on Tuesday. This time, Genoa had a 35-22 edge. "We lost the game because we gave them too many second-chance points," Loomis said. "It's as simple as that. We outplayed them in every aspect of the game except for the fact that they did a hell of a lot better job on the offensive boards than we did." Fostoria kept Genoa off the scoreboard the final 4:17 of the first quarter to lead 10-7. The Redmen pushed the lead briefly to four points, but the back-and-forth action was nonstop. Fostoria led 23-21 at halftime. "It was a little slow for us in the first half, but we were OK with that," Loomis said. "I think that let us keep our legs. We really got out and got going in the third quarter and even the fourth quarter." Stewart led the Comets with 15 points and 12 rebounds while Plantz came on strong with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Huston also had 12 points. "We had to bracket Plantz in the paint, which I thought we did a really good job of," Loomis said. "We had to limit Huston's 3s. We knew Brunkhorst was capable of shooting the 3, but we were going to live and die with that because he's not a solid 3-point shooter. "Our biggest focus was we didn't want Stewart and Brunkhorst to hurt us and Stewart hurt us." Ferguson topped all scorers with 19 points. Johnson added 17 points. "I told our guys we have to lock in and we have to execute for 32 minutes," Loomis said. The Redmen are still tied atop the league standings. Genoa and Eastwood (10-7, 7-3) each have three league losses while Fostoria's opponent on Friday -- Oak Harbor (9-7, 6-4) -- sits a game back. Genoa and Eastwood play Friday while Fostoria travels to Oak Harbor. "We control our own destiny," Loomis said. "Our biggest game is Friday only because it is the next game." FOSTORIA (13-4, 8-3 NBC) Johnson 6-4—17; O'Neal 2-0—5; Carter-Stokes 1-0—2; Tucker 4-0—8; Ferguson 7-4—19; Miller 1-0—3. TOTALS: 21-44—7-12—54. GENOA (13-4, 8-3 NBC) Brunkhorst 4-1—11; Plantz 4-1—12; Huston 5-2—12; Routson 2-0—5; Stewart 6-3—15. TOTALS: 21-49—7-12—55. Fostoria &emsp;&emsp;10 13 15 16 – 54 Genoa 7 &emsp;&emsp;14 10 24 – 55 3-POINT FIELD GOALS: Fostoria 4-10 (Johnson, O'Neal, Ferguson, Miller); Genoa 6-21 (Plantz 3, Brunkhorst 2, Routson). REBOUNDS: Fostoria 22 (Tucker 6); Genoa 35 (Stewart 12) TURNOVERS: Fostoria 9; Genoa 15.