March 23, 2013

Greensburg Works Overtime for School’s First State Championship
Bryant McIntosh, Ryan Welage and Colin Rigney combined for all 12 points in overtime as the Greensburg Pirates pulled out a stirring 73-70 victory over Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran in the Class 3A championship game.

It marked the first state title for Greensburg in any team sport. The triumph will be remembered for the way the Pirates battled against a poised and resolute Concordia club. Greensburg took its first lead of the game with 2:20 remaining in overtime.

Sean Sellers, Greensburg's leading scorer on the season, fouled out with 48.2 seconds left in regulation time. But McIntosh provided some heroics by hitting a 3-pointer with 25 seconds left to tie the game at 61-all.

In overtime, McIntosh and Welage scored their team's first 10 points. With 22 seconds remaining, Rigney drove for a bucket that gave Greensburg its 73-70 edge. Concordia's Ryan Gross missed a 3-point try just before the buzzer.

Coach Stacy Meyer's Pirates, ranked No. 2 in the AP Class 3A poll, finished 26-1. They start five underclassmen and were led in scoring in the title game by the junior McIntosh with 25, the junior Sellers with 19 and the sophomore Welage with 16. Sellers grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.

Coach Josh Eggold's Concordia team wound up 23-5. The Cadets, using balanced scoring, took their biggest lead of 12 points early in the third quarter before Greensburg started its push. The Cadets shot 50.9 percent from the field and put four players in double-digit scoring -- D.J. McCall with 17, Gross with 14, Thomas Starks with 12 and Brian Gremaux with 11. Starks totaled eight rebounds.

Concordia, ranked No. 7 in the AP poll, was making its first appearance in the boys basketball finals. The Cadets finished 23-5.

 

 Listen: Greensburg Post-Game Press Conference | Fort Wayne Concordia Post-Game Press Conference


Class 3A State Finals Records
Highest Free Throw Percentage (minimum 10 attempts)
1.000 (11-11) by Sean Sellers, Greensburg vs. Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran, 2013.

Thomas Starks Jr. of Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran named Trester Award Winner
Following the game, members of the IHSAA Executive Committee named Thomas Starks, Jr. of Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran High School as the winner of the Arthur L. Trester Mental Attitude Award in Class 3A Boys Basketball. 

Thomas was a student representative to the IHSAA Student Leadership Conference last year, was a member of the school’s speech team last year and been a basketball camp instructor the last three years.

He also has been recognized with underclassman awards for Business Management, Religion and Video Productions. In addition to basketball, Thomas also participates in the sport of football for the Cadets.

He is the son of Thomas and Dawn Starks of Fort Wayne. He intends to study business but is undecided on his college choice at this time.

The award is annually presented to a senior participant in the state finals who best demonstrates mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability and is named after the IHSAA’s first commissioner who served the Association from 1929 to 1944.

Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, the IHSAA’s corporate partner, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran High School in the name of Starks.