WARREN — The decision by Warren G. Harding High School officials to protest the result of a tournament basketball game Sunday won’t change the outcome, but it might change the way game officials handle controversial situations in the future.
Harding officials sent a letter to the Ohio High School Athletic Association after the Raiders basketball team lost to Lakewood St. Edward, 77-75, in the Division I regional final at Cleveland State University. The game went into overtime on a last-second shot by St. Edward’s Frankie Dobbs, but film taken by WFMJ-TV showed clearly that Dobbs didn’t release the ball before the red light came on and the buzzer sounded simultaneously to end the fourth quarter.
Harding had a 71-68 lead before Dobbs’ shot was ruled to have counted. Because the use of replay to determine a decision by the officials isn’t permitted in any state, the call stood.
The letter of protest centered on two points: the lack of a replay system and the fact that each of the three game officials were from the Cleveland area. Ruth Zitnik, the Harding principal, was told by OHSAA Commissioner Dan Ross that the association will appeal to the National High School Athletic Association to begin the use of a replay system at regional and state games next year.
Ross’ decision to contact the national association received more impetus when the Division I girls’ state final between Cincinnati Mt. Notre Dame and Lakota West was decided in a controversial manner last Monday. Notre Dame broke a 67-67 tie on a shot at the fourth-quarter buzzer that was shown to be have been taken after the buzzer sounded.
‘‘My goal in this is that we start affirmative action so that this shouldn’t happen again,’’ Zitnik said. ‘‘What happened in Cleveland was totally opposite of what we’re teaching our children. What bothered me is that we’ve received information from the OHSAA regarding awards for sportsmanship and fair play, but the students didn’t witness that by the officials on the court. We’re sending a message of do as I say but not as I do.’’
Ross didn’t return phone calls Wednesday. He has been in contact with school officials to admit that the call on the final shot in regulation time was wrong. One of his calls was to coach Steve Arnold early Wednesday morning.
‘‘He said a mistake was made and that he was sorry,’’ Arnold said. ‘‘He said he couldn’t reverse a call an official makes on the court.
‘‘My response was that the entire school, the team and the community are heartbroken. The coaching staff is heartbroken. I appreciated that Mr. Ross took the time out of his day to call me, but all we want is to do the right thing. The right thing is that time expired and we won the game.’’
The primary issue being pushed by school officials is the selection process used to assign the game officials. The practice formerly used was to assign officials that lived outside of the region, but Paul Trina, athletic director for Warren Schools, was told that transportation costs have altered that policy.
Instead, before sectional tournaments started last month a three-man crew was put in place for the Cleveland regional final that included James D’Amato of South Euclid, John Jasin of Brunswick and Sean Toohig of Chagrin Falls. The evaluator for the crew was Tom Toohig, Sean’s father.
Trina has strong objections to the use of three Cleveland-area officials. St. Edward is located within a short drive from downtown Cleveland. Harding is located approximately 60 miles away.
While Trina wasn’t pleased with the officiating during the game, he didn’t blame that for the loss. Harding was called for 22 personal fouls, compared to 18 for St. Edward. The only player to foul out was St. Edward’s star center Tom Pritchard.
Trina feels the officials should have conferred after Dobbs’ shot to make sure that the initial call was correct. Instead, D’Amato made a quick, decisive decision.
‘‘My hope is that these three officials aren’t allowed to work regional games anymore,’’ Trina said. ‘‘I’m citing the end of the game specifically and their unwillingness to come together and make sure a crucial call was correct.
‘‘We pointed out the arrogance of D’Amato in our letter. He thought he was above reproach with everybody. He made the call, and the two others went along with it. The fact they didn’t come together and didn’t make it right is largely wrong.’’
Arnold said he saw the right light behind the backboard go on before Dobbs’ shot. When assistant coach Chris Fahndrich informed him the shot was ruled good, Arnold approached D’Amato to ask for an explanation.
‘‘I’ve never complained about officiating as long as I’ve been coaching,’’ Arnold said. ‘‘It is what it is. Bad calls happen. The part that’s disheartening is the shot. It determined the game and our fate.
‘‘The older you get, the more adversity you face in life. Everybody in the locker room is knocked down. We’ll get up, and some of us will get up a little slower, but we’ll get up.’’
mmclain@tribune-chronicle.com
