LOWELLVILLE - It was a different world the last time Lowellville defeated McDonald in basketball. There was no war on terrorism, texting came at a high price and Jim Tressel was still coaching at Youngstown State - yeah, it was that long ago.
On Friday, the Rockets broke a streak dating back to the 1998-99 season and defeated the Blue Devils 56-55 in an ITCL contest.
"This feels wonderful," Lowellville coach Mike Mangine said. "Beating McDonald is always something special to do. They are a great program. This is a great confidence builder and more importantly, a great night for Lowellville."
The Rockets (2-1, 1-0) led by as many as 13 in the second quarter until the Blue Devils fought back to trail 31-25 at the half and 46-44 after the third. There were two lead changes and a tie in the final two minutes, but the Carmen Donofrio's go-ahead shot for Lowellville made it 56-55, and a last-second heave by McDonald at mid court didn't find rim.
Drew McLaughlin had a game-high 17 points for the Rockets. He also grabbed nine rebounds. Dean Donatelli added 10 points and nine rebounds while Donofrio and David Wilaj each scored 12.
Seitz led McDonald with 15 points, followed by Politano with 13 and Kunkel had 11.
McDONALD (55): Pugh 0 0-0 0, Politano 5 0-0 13, Rusinowski 1 0-0 2, Seitz 6 2-2 15, Bucan 1 0-0 2, Kunkel 4 3-6 11, Smith 6 0-1 12. Totals: FG - 23; FT - 5-7.
LOWELLVILLE: (56): Dean Donatelli 5 0-0 10, Carmen Donofrio 5 1-1 12, Geno Moore 0 0-0 0, Drew McLaughlin 8 1-2 17, David Wilaj 4 0-1 12, Marcus Rivera 0 0-0 0, Speedo Schialdone 2 0-0 5. Totals: FG - 24; FT - 2-4.
McDonald: 13 12 19 11 - 55
Lowellville: 11 20 15 10 - 56
3-POINT GOALS: M - 4 (Politano 3, Seitz); L -6 (Wilaj 4, Donofrio, Schialdone)
JV SCORE: McDonald 53-35. M - Schuller 20; L - Alfano 14
Courtesy: JJ Benson
