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With a 2-7 record and several ugly losses on its résumé, Clear Spring appeared on the road to nowhere in early January.
And why not? The Blazers had graduated the top three players from a region championship squad. A giant step backward was expected.
But seven weeks later, look at Clear Spring now.
On Tuesday morning, the Blazers won a coin flip to decide the top seed in 1A West Section II. For the third time in the last four years, Clear Spring enters the postseason as a No. 1 seed.
Getting there this time wasn’t easy. Clear Spring had to win nine of its final 13 regular-season games to complete a long, slow climb back to the .500 mark and forge a tie with New Era Academy of Baltimore.
The coin flip took place over the phone Tuesday morning.
“Very happy,” said Clear Spring coach John Hutzell. “We need to take advantage.”
It was no small victory. In a seven-team section, the top seed is the only squad that receives a first-round bye.
Clear Spring gets a week of rest before playing host Monday to the winner of the game between No. 4 Catoctin (7-15) and No. 5 Francis Scott Key (5-17).
The Blazers split with Catoctin this season, overwhelming the Cougars 67-35 on Feb. 15. The last time Clear Spring played FSK was in the section final last year, a 69-57 Blazers victory.
On the other half of the bracket, No. 3 Smithsburg (9-13) will host No. 6 Brunswick (3-19) on Friday night at 8. The Railroaders enter the playoffs on a 16-game losing skid. The Leopards handled the Railroaders by double-digit margins both times the teams met.
No. 7 Boonsboro (3-19) will have a tough task making the trek to No. 2 New Era (12-10), which enters the postseason on a five-game winning streak. The game is set for Friday night at 5:30.
Because of its location, New Era is the section’s mystery team. Due to the large number of 1A schools in Baltimore, some have been shifted out of the North region to relieve the imbalance. The West region’s gift was New Era.
“It’s the one wild card in the section,” Hutzell said. “I’ve been fortunate. I’ve got a bunch of video of them, been picking it apart, analyzing it, dissecting it. They’re a typical Baltimore team. They play hard, they’re well coached and they’re quick.”
If the favorites win in the quarterfinals, Smithsburg would travel to New Era on Monday. The Leopards have lost five of their last six, but are well rested, having not played since Feb. 18.
1A West Section I
Despite the freefall of former powerhouse Allegany (6-15), this section has several quality teams, which makes the path of fourth-seeded Hancock (11-10) daunting.
The good news for the Panthers is they will host a playoff game for the first time in four years when they welcome No. 5 Allegany.
As the second-smallest basketball-playing public school in the state, Hancock has struggled in the postseason. The Panthers haven’t won a playoff game in more than a decade. Their last five playoff losses have come by an average margin of 49.5 points.
Whoever emerges from the Allegany-Hancock game will have a big challenge, travelling to top-seeded Southern Garrett (19-2), which enters the postseason on a 16-game winning streak.
Southern won the section last year before falling to Clear Spring in the region title game.
On the other side of the bracket, No. 2 Mountain Ridge (13-7) has a bye to the semifinals and will host the winner of a quarterfinal between No. 3 Northern Garrett (15-7) and No. 6 Fort Hill (7-14).
2A West Section II
Williamsport (17-5) is the top seed in a section where only two teams have winning records.
After a first-round bye, the Wildcats will open Monday night in the section semifinals against No. 4 Walkersville (7-15) or No. 5 Seneca Valley (5-17).
Williamsport owns two decisive victories this season over Walkersville. The Wildcats edged a formidable Seneca Valley team in the section final last year. But this season, the Screaming Eagles have struggled under a new coach, having not won a game in the last five weeks.
On the other side of the bracket, No. 6 Poolesville (3-19) will play at No. 3 Damascus (7-13), with the winner traveling to No. 2 Middletown (15-7) for the section semifinals Monday.
Despite its record, the team to keep an eye on is Damascus, which is led by its huge, mobile center Bryan Bresee. The 6-foot-5, 290-pound junior is rated the No. 1 football recruit in the nation in the Class of 2020 by ESPN and 247Sports, and provides an intimidating dimension on the basketball floor.
Whoever emerges from this section is guaranteed a tough region final, which very likely would be on the road. Section I includes powerhouse teams Liberty (20-2), Century (19-3) and defending region champion Oakdale (20-3), which beat Williamsport in the region final last year and twice this season.
Williamsport also has history at Century, losing there in the 2017 region final.
Grabill is excited about his team’s prospects, especially knowing he’ll have 6-6 senior Ray Becks back after suffering a knee injury originally believed to be a season-ender.
“Ray coming back was huge,” Grabill said after Williamsport defeated South Hagerstown last Thursday. “Look at it from the energy standpoint. He’s getting on the floor. He’s drawing charges. He allows me to rotate my bigs more.”
3A West Section II
Teams in this section know each other well. All six squads have competed in the CMC Spires the last two seasons, facing each other twice in the regular season.
“You’re familiar with each other, which can be good and bad,” said North Hagerstown coach Kevin Hartman.
The favorite, of course, is this year’s CMC Spires champion and defending region champ Thomas Johnson (18-5), which enters as the top seed and will open in the semifinals Monday against No. 4 Frederick (12-10) or No. 5 Tuscarora (11-11).
If there’s a dark horse in the section, it’s Frederick. The Cadets finished the regular season on an uptick that included a 75-66 upset of TJ.
On the other side of the bracket is No. 2 Linganore (17-5), which awaits the winner of the quarterfinal between No. 3 North Hagerstown (16-6) and No. 6 South Hagerstown (8-13).
The Lancers own two wins apiece over North and South, though the Rebels gave them all they could handle in a 55-53 verdict at South on Jan. 2.
South has lost six of its last seven, but has remained competitive against quality foes.
“Even though we’re not winning, I think the momentum we’re carrying will help us in the playoffs,” said South coach Chad Brashears last week after a loss at Williamsport. “Even TJ, when we played them down there, we only lost by five. We’re right there.”
North also has reason to feel confident against Linganore. The Hubs toppled the Lancers on their home floor in the semifinals last season.
“Every game over there (in Frederick County) for us has been tight,” Hartman said. “You never feel like you’re overmatched. And you never feel overconfident.”
TJ defeated North, 65-51, in last year’s section final.
“The best part of our season now is everybody’s 0-0,” Brashears said. “I get an entire week to prep. Let’s see what we can do.”
South Hagerstown at North Hagerstown, Friday, 6:30 p.m.
Amazingly, when North and South met in the playoffs last year, it was the first time that had happened since 1976. Now it occurs for the second straight year as No. 3 North (16-6) will play host to No. 6 South (8-13) in the 3A West Section II quarterfinals.
The Rebels hope for a better outcome than last year in the section quarterfinals, when North was an 80-55 winner. That game is part of a current five-game winning streak for the Hubs in the series. North extended the streak with regular-season wins this season over South by 15 and 11 points.
Przemek Golek, St. Maria Goretti
After battling injuries, the 6-foot-4 forward appears to be healthy at a good time as the Gaels approach the Baltimore Catholic League tournament. Goretti (26-6) enters as the No. 2 seed and opens Wednesday night at home against No. 7 John Carroll (5-24), with the winner advancing to the semifinals against No. 3 Mount St. Joseph (26-7) or No. 6 Spalding (5-21).
The defending champion and top seed is St. Frances (33-5), which is coming off a title in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association tournament last weekend. The last time Goretti won the BCL title was 2001.
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