It’s official. Elyria Catholic’s girls are back in the Division III regional basketball tournament.
Regina High School has said in a statement it will not appeal its disqualification from the tournament by the Ohio High School Athletic Association. The OHSAA found the school has used an ineligible player and must forfeit its win over EC on Wednesday night and the other 21 victories it posted this season.
A statement by Regina principal Sister Margaret Gorman is posted on the school’s Web site. It is included with a news release by the OHSAA detailing its decision.
Gorman said: “While we are disappointed for our student-athletes and the Regina community, we have accepted the OHSAA’s ruling. The commissioner (former Avon Lake superintendent Dan Ross) and his staff have conducted a fair and proper investigation, and have provided us with evidence to support their ruling.
“The OHSAA has rules that must be followed, and as a member school we must accept the consequences of not complying with those rules.”
In its release, the OHSAA said it concluded that the ineligible player “was in violation of Bylaw 4-8-1, Students from Foreign Countries, because she did not meet any of the exceptions to the bylaw that permits eligibility.”
Click on any photo to view larger:
While the school and OHSAA did not identify the player, Regina has a student from Canada on the basketball roster.
Regina, the defending state champion, defeated EC 68-45 in their semifinal game on Wednesday. The Panthers (21-4) will play Smithville (24-1) of Wayne County for the Cuyahoga Falls regional championship at 1:30 p.m. Saturday. The winner will advance to the Division III Final Four at 3 p.m. Thursday in Ohio State’s Value City Arena.
This is the first girls basketball team in Elyria Catholic history to win 20 games in a season and the first to win a district championship. The Panthers defeated Loudonville, 61-59, for the Wellington district crown in an overtime thriller last Saturday.
