A solid season and tournament run came to an end for the team Mentor coach Bob Krizancic has called his youngest ever. March 7 was a tough day for Mentor basketball in general, as the 23-1 girls team fell to Wadsworth, 64-55, in a Division I district final at Barberton, and later in the afternoon, t he boys team fell to St. Edward, 87-68, in a D-I district final at Lakewood. Krizancic’s crew, seeded No. 7, ran up against an Eagles team that was simply bigger, physically stronger and exceptionally skilled. The Cardinals jumped out to a 6-0 lead on a pair of 3s, in what the Mentor faithful hoped was just the beginning of a banner day from outside the arc for the undersized Cardinals, but it didn’t take long for St. Edward to find its footing, and Mentor finished 12 of 31 from 3-point range. The Eagles pulled ahead toward the end of the first quarter, took a 41-27 lead into halftime, and was up, 62-39, going into the fourth quarter. St. Edward dominated the boards, 32-15. St. Edward’s “Big 3” of seniors JT Kelsheimer (16 points), Zymir Knox (12) and Northeast Lakes District Division I Player of the Year, 6-foot-5 Bryan Vlosich (15 points), all three of whom were voted all-district, led the way for the Eagles as they have all season. Ian Murray, a 6-foot-7 junior, added 10 points. Mentor sophomore Jack Kennedy led the Cardinals with 21 points, including four triples, three of which were from several feet behind the arc. Sophomore Logan Lynch added 16 points, 13 of which came in the fourth quarter. Junior Bernard Gnjatic chipped in with eight points, and senior Tony Katava finished with seven in his last game for Mentor. @CardinalCage Coach Bob Krizancic reviews Mentor’s 87-68 loss in a Division I District Final to St. Edward, the Cardinals’ 16-9 season, and a future that looks bright for his program pic.twitter.com/P0RYh6d16E — Jay Kron (@TownCenter2) March 8, 2026 “I think they have the pieces to win it all,” Krizancic said of St. Edward. “We knew that. (Due to) the last couple of (regular season) games that we didn’t win, we didn’t have an opportunity to go on the board and avoid them. “Getting to this game was important for our young kids to experience. We went up quick, 6-0, but there’s always ‘ifs’ in a game like this. We had to shoot a little better on 3s. We had four or five weak turnovers in the first half. If we hit a few more shots and didn’t turn it over, maybe instead of a 14-point game (at halftime), it’s five or six, or less.” Kennedy and Lynch each buried a 3 to start the game, and St. Edward (20-4) didn’t grab its first lead until later in the frame when Kelsheimer scored off a steal to put the Eagles up, 14-13. St. Edward never trailed again, wearing Mentor down with its size on passes into the paint and on drives to the hoop. The Eagles finished with 64% shooting from the floor (35 of 55), and made 29 of 35 2-point attempts. St. Edward forced 10 Mentor turnovers in the first half, and nearly all led to points. The Eagles led, 22-17, after the first quarter, and a 10-2 run in the second quarter, capped by a bucket by sophomore Dustin Hess on an assist from Knox, gave St. Edward, the No. 2 seed, a 37-22 advantage. @SEHS_BASKETBALL Coach Eric Flannery talks about St. Edward’s 87-68 Division I District Final win over Mentor pic.twitter.com/lwkIbqSbfD — Jay Kron (@TownCenter2) March 8, 2026 “You can never take a Coach Krizancic-coached Mentor team lightly, and we didn’t,” St. Edward coach Eric Flannery said. “We knew this was going to be a battle. They came out hot, hit some shots and took that lead. “At that point, you rely on those three seniors (Kelsheimer, Knox, and Vlosich). We’ve been here before. I thought the difference was we really started to lock in defensively.” Kennedy played fearlessly for the Cardinals, driving with the ball and trying to find an opening for a layup, or a bucket off the glass. He finished 4 of 10 on 3s, including the three impressive deep balls. @CardinalCage sophomore Jack Kennedy (Game-high 21 points, four 3s) discusses Mentor’s 87-68 loss to St. Edward in a Division I district final, and looks ahead to next season pic.twitter.com/34O276LpN0 — Jay Kron (@TownCenter2) March 8, 2026 “They’re a great team. It took a lot of game-planning,” Kennedy said of St. Edward. “We stayed in it in the first half, then they just kind of took over. Thought it was a great year. Definitely more to come. We have a lot of good pieces.” St. Edward began the third quarter with a 9-3 run and took a 50-30 lead on a basket by sophomore Carson Link. The Eagles closed the frame scoring the last six points, and junior Mike Williams beat the buzzer by following up on a teammate’s miss at the rim, giving the Eagles their biggest lead of the game, 62-39. Lynch caught fire in the fourth quarter for Mentor, going 5 for 5 with three 3s for 13 points, and freshman Jack Hairson added a pair of 3s off the bench, but the Cardinals were too far down to put together a rally. Katava, at 6-foot-7 the Cardinals’ tallest player, was understandably disappointed to see the season come to an end, but grateful to be part of the Mentor program for four years. @CardinalCage senior Tony Katava goes over Mentor’s 87-68 Division I District Final loss to St. Edward, and reflects on his four years with the Cardinals pic.twitter.com/b9zR4JI1K6 — Jay Kron (@TownCenter2) March 8, 2026 “They’re definitely game-planned us well. They were the best-prepped team we’ve seen all season,” Katava said of the loss to St. Edward. “It was a lot of fun (to play for Mentor), but it’s a tough program to play in. A lot of hard practices, a lot of hard work. That’s just the way it is, and you just have to love it.” Krizancic has high expectations for his sophomores and freshmen, and Gnjatic, a good 3-point shooter, will return. Krizancic has mentioned a few times Mentor has a 6-foot-5 eighth grader who will join the program next year. So the future is bright for the scarlet and gray. “We lose Tony, but I think we’ll be a couple inches bigger all around,” Krizancic said. “We’re going to be stronger next year. There were a lot of times we played four or even five sophomores at a time, and Bernard, so we’ll still be young next year. This year really helped us to mature, basketball-wise.” THE SCORE (MARCH 7) St. Edward 87, Mentor 68 ...read more read less