Savage etches her name in Bellevue basketball history

The cream will rise to the top. Undoubtedly, basketball players will come and go. But very few will leave their mark in the record books of such a storied girls basketball program like Bellevue. Carrington "CJ" Savage is doing just that as a junior. Last week in a district semifinal win over Vermilion at Fostoria High School, Savage made three 3-point shots, passing Casey Santoro's mark for the most in a single-season at Bellevue. Santoro knocked down 66, but after making two more in Saturday's district final win over Bryan, Savage has 70 made 3s this season. She's averaging more than 10 points a game for the Lady Red. "I was trying to get the record last year, but wasn't able to," Savage said. "Getting it this year means everything." As a sophomore last year, Savage averaged seven points per game, knocking down 58 of 155 (37 percent) 3-pointers she attempted. She led the Lady Red in makes, attempts and percentage. Bellevue went 28-1, winning the Division IV state championship. "I'm always in the gym putting up shots in practice all the time," Savage said. "It takes a lot of hard work, for sure." Savage has the ability to heat up at a moment's notice. After a slow start to the season, Savage had five 3s and 24 points in a road win over Division I Perrysburg on Dec. 15. She made five more triples in a road win over Copley on Dec. 19. But then Feb. 12 against Sandusky, she was nearly perfect. Savage made the first seven 3-pointers she attempted and was 7 for 8 on the night, scoring 25 points in a Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division title-clinching win. The seven made 3s and 25 points tied her career highs in a road victory against Clyde last season. "She's a very good 3-point shooter," Lady Red coach Kory Santoro said. "She's been like that since her freshman year. That's a spot where she's very dangerous from." Savage suffered through a tough freshman season, though. She played in just 10 games due to a fractured sternoclavicular joint. When it broke, it was resting on her aortic artery, which caused Savage to have surgery. She made just 4 of 23 shots from 3, averaging 1.7 points per game. "Being out my freshman year shows me how much basketball means to me," Savage said. "That definitely helped." Savage has been a key part to this year's success for Bellevue. The No. 2-ranked Lady Red take a 26-0 record into Wednesday's regional semifinal at Bluffton University. Bellevue faces Lutheran East, a team that severely tested the Lady Red in last year's regional semifinal at Norwalk High School. Sophomore Mazie Gracemyer gets a front-row view of the capabilities of Savage. "We have so many plays to run it for CJ," Gracemyer said. "My fingers can't count them all. We love it when she's hot. We always try to kick it out to her. I know (senior post Kaitlyn Turinsky) does a great job of going in and out with her." There will be days when the shot just isn't falling. Savage has had that a couple times this year. But, the talent Savage has won't leave the floor. Instead, she's been able to adapt and still help Bellevue in other ways. She's had seven assists in a game this year. She had seven steals in another. In the victory over Sandusky, she picked six steals. Savage grabbed 11 rebounds in the win over Vermilion while blocking five shots. "We're trying to get her to a spot where if she's not hitting 3s to get to the basket," Santoro said. "But sometimes we think we have enough girls that can get to the rim, so we'll let CJ sit out there and fire all day long. "We tell her to shoot it because she's got the green light. That's never been an issue with us." Savage doesn't think she'll be able to make a run at the Bellevue school record for career 3s, which Casey Santoro maintains with 248 made triples. Savage has 132 career 3-pointers ahead of Wednesday's game. But, she'll have an impact as Bellevue shoots for a second straight state championship this season. "I think it's very important," said Savage of her shooting. "Most teams try to guard me on the 3-point line. Coach wants me to start driving and I've been trying."