April 4, 2013
Indianapolis — With their March 23 victory in the IHSAA Class 3A
State Championship less than two-weeks old, the Greensburg Pirates Boys
Basketball team continued basking in the limelight Thursday morning, this
time with official recognition on the floor of the Indiana House of
Representatives.
Coming on the heels of “Pirate Day” in the City of Greensburg April 3,
Indiana House Resolution Number 66 officially congratulates “the Greensburg
High School boy basketball team for winning the Class 3A boys basketball
state championship.”
The Class 3A boys basketball champion Greensburg Pirates were
honored at the Indiana Statehouse Thursday.
The resolution, presented by State Representatives
Randy Frye (R-Greensburg) and Cindy Ziemke (R-Batesville), notes that the
Pirates forced the game into overtime despite trailing by 12 points in the
second half and despite the fact that the team’s leading scorer, Sean
Sellers, fouled out with 48.2 seconds left in regulation.
More, the resolution further notes, the Pirates didn’t take a lead in the
game until the 2:20-remaining mark in overtime.
The document also names and recognizes Greensburg players Colin Rigney,
Bryant McIntosh, Ryan Welage and Sellers.
With only 22 seconds remaining in the game, Rigney scored the “bucket that
gave Greensburg its 73-70 edge,” while McIntosh, Welage and Rigney “combined
for 12 points in overtime.” Sellers hit 11 of 11 free-throws for the game,
thus establishing “a new individual record with a perfect 100 percent
free-throw average.”
The resolution also commemorates the victory as “the first state
championship in team competition in the history of Greensburg High School,”
and the fact that, with a 26-1 season record, the team finished the season
“with the best winning percentage and most victories in the state,
regardless of class affiliation.”
“The second half of that game was absolutely incredible,” Frye said from the
House floor. “Despite being down big at halftime, the team was never out.
They never gave up, and they played until the final whistle. These young men
showed resilience and maturity, far beyond their years.”
Added Ziemke: “As varsity basketball players in Greensburg, these young men
commit to a lifestyle of effort, sacrifice and determination. They
prioritize faith, family, school and basketball, in that order. They are
class acts in a class program.”
The resolution passed the House Floor unanimously and now becomes a
permanent part of state record.