JFKÕs Nick Ryan grabs a rebound away from BadgerÕs Jack Harnett (13) and Deegan Hunkus (5) during the second half of their game, Wednesday night at JFK High School. (David Dermer/Warren Tribune Chronicle)

The Warren JFK Eagles are flying high after dismantling Badger 71-27 in the Division VII district semifinals at home on Wednesday.

“The expectation is to play for a district title every single season,” said Kennedy coach Mark Komlanc. “These kids work hard, and they have an opportunity to win another district championship on Saturday.”

The Eagles (15-9) won the Division IV district title last season over Heartland Christian.

“It doesn’t matter what division we’re in,” Komlanc said. “It wouldn’t matter if we were Division III, IV, V, VI or VII. This is where we were placed. And we’re going to try to win a state championship.”

The Eagles are one step closer after the victory over the Braves. JFK took a 21-8 lead into the second quarter after junior Preston Geracitano nailed one from downtown as the first-quarter buzzer sounded.

Geracitano made another 3-pointer in the second quarter, and he tossed the ball off the backboard for senior Nick Ryan, who had a game-high 23 points, to grab and slam through the hoop for a highlight play.

“I threw the ball off the glass, and Nick went up there and dunked it,” Geracitano said. “It was a great play by him. We played well. It was a good team effort. We were knocking down a lot of 3-pointers tonight.”

The Eagles made 13 shots from behind the arc, including six from Geracitano, who finished with 22 points.

Tyler McWilliams made a 3-pointer from way behind the line for Badger, and Alton Winchek led the Braves with 10 points. However, the Eagles were up 39-15 at halftime.

Then, JFK went on a 10-0 run to begin the third quarter. Senior Dom Ryan scored underneath the basket. Henry Phillips (13 points) got out ahead of the defense for a layup, and it was 62-19 heading to the fourth.

Nick Ryan got one last slam dunk in during the final home game of his stellar career. Ryan is the all-time leading scorer in the history of the boys program at JFK after averaging 27 points per game this season.

“The four years here have been the best four years of my life,” Nick Ryan said. “There’s not a more supportive group of people. Just getting to play in front of this crowd. The line, ‘We are Kennedy, we are a family’ couldn’t be a truer statement. Moving forward, we’re not going to underestimate anyone. We know everybody is going to give us their best shot.”

Coach Komlanc would not want anyone else to lead the Eagles as the tournament continues.

“Caitlyn Condoleon is the all-time leading scorer in the history of the school,” Komlanc said. “She’s the all-time leading scorer for girls basketball in Trumbull County with 1,882 points. It’s an important number to her.

“But it’s also an important number for Nick. He’s 15 points away from breaking it. He’s what makes Kennedy basketball great. He’s been doing this since he was in the fourth grade. He’s been showing up, for the last 9 years in this gym, almost every day.

“He’s worked for everything he’s got. He’s probably one of the nicest kids you’ll ever talk to. He’s a great student. He’s an amazing individual. He’s a better person than I am.”