COLUMBUS, Ohio – Day two of the 2012 OHSAA State Tournament brought out the big dogs in Ohio as Division I and II took their turn on the stage in Value City Arena. Each semifinal match up in both divisions offered competitive and high level basketball for competitors and fans alike. The results set up two championship games for Saturday with a twist to them. In Division II Hathaway Brown can capture their fourth straight title if they can get past a scrappy West Holmes team from Millersburg. In Division I the stage was set for a rematch of last year’s title game when defending champs Twinsburg put away previously unbeaten and top ranked Reynoldsburg in Friday’s nightcap. No doubt the talented young squad from Fairmont will be looking for a different outcome than the one they got last year against the Tiger’s.
Division II and Division I Semifinal Results
Division II
West Holmes 35
Lima Bath 29
There aren’t many times that a team can post just six first half points in a state championship semifinal game and still come back to claim the win. West Holmes shot 21% in the first half of their game with Lima Bath and went to the locker room on the short end a 14 – 6 score. The Lady Knights didn’t help their cause adding 15 turnovers to the stat sheet as well. Lucky for them Lima Bath could only muster 14 points themselves while blistering the nets at a whopping 22% of their own. Bath still held a three point edge after three but West Holmes used a 14 to 5 final period to seal the victory. Impressive 6-1 sophomore forward Laina Snyder led the way with 10 points and 9 rebounds and chipped in four assists for good measure. Junior 6-0 Forward Emily Ruhe paced Bath with 10 points and 5 boards while adding 5 steals on the defensive end. West Holmes can’t afford another single digit half if they harbor hopes of dethroning Hathaway Brown on Saturday.
Hathaway Brown 48
Bellbrook 34
Hathaway Brown came out of the gate in their semifinal match up with Bellbrook as if they were going to punch their ticket to the championship game in the first half alone. An 18 to 7 first period served as a wakeup call however for the Golden Eagles as they closed the gap to just six at the break. Junior Nia Marshall scored all 11 of her points for Hathaway Brown in the first two periods on 4 of 5 shooting from the floor and going 3 for 4 from the line. Bellbrook battled the Blazers tooth and nail throughout the second half and cut the lead to just four but could get no closer. The final 14 point margin is deceiving as Bellbrook stuck with the intentional fouling approach over the last 1:39 of the game distorting final score. Hathaway Brown had three in double figures led by Beth Brzozowski’s 14 while Stephanie Poland and Marshall both finished with 11. Undersized athletic post Chea Taylor led Bellbrook with a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds. A concern for the Blazers Saturday may be their total of 25 turnovers, 17 of which came in the second half.
Division I
Kettering Fairmont 54
Toledo Notre Dame 45
It’s hard to call a roster completely made up of underclassmen as “experienced” but the Firebirds from Kettering Fairmont were in this exact same position a year ago with the lead roles held by the very same athletes. Eager for the chance to get back to the final again this season they took on an effective and consistent squad from Toledo Notre Dame. After a 10 point draw in the first period Fairmont opened up a slight 25 – 21 lead at the completion of the first half. In the first 16 minutes neither team shot it exceptionally well nor distinguished themselves on the boards. However, the Firebirds found their way to the line18 times and connected on 15 of their attempts while the Eagles posted just a 3 of 4 effort. Notre Dame saw the margin grow on them by four in the third but still trailed by only 8 with one quarter to play. Fairmont wasn’t about to miss their second consecutive trip to the finals and survived Demy Whitaker’s fourth quarter three point assault for Bellbrook to take the 54 – 45 win. Fairmont was led by junior guard Chelsea Welch and sophomore forward Kathryn Westbeld, both with 16. Sophomore Makayla Waterman added 13 of her own and Westbeld pulled down 11 rebounds, all on the defensive end. The Firebirds finished an impressive 26 of 32 from the line while Notre Dame only converted 6 of 8. Whitaker, a 5-7 senior guard, finished with 20 for the Eagles on 7 of 12 shooting including 5 of 10 from behind the arch.
Twinsburg 49
Reynoldsburg 41
In what may go down as one of the best semifinal matchups ever, the defending champions from Twinsburg held on to their hopes of repeating by out battling a talented and accomplished group from Reynoldsburg. The Tigers jumped out to a four point lead after one behind junior guard Ashley Morrissette’s quick start. The Raiders responded in the second with a balanced attack that had six players on the scoreboard before half and took a one point lead of their own going in to the locker room. Twinsburg shot 59% in the first half led largely by Morrissette’s 6 for 9 effort and 13 points. The third period evened things back up as both teams entered the final quarter tied at 32. Reynoldsburg saw their shot an undefeated season and championship banner disappear as Malina Howard and company used a 17 to 9 final stanza to earn their spot in Saturday’s rematch with Fairmont. Howard, a 2012 McDonald’s All-American had a double-double of 13 points and 19 rebounds while Morrissette paced all scorers with 19. Additionally, versatile play maker Leah Fechko, a 5-8 senior guard, finished with 14 points and 7 boards in the win. Adesuwa Aideyman led the Raiders with 12, all coming from three point range where she was 4 of 7 on the evening. The Tiger’s dominated the boards 34 – 22 including 13 on the offensive end. Reynoldsburg’s 28% shooting in the second half was the opening Twinsburg needed to get by the state’s top ranked team and live to play another day.
2012 OHSAA Championship Pairings for Saturday March 17
Division I Kettering Fairmont 24-3 vs Twinsburg 24-3
Division II Hathaway Brown 21-5 vs Millersburg West Holmes 24-3
Division III Anna 27-0 vs Columbus Africentric 22-4
Division IV Arlington 26-1 vs Berlin Hiland 19-8
