COLUMBUS, Ohio—Championship day is the goal of every high school program nationwide and eight teams earned the right to suit up one last time in the Buckeye State on Saturday. Following Thursday and Fridays’ semifinal action the field was pared to just two teams in each of the four OHSAA classifications.
The day got underway at 10:45 with the Division IV title match featuring Fort Loramie (25 – 4), the 2013 state champions, taking on Waterford (27 – 1). The Redskins advanced by way of their 45 – 36 win over Berlin Hiland. Waterford overcame St. Wendelin down the stretch of their Thursday game for a 42 – 36 invitation to the finals.
At 2:00 it was time for the Division III championship match up with Versailles (25 – 4), last year’s state runner up, facing Ottawa Glandorf who was making their first ever appearance in the OHSAA Final Four. Versailles took out undefeated Doylestown Chippewa in their semifinal by way of a 59 – 43 win. The Lady Titans made their way to the Saturday lineup with a convincing 55 – 27 effort over Proctorville Fairland.
The day’s third championship game was for Division II honors at 5:15 as undefeated and 2014 state runner up Archbishop Alter (29 – 0) took on Toledo Rogers (24 – 5) who was in their third consecutive trip to the final four. Alter advanced with a 53 – 37 revenge win over West Holmes who beat them in last year’s final. The Rams moved into their first championship game with a solid 51 – 37 performance against West Branch. The Knights won a matchup between the two teams back in January by a 48 – 47 score.
The Grand Finale was the 8:30 Division I championship battle pitting Toledo Notre Dame (27 – 2) against West Chester Lakota West (26 – 3). The Eagles, who made their fourth straight appearance in Columbus, won a tough semifinal matchup with a talented Solon team by a 61 – 48 margin. The Firebirds, who were in search of their first state crown, got their Saturday invitation by way of an exciting 53 – 50 effort against a relentless Newark squad.
Read about all the championship games below or follow the links to our semifinal coverage from Thursday and Friday in Columbus.
Thursday – Division III and IV Semifinals
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Friday – Division I and II Semifinals
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DIVISION IV
Fort Loramie grabbed an early six point lead and never gave it up throughout the first period. Both teams shot in the high 30’s but The Redskins controlled the boards 12 – 5 to grab a 14 – 9 lead. Senior forward Kelly Turner had 5 points and 4 boards while Waterford leading scorer Dani Drayer struggled to get on track opening 0 for 5 from the floor. Junior guard Jessica Boerger joined in the fun for Fort Loramie in the second helping Turner and her teammates extend the lead to 29 – 20. After two periods Boerger and Turner both had nine and the Redskins continued to dominate the glass 20 – 12. Senior Taylor Hilverding and freshman Ali Kern each had seven for the Wildcats who were 9 for 25 from the floor for the half. Early in the third Fort Loramie stretched the lead to behind some clutch scoring from Boerger. Waterford responded narrowing it to seven at the 2:55 mark before the Redskins got it back to double digits 44 – 33 entering the final period. Boerger kept it in double figures early in the quarter but a 12 – 2 run culminated by a Kern layup with 2:07 to go made it a one possession game with Waterford trailing by just three at 48 – 45. Boerger added three free throws to make the margin six before a Drayer three with 38 seconds left got Waterford back within reach. A Holly Frey layup for Fort Loramie and a Wildcat turnover diffused the threat and gave the Redskins their second state title in three years with a memorable 55 – 48 win.
Boerger followed up her semifinal double – double with 25 points and seven rebounds in the final. Turner, who also had a semi double – double came through with 15 points and six boards in her final high school contest. Hilverding and Kern both finished with 13 for Waterford while Drayer contributed eight points and seven assists. Fort Loramie was 19 of 43 from the field while Waterford came home with one more bucket going 20 for 47. Both teams had three from deep but at the line the Redskins finished 14 for 19 with the Wildcats coming up short at 5 of 12. The rebound category belonged to Fort Loramie by five and both teams finished the contest with 16 turnovers.
DIVISION III
From the tip the D-III championship looked to be evolving into a game of runs. After one period Versailles hung onto a slim 14 – 12 lead despite turning the ball over four times in the first three minutes of the contest. A 7 – 2 run over the last 2:13 included five points from senior swing player Lauren Bruns who finished the quarter with seven. The lead wavered little in the second never getting beyond five points and with the Lady Titans knotting things up at 20 with 1:54 to go in the half. At the horn Versailles still held the lead but by just one at 25 – 24. Versailles shot 53 percent but 11 turnovers and giving OG five offensive boards negated the impact of their shooting. Bruns spent most of the second on the bench with two fouls but still led the scoring with seven. Danielle Schroeder was 3 of 6 for the Lady Titans to lead them with seven as well. Neither team gained much ground over the course of the third period with Versailles “stretching” their lead to six at 34 – 28. Freshman Kami McEldowney put up five the nine points for the Tigers and Bruns returned to action contributing the other four points. Glandorf struggled from the floor going just 1 of 5 for the quarter but added to their own misery commiting six costly turnovers. The Lady Titans were far from done however. In the fourth Versailles took the lead to nine on two different occasions before Glandorf, behind some inspired play from freshman Kadie Hempfling, made it a one possession game twice. Senior guard Elissa Ellerbrock pulled the Lady Titans within two with 28 seconds left. The Tigers struggled against pressure and were forced to call time out but Hempfling picked off the ensuing inbounds pass and pitched it ahead to Danielle Schroeder for the lay up to tie. However, Versailles wing Taylor Winner wasn’t conceding the lead and blocked the shot out of bounds on the baseline. Following a Glandorf time out they entered the ball to Ellerbrock at the rim on the left side only to have Winner once again deny the opportunity. Bruns came up with the ball and was immediately fouled. The senior could only convert one free throw and with four seconds left the Lady Titans called one more time out in hopes of setting up one last look to knot things up. Schroeder get free and took the 20 footer at the buzzer but was off the mark allowing Versailles to hang on to the 49 – 46 win and second ever OHSAA State championship.
Bruns led the way with 16 points on 6 for 7 shooting and pulled eight rebounds as well. McEldowney finished with 12 critical points while Winner went 5 for 8 to come up with 10 more. Ellerbrock struggled shooting just 5 of 17 but still came up with 12 points for OG. Schroeder had nine more while Kylie White added seven. Versailles shot an impressive 54.8 percent from the floor to offset 27 turnovers that Glandorf converted into 27 points. The Lady Titans outscored Versailles from the floor 41 – 36 but their 5 of 7 effort at the line was short of the new champ’s 13 for 22.
DIVISION II
The rematch of Archbishop Alter and Toledo Rogers opened up with the Rams looking to avenge their one point loss to the Knights earlier this season. Over the first eight minutes they shot 7 of 14 from the floor and controlled the boards 11 – 5. Junior forward Sydney Petty was assertive out of the gate getting six points on three of six shooting while classmate Keasja Peace added six more. Tanaya Beacham pulled four boards and dished out two assists. The second quarter belonged completely to Alter as they went on a 15 – 6 run to hold a 27 – 22 advantage at the break. Senior Emma Bockrath, who shot 10 for 15 in the semis, warmed up finishing the half with 10 points and grabbing three steals at the other end of the floor. Sophomore Braxtin Miller had seven more for the Knights. Breylnn Hampton-Bey, Rogers dynamic point guard, picked up her third personal with just under a minute to go in the quarter. Things didn’t get any better for the Rams as the third got underway. Less than two minutes into the quarter the lead had ballooned to 11 courtesy of an 8 – 2 run. Rogers caught their breath and by the 3:14 mark had things back to a single possession game at 36 – 33. Unfortunately for Rogers, the quarter wasn’t over and the Knights nursed the difference back up to nine at 43 – 34 with one period to play. Alter, who lost in last year’s championship game, wasn’t about to leave anything to chance. With 3:22 remaining in the game they held a 54 – 38 lead, their largest of the game at 16. Along the way Rogers lost the services of Keasja Peace who fouled out at the 3:55 mark. The Rams managed to put just eight points on the board in the fourth and The Knights were celebrating an undefeated season and the school’s second ever state title.
Bockrath was the epitome of efficiency leading the way with 21 points on 6 of 10 shooting. Fellow senior Maddie Bazelak had a hard earned 12 points, eight rebound and four steals. Miller, who had returned from a semifinal ankle injury, contributed 11 points, including two long balls. Petty paced the Rams with 11 while Peace and Beacham each had 10 more. Hampton-Bey finished with eight, just half of her 16 point semifinal effort. Though Rogers actually shot a better percentage from the floor, Alter went to the line 30 times connecting on 12 while the Rams were 10 of 12 from the stripe. Additionally, a 21 – 7 turnover advantage for the Knights made the mountain just a little too steep to climb for Rogers.
DIVISION I
Lakota West and Toledo Notre Dame both came off challenging semifinal match ups Friday night but you wouldn’t have known it by the way things got started. The Firebirds, playing without senior post Arianne Whitaker who took a head shot in the Newark game, got some effective interior play from forward Lexi Wasan. The 5-10 junior was 4 of 5 in the first period and grabbed two rebounds to help Lakota West hold a 13 – 8 lead after one. Notre Dame didn’t help their own cause with six turnovers in the period. Additionally two early player control fouls on Eagle standout post Kaayla McIntyre limited the aggressiveness of her play. The second period saw the Firebird’s defense challenge Notre Dame’s ability to create shots and though they took better care of the ball their looks were rushed and contested. As a result the Eagles trailed by eight with 4:51 to go in the half. Ironically the Firebirds weren’t exactly lighting it up on the other end either. Shooting just 4 of 10 they could manage only nine points while limiting Notre Dame to eight with their stingy defense. As a result the limited lead at the break was a very manageable six points. Wasan had eight points and five boards in the half. Senior guard Lauren Cannatelli and junior point guard Danielle Wells both added six more. C.J. Jefferson went 3 for 5 and had 6 points for the Eagles while McIntyre posted 4 and grabbed 6 rebounds. Notre Dame scored first in the third but by the 3:18 mark the lead had grown to 14 for Lakota. C.J. Jefferson’s eight points fueled an 11 – 0 run to finish the third and set the stage for some fourth quarter drama with the lead down to 32 – 29. The punches went back and forth before a 2:39 dry spell in the middle of the quarter for both teams with Lakota still hanging on to a two point edge. Wasan’s three pointer took it to five only to have McIntyre get one of two free throws to make the difference four with just 32 seconds remaining. Canatelli added two free throws with 16 seconds to make it 44 – 38. The scoring would end there as Notre Dame couldn’t make miracles happen and Lakota West claimed the program’s first ever state championship.
Wasan led the way with 15 on 6 of 9 shooting including 2 for 2 from behind the arch. Canatelli added 14 more while Wells hit double digits with 10 of her own. Jefferson went for 16 in the loss on a 7 for 13 shooting effort while McIntyre came home with a double – double of 13 points and 10 rebounds. Notre Dame shot a better percentage as a team from the floor but lost the battle from three point range and at the line by six points combined. The Firebirds grabbed four more rebounds and committed four less turnovers as well to take the Division I crown back to southwestern Ohio.
