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Ohio girls hoops tournament heating up

By Kerry Patrick 7 min read

PARKERSBURG -- Three area girls basketball teams from the Ohio side of the river are entering familiar territory as the postseason reaches the district final.

Both Warren (17-6) in Division II and Waterford (21-3) in Division IV have late start times for their scheduled opponent tonight, while Fort Frye (19-4) in Division III sticks to daylight hours for their game on Saturday.

No. 3 seed Warren hooks up with No. 2 seed Fairfield Union (22-2) for a 9 p.m. tipoff at Southeastern High School in Chillicothe and marks a rematch of the Warriors' second game of the season when the Falcons won 54-48 behind 26 points from senior Claire Cooperider.

"Fairfield Union did a good job on the glass -- they killed us in rebounding," Warren coach Amy Way said. "As a whole, they outrebounded us pretty badly and that's been our focus -- to keep them off the glass."

Also scheduled for a 9 p.m. start is the state's No. 5-ranked Wildcats from Waterford playing Portsmouth Notre Dame (20-3) at Piketon High School. Last year, these same two teams also met in the district final. The Titans lost 35-32 as Waterford eventually advanced to the Final Four.

Waterford must be aware of Annie Dettwiller and where she is on the court at all times because the 6-foot-1 junior can hurt teams from beyond the 3-point line, or decide to post up and take her into the paint.

"Dettwiller is a very, very good athlete," Waterford coach Jerry Close said. "She can handle the ball and is involved on about every play on offense. She is a good all-around player."

On Saturday, two well-known, small school programs meet for a 1 p.m. start at West Muskingum High School in Zanesville. The Cadets look to avenge last season's regional semifinal loss to Berlin Hiland. The Hawks (15-6) graduated several key members from last year, but Fort Frye coach Dan Liedtke stated Berlin Hiland continues to churn out talent -- especially in the post.

"Berlin Hiland lost a lot of seniors, but it's still Berlin Hiland," said Liedtke, who reached 700 wins for his coaching career after the Cadets' defeated Bellaire 46-14 during Wednesday's district semifinal. "They are legit and a typical Berlin Hiland team. They might not be as strong as last year, but they have post players. They look a lot to the inside, whereas we like to penetrate.

"They seem to have a lot of good players and can wear you down that way. We are playing six players and we are not blessed with a lot of size. We will stick with what we have had success with."

As for Friday, Warren will attempt to counter with Abbie Smith in the post. The senior, who is a two-time third-team All Ohio selection, scored her 1,000th point earlier this season and leads the team in both scoring (16.6 points per game) and rebounding (10.1 rpg).

Teammate Alex Frazee averages another 15.7 ppg and converts from the free-throw line at a 93 percent clip, while Sophie Cochran gives the Warriors another bona fide outside threat. Cochran has made 49 percent of her 3-point attempts.

"We'll look to get one-on-one matchups for Abbie and get the ball to her inside," Way said. "Alex has picked up her scoring tremendously during the second half of the season which has kept us in games. Teams just can't focus on Smith and double-down on her because we have players like Sophie who is a tremendous shooter from the outside."

Warren is seeking to get over the hump following two consecutive seasons of losing in the district finals.

"We're ready to get past this stage," Way said. "We've played Sheridan the past two years and obviously they are a great team. We've been here on this stage and we are trying to get over the hump."

Notre Dame relies on more of a youthful personnel as opposed to what Waterford faced last season. Of course nothing changes for the Titans who continue to churn out 20-win seasons.

"Notre Dame graduated a couple of nice players -- they are a little younger, but still a very successful program," Close said. "They are very well-coached -- it's a very methodical system. They are not as much up and down as last year. They are more precise on the offensive end. They don't get after you full court, but in the half court they are very good.

"Notre Dame will want to play a little slower and we will try to push the issue on defense and be patient on offense as well. Whoever can dictate the tempo will probably control the outcome."

Two Waterford players average double figures in scoring with Mackenzie Suprano (13.8) and Cara Taylor (11.6). Both girls average in the neighborhood of 4.5 assists per game. To offset Dettwiller's intentions for posting up, Waterford has an answer with 6-4 freshman Avery Wagner.

"Avery has improved a ton and it does make a big difference having her height in the paint," Close said. "I'm excited for this game because it's been a nice year for all the girls. We lost seven games last season, and I think the determination to get better has been the difference.

"They look forward to these big games. Last year, there was no expectations and the girls raised the bar by going to the state tournament."

As for Fort Frye, coach Liedtke sensed his team turned the corner after defeating Linsly in the championship game of the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference Tournament. Linsly was the top seed, but FFHS controlled the upper hand with three wins in as many tries against its OVAC opponent.

"We went through a little bit of a shooting funk for about four games, but we hung there -- that's why I stress defense so much," Liedtke said. "We were still winning and we are starting to come back now. I've got a good feeling."

Senior Hannah Archer (19.3 ppg) has been spot on with her shooting after making 42 percent of her attempt from 3-point range and 87 percent at the free-throw line. Fellow senior Mackenzie Dalton is nightmare for defenses as the Cadets' starting point guard. She consistently fills up the stat sheet while averaging 12.6 points, 5.5 steals, 5.4 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game.

"Those two seniors make it fit all together," Liedtke said. "I feel they are the best two basketball players in the area."

Dan Liedtke mentioned the loss of his brother Don Liedtke Jr. this season created some tough moments because both his brother and father (Don Liedtke) would travel from New Philadelphia and attend just about every Fort Frye game. Coaching basketball and seeing the maturation process of his players -- similar to year past -- gave him an outlet.

"Fort Frye basketball is a family thing for us," Dan Liedtke said. "I love this part. For me, the tournament is my favorite part of the season. This is what we work for and the girls know it from Day 1.

"This is probably the most competitive schedule we've had. When I looked at the schedule, I said this would be a tough one. We had some big wins against some big teams to get them where they are at right now."

Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com

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