Fort Frye’s Emmie Duskey (11) attacks the basket during a Division VI regional semifinal matchup against Belpre. Duskey was named first team All-Ohio. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)

BEVERLY — Any time the Fort Frye girls basketball team faced a tough matchup this season, head coach Dan Liedtke took solace in knowing he had Emmie Duskey on his side.

“You just had in the back of your mind, ‘Well, we’ve got Emmie,'” Liedtke said. “She’s capable of changing a game.”

Duskey’s performance in her senior season, which helped lead the Cadets to the Division VI Final Four, resulted in her being named first team All-Ohio Monday by the Ohio Prep Sports Media Association.

“She really deserved that,” said Liedtke, whose team finished 21-5 and fell to Rootstown 57-54 in the state semifinals. “It was a sigh of relief seeing she got that because I really felt she earned being on that first team. All the work she puts in, the leadership she’s shown over these years and what she did this year being the only senior on the team, I was very happy.”

Duskey, who was named second team All-Ohio as a junior, averaged 16.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.9 steals per game this winter.

She shot 37.5% from the floor, 73.6% from the free-throw line and had a 2.7-1.5 assist-to-turnover ratio as the Cadets’ primary ball-handler.

“The thing about Emmie, you like to see a player like that get such a high award because she plays both ends of the floor and plays the whole game,” Liedtke praised. “She plays offense, she plays defense, she does so much rebounding, assists — she plays the whole game.”

Prior to Duskey, Fort Frye’s last first team all-stater was Hannah Archer in 2022.

The Cadets will return the rest of their varsity roster, including special mention All-Ohioan Ella Dowler and honorable mention All-Ohioan Ava Huffman, as well as welcoming an eighth grade class that is coming off a Washington County championship run.

Still, the absence of Duskey’s presence next year certainly will be felt.

“She’s one that’s going to be hard to replace because of the all-around player she is,” Liedtke said. “We’ve got some good ones coming, but she’s going to be a tough one to replace.”

Across the river in Waterford, Kendall Sury landed on the second team while Avery Wagner made the third team.

Despite leading the Wildcats to the Division VII state championship, the Waterford seniors actually dropped from last year — Sury from first team and Wagner from second team.

The duo combined for 31 points in the ‘Cats’ state final win over Fort Loramie. Along with tallying 15 points, four assists and four rebounds, Sury guarded D7 Player of the Year Avery Brandewie and held her to eight points on 2 of 6 from the floor.

Sury also was responsible for the bulk of the ball-handling duties and committed just two turnovers against the Redskins’ signature defensive pressure.

Wagner arguably was the best player on the floor in the championship game, finishing with 16 points, five rebounds, four dimes, four blocks and three steals. The Purdue Fort Wayne signee went toe-to-toe with fellow third team all-stater Victoria Mescher, holding her to 19 points on 7 of 16 shooting.

Sury averaged 12 points, five rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game this season while Wagner added 12.7 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists. Fellow senior Avery Smithberger netted 8.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.6 steals en route to earning honorable mention All-Ohio honors.

Marietta’s Leigha Lauer earned third team All-Ohio honors after being special or honorable mention her first three seasons. Lauer helped lead the Tigers to 20 wins and the Twin State League championship this year. She averaged 16.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 3 steals per game while shooting 63% from the floor.

Lauer’s classmate, Alyssa Baker, found herself on the honorable mention list.

Joining Duskey on the first team in Division VI was Federal Hocking’s Brenlee Cottrill. Cottrill, a sophomore, averaged 17.5 points per game en route to leading the Lancers to the Sweet 16.

Shenandoah’s Mya Leach, a junior, was a third team honoree after putting up 15.6 points per game. Leach and the Zeps went 13-10 and nearly upset Fort Frye in the district semifinals.

Other area honorees include Warren’s Mackenzie James-McGuire (honorable mention in D4), Belpre’s Gracie Bills (special mention in D6) and Haley Alloway (honorable mention in D6), Frontier’s Anna Bowersock (special mention in D7) and Kelsey Dye (honorable mention in D7), Federal Hocking’s Jaylee Orsborne (honorable mention in D6), Monroe Central’s Jacey English (honorable mention in D6) and Caldwell’s Breighlee Moracco (honorable mention in D7).

Contact Jordan Holland at jholland@mariettatimes.com.