They were the free throws heard ’round Ohio. After a dismal night at the line by the Tigers, Gabby Plair and Deyon Smith combined to drain four critical free throws late in the fourth quarter to seal the deal. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless)
Zoe Coleman knocked down two huge 3-point shots down the stretch and poised, patient Pickerington Central withstood a 19-4 run by Cincinnati Princeton to secure a 47-44 win in a ragged but exciting big-school title game.
Dayton, OH – The first three possessions of the Division I girls state championship game between Pickerington Central and Cincinnati Princeton offered a hint of what was to come.
Huffer Chiropractic can help your athlete perform at their best – with offices in Osgood, Jackson Center, and Dublin, Ohio.
The Tigers took two charges and forced a tie-up before the Vikings were able to get off their first shot.
Both stylistically similar teams were bound and determined to win this slugfest with hard-nosed, in-your-face defense.
Veteran central Ohio columnist Steve Blackledge writes the OCC and sports at large for Press Pros.
After 32 minutes of bumping, reaching, grabbing and face-guarding, Pickerington Central ultimately got the last stop of the game and escaped with a 47-44 win for the program’s eighth big-school championship and first since 2018.
Princeton’s Erin Thomas missed a 3-point look just in front of the Vikings’ bench with three seconds remaining to secure the victory and yet another jewel for Central’s already-overflowing trophy case.
“I dropped down to my knees and said, ‘Thank you’ when I saw the last shot rim out,” Tigers coach Johnathan Hedgepeth. “Actually, we had three fouls to give and the game plan wasn’t for her to get a good look. We gambled a bit trying to force a turnover there and got lost a little. But all’s well that ends well, I guess.”
London Johnson denies Princeton’s Kiara Harris but draws the foul during first half play.
Central (25-3), which dropped state semifinals in 2023 and 2024, appeared to be on the ropes after a scintillating 19-4 run by Princeton (21-7) gave the Vikings a seven-point lead early in the fourth quarter.
The lead was still six (40-34) after Florida State-bound point guard Mari Gerton crumbled to the floor with an ankle injury after assisting Kali Fortson on a layup at the 5:43 mark.
But after a patient possession, Central’s London Johnson banked in a 3-point shot from the top of the key to make it a one-possession game.
“It was definitely a turning point in terms of energy when (Gerton) went out,” said Johnson, a 6-foot junior who played with Hedgepeth at Canal Winchester last season before joining her coach. “We slowed the pace a little, listened to coach and just played. Our heads were still up. We had all the confidence in the world we could come back.”
Logan Services, in Dayton, Cincinnati, an Columbus, is a proud sponsor of area sports on Press Pros.
Zoe Coleman feeds off of a re-energized Pickerington Central crowd after sinking one of two critical threes down the stretch.
Sophomore guard Zoe Coleman knocked down ice-cold threes from the same spot on the left wing at 3:51 and 2:05, the latter giving the Tigers their first lead since the middle of the third quarter.
“I wasn’t shooting real well up to that point,” said Coleman, who was 0-for-7 before the two daggers,” but I just did my best to keep my confidence up.”
Hedgepeth thought back to the halftime buzzer when Gorton banked a desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer to begin a momentum swing for Princeton,
“I said, ‘Oh, my,’ when that went in but we equalized that when London made hers and Zoe hit two of them to give us the lead,” he said.
Central effectively milked clock, forcing Princeton to foul and Gabby Plair and Deyon Smith each sank 2 of 2 foul shots (the Tigers’ only makes of the night) to push the lead to 47-44 and set up the final possession.
Limping badly, Gerton played sparingly after her injury.
Want a greener, healthier lawn? We can help. contact Weedman USA at 614-733-3747 or go online to Weedman.com.
“I thought Blossom (Wallace) did a real good job on her in the first half – I think she only had three points – but she came alive and sparked their run,” Hedgepeth said. “No doubt, it was big when she went out. Our team’s mission was to key on her, so you can only imagine her value to them.”
Blossom Wallace fires a shot over a Princeton defender during first half play.
Plair scored 13 points to pace Central. Wallace added 10 points, six rebounds and four assists. Coleman had nine points, five assists and five steals.
Fortson – who came in averaging just 6.1 points per game – erupted for game-highs of 19 points and nine rebounds for Princeton, which was seeking its second title in three years and fourth overall. Gerton was limited to eight points and was badgered into seven of the Vikings’ 17 turnovers.
Vikings coach Dee Davis, obviously, was dismayed that her team came up short.
“Our kids fought hard all season,” she said. “It’s a game of runs. You’re going to have some good moments and some not-so-good moments. Our not-so-good moments got the best of us today.”
But Central underwent some turmoil of its own before this golden run produced a season-ending 19-game win streak. Playing a powerhouse schedule, the Tigers never blinked when things went a bit awry in this slugfest. They also rallied from an eight-point halftime deficit to beat Rocky River Magnificat in a semifinal.
Behind every great coach lies an amazing support system, as in this case as Coach Hedgepeth runs up into the stands to embrace wife Heather, while the jubilation continues below.
“We’re battle-tested and our expectations are always sky high,” said Hedgepeth, who took a hiatus to focus on watching his son play for the state champion boys team. He then coached at Canal Winchester for one season before Chris Wallace stepped down, opening up an opportunity to return.
Let the celebration begin as the Tigers take it all in Dayton.
“We lost a lot of people from those teams of the past two years, and we lost a big team leader, Rylee Bess, to an injury. It’s a testament to how special this team is. We’re a bunch of battlers. We talk a lot about poise and patience and we showed it in coming back to win tonight.”
The Tigers celebrate the come-from-behind win with the student body.
This Central team now joins those championship squads of 1985, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1998, 1999 and 2018.
We have your next truck,and we have it in stock. Call us today…937-335-0068.