30-foot heave helps Fairmont girls finish 28-0

DAYTON — Kettering Fairmont finished a perfect 28-0 season in dramatic fashion. After building an early lead, rallying from a fourth quarter deficit, Fairmont eventually topping Cincinnati Princeton, 61-55, in overtime in the Division I state championship girls basketball game in front of 4,380 fans on Saturday at University of Dayton Arena. The state title was the second for Fairmont and first since 2013. Princeton (23-5) finished runner-up for the second time to go with state titles in 1987, 2014 and 2023. Simone Smith's 3-pointer with under four minutes left in the third gave Princeton its first lead (38-35) since it scored the game's first two points in the first quarter. Two Fairmont turnovers led to Princeton fastbreak baskets and the Princeton lead was seven, 43-36, with 3:17 left in regulation. Fairmont had clawed back within two points when Princeton split a pair of free throws with 5 seconds remaining, and Fairmont's Kaylah Thornton drilled a 30-foot 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the game to overtime. Janiyah Hargrave, who scored game-high 23 points and had a game-high nine rebounds, scored seven points in overtime as Fairmont won the extra session, 11-5. Thomas (19 points), Kiara Harris (18) and Kamryn Lowe (10) all scored in double figures for Princeton. DIVISION II Akr. Hoban 72, Cin. Notre Dame 64 Hoban claimed its second girls basketball state title in school history, defeating Cincinnati Mount Notre Dame, 72-64, on Saturday in front of 1,851 at University of Dayton Arena. Hoban (22-4) won its final 11 games to claim its first state title since 1988. Mount Notre Dame (26-1), an eight-time state champion, finished runner-up for the second time in 12 trips to the state tournament. Niera Stevens scored 25 points on 10 of 17 shooting, including 4 of 5 from three, to lead Hoban. Makenzie Grant (6 of 8 from the field, 5 of 6 free throws) had 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Zoey Hodge chipped in 12 points. Carine Harris led Mount Notre Dame with 20 points. Ava Simpson and Layla Houpe joined Harris in double figures with 16 and 12, respectively. DIVISION III Chaminade Julienne 49, Akron SVSM 40 Janae Cain scored 17 points and Mychael Hanson added 15 as Dayton Chaminade Julienne defeated Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, 49-40, in Friday's Div. III title game in front of 2,683. Chaminade Julienne claimed its fourth girls basketball state title and first since 2005. It is the 14th school to claim at least four girls basketball state championships. The Eagles were in the state tournament for the eighth time. St. Vincent-St. Mary, a three-time state champion (1979, 1980, 1995), claimed its first runner-up trophy. The Fighting Irish were in the state tournament for the seventh time overall. Chaminade Julienne (24-4) finished the first quarter by making seven of its final eight shots, led 18-6 after the first quarter, and played in front the rest of the way.. Melania Cornute had 13 points, five rebounds and six assists to lead St. Vincent-St. Mary. Tatum Smith made four 3-pointers and finished with 12 points, while Sydney Ferguson had seven points and seven rebounds. Maggie Bush finished with nine points and five rebounds and Ja'Kyiah Cook had four points and a game-high 13 rebounds for Chaminade Julienne. DIVISION IV Shaker Hts. Laurel 60, Bellevue 58 Tristan Williams made two free throws with four seconds remaining to lift the Gators to a win over Bellevue in front of 1,767 in attendance in the Div. IV game on Friday. Laurel (22-4) won its first girls basketball state title in its second trip to the state championship game. Laurel was making its third consecutive appearance in the state tournament. Bellevue (29-1) finished runner-up for the first time after winning its first state title in 2025. Bellevue's 11-4 first-quarter lead was the largest of the game for either team. The game was tied 14 times, the teams traded the lead 13 times, and neither side led by more than five points in the second half. Jordyn Meyer made six 3-pointers and scored a game-high 26 points, including 21 in the second half, to lead Laurel. Williams scored 19 points and added five rebounds, eight assists and five steals. Ava Jakubcin-Theis scored 20 points to lead three Bellevue players in double figures. She also collected eight rebounds. Carrington Savage scored 15 points, and Kaitlyn Turinsky had 14 points and 10 rebounds. DIVISION V Portsmouth 53, Ottawa-Glandorf 48 Keke Woods made all 11 of her shots from the floor and scored a game-high 26 points to lead Portsmouth to a win over O-G and its second straight state title on Saturday. Portsmouth finished 24-4 and improved to a combined 73-11 over the past three seasons, advancing to the state tournament each year and claiming the past two Div. V titles. Ottawa-Glandorf finished 28-1 and claimed its fifth runner-up trophy in seven trips to the state tournament. Woods led an efficient Portsmouth offense that shot 62.1 percent from the floor and 78.9 percent (15 of 19) at the foul line. Portsmouth made 16 of 24 (66.7 percent) of its two-point field goal attempts, with all 16 makes coming in the paint. Sienna Allen joined Woods in double figures with 13 points. Karsyn Erford scored a team-high 18 points for O-G and had four steals. Madison McKee posted a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. DIVISION VI St. Henry 53, Canton C.C. 34 Addy Homan scored a game-high 20 points and St. Henry's team defense turned in another dominant performance in a 53-34 win over Canton Central Catholic on Friday with 2,467 in attendance for the Div. VI game. St. Henry finished 27-1 overall and won its first state title in its first trip to the state tournament. Canton Central Catholic (23-6) finished runner-up for the second time (1981) in as many trips to the final four. St. Henry led 12-8 after the first quarter, then outscored Canton Central Catholic 33-10 over the middle two quarters to pull away. Karlee Buschur joined Homan in double figures with 11 points and six rebounds. Ava Homan and Karlee Baumer both had eight rebounds for St. Henry. Sarah Belden and Grace Finefrock led Canton Central Catholic with 12 and nine points, respectively. DIVISION VII Strasburg-Franklin 38, Russia 17 Ally Miller scored 17 points and Strasburg-Franklin never trailed in a 38-17 win over Russia on Saturday morning in the Div. VII championship game. Miller was 7 of 8 from the floor, made all three of her free throws, and collected a game-high 10 rebounds to lead Strasburg-Franklin (25-5) to its first girls basketball state championship. Celeste Borchers scored seven points to lead Russia (25-4), which finished the season 25-4 overall. Both teams were making their first appearance in the state tournament. Strasburg-Franklin scored the game's first nine points, and the lead was still nine, 17-8, at halftime, but the Tigers pulled away in the third quarter. Strasburg-Franklin outscored Russia in the third frame 14-3, including 10-0 over the quarter's final six minutes. Lydia Thomas had eight points and six rebounds for Strasburg-Franklin, while Sofia Secrest scored six points and Delanee Herron five. Olivia Spidell chipped in two points, four rebounds, seven assists and two steals. Strasburg-Franklin made 13 of its 15 foul shots and forced 17 Russia turnovers.