Sheridan volleyball ends their season run, but leaves their mark
By EMILY MOORE
PICKERINGTON — The Lady Generals have reversed their playoff curse and made it through their biggest fear by winning the Regional Semifinal match against MVL Small School top dog Meadowbrook on Nov. 5.
The night was Sheridan’s after four sets with the scores showing 25-21, 26-24, 20-25 and 25-18.
It was years in the making for Sheridan to get over this block, but they finally did.
Shining on Sheridan’s offense was Abby Dupler and Faith Stinson who were bringing power down on their spikes starting in the first set.
Cassie Amore was adding kills from the center of the front row for Sheridan’s offense.
The first set was a momentum shift, as was the whole night, with Sheridan starting off with a lead.
Both Sheridan and Meadowbrook were showing their defenses had put in work for preparation of the opposing team’s hitting strength.
The Lady Colts had learned how to time up Stinson’s kills in the first set, which slightly put a halt in Sheridan’s lead, enough for Meadowbrook to climb a little with tips.
The Lady Colts had a few out hits and serves, and some kills to the back corner to get them to 21 points, but Sheridan finalized the first-set win at 25 with a tip that was not returned.
Meadowbrook was wanting a fight in the second set, but Dupler was at the net for a kill and a block to take a quick 2-1 lead.
Sheridan knew they needed defense with their front line being aggressive on blocks, so their defense behind was low and ready to keep the volley going.
The Lady Generals were working their digs and dives in their dead zones once they realized that is where Meadowbrook’s targets were on their hits.
With a 12-11 lead, Sheridan’s back row started to show slight weaknesses. Kaley McCandlish was timing the digs correctly, but the bounces back were not staying controlled. Before long, the set was tied at 15.
Head coach Mandy Fox said the back row is never off like it was during that set.
“The back row is never off like that,” she mentioned.
“Kaley’s platform wasn’t there and I know she wanted this game very badly.”
Meadowbrook kept the momentum and took the score to 15-18 over Sheridan.
Clare Finck was risking her body on defensive dives to keep the volley going and the Lady Generals finally found themselves again with a hard kill from Amore for a 17-19 score.
Dupler’s kill got Sheridan to 18 and McCandlish and Brooklyn Heller in the back were getting some good digs to keep Sheridan in the set.
Stinson entered back in to end the set with a few blocks and two kills to end the score at 25-24.
Fox stated that Stinson really stepped up for the night to help get the set wins.
“We fed the ball to Faith tonight,” she added.
“She stepped up and has been stepping up this whole tournament round.”
The third set was a slight setback for Sheridan with an immediate trail to Meadowbrook, despite Stinson and Heller with blocks.
Stinson was adding kills when she could to get Sheridan to a 12-17 score at the timeout.
Sheridan’s offense continued with more kills from Amore and Dupler for a 17-24 score, Meadowbrook up.
The Lady Colts finalized their set win at 25-20 after Grace Conrad had an ace in Sheridan’s stats.
Sheridan took the fourth set and ran with it as they climbed to a quick 7-1 lead after kills from Dupler and Stinson.
The shifting momentum was out of routine for Sheridan, but they made a comeback with it.
Fox said she wanted the girls to be satisfied if any set was their last set.
“I reminded them we needed to run the tempo and I think it was nerves on the back and forth,” she explained.
“We needed energy and momentum going into the fourth set and we took the momentum and went with it.”
With more offensive attacks from Dupler and Stinson, Sheridan had an 11-3 lead at the set’s first timeout.
The Lady Generals’ offense came alive and did not back down, especially when it came to more strategic points from Amore’s tips.
Meadowbrook was still putting up a fight with their spikes to the back corner to attempt to get McCandlish off her balance.
Sheridan’s front row was overpowering Meadowbrook when they got the chance though, and with more kills from Amore and blocks at the net, Sheridan had a 19-10 lead.
Stinson was rotated in to finalize the set again with two kills to add. Amore added two points, Heller added one and Ally Perkins finalized the set win, 25-18, with a kill to the back.
Winning the Regional Semifinal was a high goal for Sheridan’s volleyball program to get and Fox said she was just excited about it finally happening.
“I’m going to be honest, I am just excited,” she mentioned.
“We just broke through something we’ve been aiming for for three years now and it means a lot to get past this hump.”
“I’m so proud of the girls and their hard work because Sheridan volleyball is not just a game, it is a part of who they are.”
The Lady Generals made their history to get to the Regional Finals in the postseason bracket but fell in four sets to Jonathan Alder on Saturday, Nov. 7.
Alder, a highly-ranked team in the bracket, consists of a team with a few All-Ohioans, a Division I commit and just overall athletes.
Sheridan knew they had high competition in Alder and showed an astounding four sets against a top competitor.
The four set scores were 24-26, 23-25, 27-25 and 14-25.
Head coach Mandy Fox had one comment about the day — she would not be upset if her team fought, and that, they did.
“I told them that if we compete, I won’t be upset,” Fox mentioned.
“I think they’d be proud of their performance; they had each other’s backs and they fought.”
Sheridan’s momentum in the first set sat at the edge with a quick lead over Alder thanks to blocks from Abby Dupler and kills from Faith Stinson.
Grace Conrad and Kaley McCandlish were going deep into defensive digs to save the kills from Alder’s Ava Francis, an Arizona commit.
Sheridan kept their early lead with common mistakes from Alder, and their fans showed their frustration.
With a few kills added from Alder, Sheridan showed a little fluster on the court and miscommunications to have the set tie up at 11-11.
The Lady Generals still held the lead for the majority of the set, all the way until Alder pulled away with a 14-15 score, despite multiple kills from Ally Perkins to up Sheridan’s score.
Along with McCandlish making digs in the back row, Bailey Beckstedt was risking her body to get the necessary digs to keep the volley going, and with kills from Stinson and Cassie Amore, the score was tied up again at 19 all.
Alder’s spikes progressively became more aggressive as the set went on, pounding toward McCandlish who had nothing but quickness in her feet to get some digs.
They started shooting their hits toward the back corners, where Sheridan’s dead zones were, but even with more mistakes on their end, Sheridan was able to get to a 22-22 tie.
Dupler added a few more kills for Sheridan’s stats, but they ended up taking the wrong end of the 50/50 chances for a 24-26 set final.
Sheridan’s fight did not shy away in the second set either as they started again with the lead after a push point from Dupler.
Stinson added a block and a few kills to get her Lady Generals to five points, and Alder was bringing up their offense for the tie.
Amore and Francis were back and forth with kills to keep the set close at 9-9 until Alder pulled away at 9-11 with a hard kill from Francis to McCandlish.
Stinson kept her front-line offense alive with tips and kills alternating to a 12-13 score, and more from her at center net showed the score of 14-18.
Alder began to put power in their hits again, but Conrad was fighting back with her infamous trick of pushing a set over the net instead of setting to one of her hitters.
Sheridan’s defense was there with their blockers, timing up the hits perfectly, but Sheridan’s bad luck was when the blocks fell out of bounds.
Alder showed their strength again to finalize the set with kills from Francis, getting to a two-point lead.
Perkins kept it close with kills, as did Stinson, but a final of 23-25 went to Alder for a 2-0 lead over Sheridan.
The domination began in the third set for the Lady Generals with a different look into the set with Alder leading.
Stinson and Brooklyn Heller started at the net with a good block on Francis’ shot, and Alder’s net hits and serves ultimately put Sheridan in the lead at 6-5.
From there, Sheridan had the momentum and ran with it. Amore showed aggression at the net with kills and Conrad was a defensive weapon with blocks.
Francis tried to begin her power-down tactic, but Stinson had timed up the hits to block and get a 13-13 tie.
More miscommunications and net hits from Alder put Sheridan up in the score, but Alder kept it close until it was tied again at 18.
The back and forth set kept going as Beckstedt was flinging herself around the court for Sheridan’s defense and Amore was at the front blocking.
Francis was having more out-of-bounds hits in the third set than she’d had all day.
With a 22 all score, the set was tied once again.
The set finalized for Sheridan with an ace from Beckstedt, out hits from Francis and a kill from Stinson to give Sheridan the set win of 27-25.
After the first three sets were over, it was just a show to have witnessed. Fox told how great the first three sets were.
“Those first three sets, that was great volleyball,” Fox stated.
The fourth set was what Alder was prepared for, ready to give their all to Sheridan. McCandlish gave it everything she had to get the digs, but some did not come back into Sheridan territory from the speed behind the hit.
With a tip from Conrad, the set was close with Alder leading 3-6.
Alder’s girls started their strength earlier in this set to quickly ascend themselves to a 5-12 score, but Perkins was not going down without a fight and began to power down her own spikes from the outside corner.
She continued those while Dupler was at the net timing up blocks and Heller was on the other corner to get kills.
Not long after, Sheridan moved up to an 8-18 score. Amore added a few more kills and Dupler added a block for a 14-24 score.
The set was finalized when Francis was going for the final kill, which Dupler blocked, but it was bad luck in the chances for Sheridan as the block went out of bounds for an Alder win.
Fox said she did not know what happened to her team in the fourth set except maybe some errors.
“I don’t know what happened; we weren’t swinging as hard,” she added.
“We weren’t focusing on the attacking.”
This was the first time the Sheridan Lady Generals have been in this position in playoffs in 26 years, and for that, the community and Fox have nothing but a proud feeling.
“I am so proud of them and I told them I wasn’t focusing on what we did not do, but focusing on what we did the last 26 games,” she explained.
“This team is special and every team to me is something very powerful, but this one, they really are best friends.”
“They genuinely care for each other and when you have that chemistry, you can’t create that, it’s natural.”
Fox knew the potential this year’s team had. They had the goal of State Finals and knew they had a good opportunity to get there.
Fox said she and her team knew they could have won against Alder and went to state.
“We came in very strong and they were all very loose,” she added.
But, they also knew who they were going to face against Alder.
“We knew Ava (Francis) would get her kills and we were ready for that,” she said.
“We just had to battle and fight back.”
Although the outcome was not what Sheridan wanted, the seniors of Amore, Conrad, Heller, Lexi Schooley, McCandlish and Ali Bennett left their legacy.
“The leadership these seniors are leaving is just powerful, awesome,” Fox concluded.
Speechless: New Lex upsets the basketball world
By EMILY MOORE
LOGAN — New Lexington, ranked at 14, turned the basketball world upside down after a 53-43 win over MVL rival Sheridan, third-seeded and AP no. 7 ranked, in the OHSAA Sectional semifinal on Feb. 18.
After two losses to Sheridan in the regular season, a third loss to the Generals was unlikely for New Lexington because, head coach Jeremy Duerr stated it is hard to beat a team three times.
“I was happy we drew them because we have played them twice and we know them,” he said.
The way the Panthers came onto the court had a whole different vibe than what has been seen all season from them, and after Logyn Ratlif scored before Sheridan, the mood of the game was set in New Lexingon territory.
The Panthers were showing tenacity on the court, keeping a quick-paced offense and working their defense to hold Sheridan behind the arc.
Trey Kennedy played the game relentlessly as he started his work from grabbing possession almost out of bounds to pass to Will Stenson at the six-minute mark for another two points in the Panthers’ favor.
Sheridan, still scoreless, finally fought through New Lexington’s Braden Agriesti with Logan Ranft to gain two for the Generals.
In New Lexington’s answer, Kennedy and Stenson were partners again below the net for another two to get themselves to an 8-2 lead at the 4:22 mark in the first quarter.
Sheridan had to work with what they could as their usual shots were repelling off the rim.
Landen Russell found a two-point shot just past the four-minute mark, but New Lexington’s Agriesti had to answer with two as he swerved around an attempted block from Shay Taylor.
Ranft had Agriesti to face again at the net and Agriesti was successful in this shot block, but Luken Hill was there for Ranft to get the rebound and backboard shot.
Sheridan started to become themselves as Nate Johnson got in his comfortable spot in the corner for a drained three.
New Lexington knew that was Johnson’s homey area and had to work from the first quarter on to keep Johnson from the corner.
Duerr reported he and his team knew they had to shade Johnson in the corner.
“That’s his comfortable spot.”
Ratliff took two more to the backboard and through the net before the buzzer to end the first quarter and shoe New Lexington leading 12-11.
After the initial shock that New Lexington had the lead, a rare occurrence while facing Sheridan, the Panthers kept their momentum up with the help of their black and orange crowd.
Duerr’s said his plan to come into the game was to interrupt the rhythm of the game and of Sheridan, and they did that at the start.
“We wanted to slow the game down, minimize possessions and have an efficient offense,” he reported.
Right off the bat again, New Lexington scored first in the second quarter with Kennedy gaining two for his Panthers.
Shortly after, Stenson took the first free throw of the game, going two for two, without knowing the Panthers would find a comfortable spot on the charity line in the second half.
Sheridan switched up some players to put in Hunter Yakes who drained an easy shot behind the paint.
To keep themselves ahead, Agriesti came in hard to the basket and tossed up his hopeful attempt.
His shot was close to being blocked by Taylor, but instead, the ball fell through the net and Agriesti received one attempt at the foul line, but missed it.
The Generals received the plague of bad luck as they had to watch the majority of their shots bounce away from the wished-for area and saw New Lexington holding the lead, 18-14 at the 2:53 mark left in the half.
In the final two minutes, New Lexington’s offense got a little more daring as Ratliff was making long passes from his distance behind the paint to Agriesti by the net, but it was working as Agriesti got another layup for two and received the foul on shot for his two for two from the foul line.
Johnson had a split second of reversal on New Lexington to get away from their attempt on shading him in the corner and went up for the three to swish it without question.
Seven seconds later, Ratliff had to mimic Johnson and went to New Lexington’s corner for three at the 10-second mark and gave the Panthers the 25-17 lead at the half.
The halftime attitude was obvious to see on faces as the red and grey crowd showed shock and the black and orange crowd showed speechlessness of joy.
Holding the lead at the half, Duerr reported it was what they were aiming to do by that point in the game.
“We kept the lead in a place where we felt comfortable,” he stated.
To get more momentum into his boys, Duerr knew he had to bring up the two losses during regular season, and the multiple losses to Sheridan in the past.
“We have essentially been right with Sheridan for seven of the eight quarters that we’ve played them,” he said.
“So I told them, ‘let’s do it for four, one time.’”
Coming out of the locker room, the Panthers received a standing crowd cheering them on.
New Lexington did not disappoint as Ratliff began the scoring of the third quarter with a drained three at the 6:20 mark.
The Generals were showing flustering on their offense as layups were bouncing away from the rim, rebounds were missed and passes were going out of bounds.
The Generals fouled on Hunter Kellogg as the ball was on Sheridan’s side, so another two points went to New Lexington from Kellogg’s shots.
At the 4:44 mark, New Lexington had the 30-17 lead over the state-ranked Generals.
Sheridan had to get something working, so Russell attempted another field goal, but the ball bounced off and into the hands of Ethan Malone who then got the two more points with a layup.
Sheridan had the next foul on Ratliff who went two for two from the charity line again.
Malone added another layup to try and swing the momentum to his boys in white, but the score showed the Panthers leading 32-21.
Another foul from Sheridan at the 2:05 mark gave Brady Hanson one for two and Sheridan head coach Doug Fisher had to switch up his players on the court to try and prevent more fouls.
Another Sheridan foul went to Kellogg who went one for two from the free-throw line, but then something went Sheridan’s way in the final minute of the third quarter.
Russell gained a layup at 50 seconds and, just at the buzzer, New Lexington fouled for the first time all game on Hill, but it was bad enough to be a technical, so Hill went one for two, isolated on the line.
At the end of three, New Lexington had a 34-24 lead over Sheridan and knew they had that one last quarter to go.
All regular season, the Panthers had been hand-in-hand with Sheridan all game long, but they always had the fourth-quarter bad luck to halt their momentum; they had to fight that in the brackets.
After a foul on Agriesti and his one for two shots, Russell then brought some power to the court for Sheridan to gain a three-point drain and a layup to get the gap closed to 35-29.
New Lexington was in the mindset to take down Sheridan as Ratliff and Kennedy each added a field goal each, in the shaded area before Russell added another three to get the board to show 34-39, New Lexington ahead.
The game was on the line and no one knew what to expect from either the Panthers or the Generals.
After a fade-away layup from Ratliff, Johnson got lucky enough to step on the foul line, but unlucky enough to miss his shot.
At the 2:10 mark, Kennedy had his one for two from the charity line, giving the momentum to his Panthers and for Agriesti to get a backboard shot drain at the 1:41 mark.
Hill got another attempt at the line, going two for two, and Ratliff went one for two for his Panthers to get a 36-45 score, Panthers ahead.
The remainder of the game was played from the charity line as Ratliff went 3-4, Hanson went 4-6, Kennedy went 0-2 and Agriesti went 2-2 for New Lexington.
For the Generals, Reed Coconis added a three from the corner and Russell added a quick two, but their fouls on New Lexington were against them and gave the final score to New Lexington for a win, 53-43.
Duerr said he could not have been happier with the outcome his boys put on the board.
“We came into this game with a plan and our guys executed it flawlessly from start to finish,” he stated.
“We came in with a plan to slow Sheridan down and interrupt the rhythm of the game.”
“We know they want to play fast and score in the high 60s and 70s; we ran the defense we haven’t had all year and we ran that pretty much the whole game and that kind of disrupted them.”
Holding the close lead was a factor in New Lexington’s win, especially holding it within a five-point mark.
“We kept it in the five mark; if Sheridan would’ve broken that, we would’ve been scared,” Duerr stated.
The attitude toward the game and toward Sheridan was a convincing Duerr did not need to instill into his boys.
He said his boys already had a fire within them because it was Sheridan.
“It wasn’t hard to convince them we could win; I think playing Sheridan, we naturally have a little bit of fire,” he said.
“I just told them that they have a chance to make an epic upset and have something to tell their children.”
“Everyone felt like we could get this done.”
'Just a kid from New Lex'
By EMILY MOORE
NEW LEXINGTON — Throughout his high school career, one student athlete has been forming a path that has bestowed him with multiple honors, praise and now, a selection in the Ohio High School Football Coaches Association North/South All-Star game.
One of the Panthers’ own, C.J. Ratliff, has made a name for himself in the community, county and state among the variety of sports he has competed in while a student.
He is widely known for his speed on the football field and the track turf.
The football game, taking place on April 25, is welcoming top-notch football players from the state, including multiple Division I recruits and commits.
Ratliff, along with one other MVL player from John Glenn, Reece Perkins, will be testing their MVL knowledge with the larger schools from Columbus, Toledo, Cleveland and Cincinnati.
With their talent as a threat, Ratliff said his worry is not with their skill, but with his mental challenge of having to prove he belongs on that field.
“I have to make plays and show effort because a lot of these players in this game are star prospects and going DI,” Ratliff mentioned.
Now that his selection shock has gotten the chance to settle in, Ratliff has started his preparation for the competition.
“I didn’t expect to get selected in the game, but I am taking it as a great opportunity,” he said.
New Lexington’s head football coach, Kevin Board, was the first to get the news to Ratliff.
“Board was the first one to get in contact with me and tell me I got an offer to play in the game and he told me I just needed to accept it,” Ratliff stated.
His practices with the team will start soon and with his head coach, Bloom-Carroll’s Wade Bartholomew.
Ratliff knows Bartholomew chose him for his stats and speed.
“He watched my film and that’s why he put me in the game,” Ratliff reported.
“He said I looked like an outstanding returner and I should be working in the slot.”
The week-long practice dates have not been set yet, but that has not stopped Ratliff from working toward the game and his ultimate goal of playing college football.
“I am always working toward the game because I know I want to play college football; I just haven’t decided where yet,” Ratliff mentioned.
Some of the schools he has looked into include: Eastern Illinois (Division I), Wheeling University (Division II), Ohio Dominican University (Division II), Urbana University (Division II) and West Liberty (Division II).
As a top player in the state of Ohio now, Ratliff will be playing in the game in front of many scouts and recruiters in April.
He reported that he will be in contact with college coaches to let them know about his upcoming game to try to get coaches there.
“I think I will be prepared to play in front of the scouts,” he mentioned.
“My quarterback and I already have a chemistry and have gotten to know each other, and I am ready to play one-on-one in this game with no safety over the top.”
“I think my speed will help me with that.”
Ratliff is the only Panther to have been selected for this game since 2009 when Brett Wycinski was selected.
Ratliff said that Wycinski, in his opinion, was a New Lexington legend.
He is following in the footsteps of a great, so Ratliff said he wants to get in contact with Wycinski to discuss the game and the meaning of it for him as a player and the community.
“I want to play well for him,” Ratliff mentioned.
Throughout most of his high school football career, Ratliff completed 42 catches for 274 yards and five touchdowns in his 2018 season while being named Special Mention All-MVL.
In 2019, Ratliff was a relentless machine on the field to earn the honor of being named First Team Southeast Ohio All-District Offense, First Team All-MVL, MVL Returner of the Year, All-Ohio Football: Divison IV Special Mention, and now, in 2020, an All-Star.
All of his accomplishments are now in the past as he has a new accomplishment to strive toward in this game.
“It is a great accomplishment to be selected to the game,” he said.
With the selection, though, comes responsibility and commitment to him, his coaches, his teammates and his community.
“I feel now that I have a responsibility to my community and the kids that look up to me to put forth an incredible effort and let them know that you can accomplish great things, despite humble beginnings,” he said.
“I also have to give credit to my coaches and teammates because they really deserve it all for helping me get here.”
To stay conditioned and in preparation for this game, Ratliff has been playing on the varsity basketball team, as well as competing in indoor track meets for their off-season.
Basketball keeps him busy, but that doesn’t stop Ratliff’s dedication to the sport of track, as he adds extra runs in after basketball practices for more conditioning and strength training.
He uses those runs to prepare for his indoor meets against other competitors not in the MVL.
Ratliff said he has to still strive to be the fastest in the MVL, and he plans to achieve that this year.
Last season, Ratliff went to states for Indoor Track and Field getting the time of 6.25 on the 60-meter sprint, 23.28 on the 200-meter sprint, 51.40 for ninth-pace on the 400-meter sprint and a 19th-place spot with the 4x400 golden team of himself, Will Stenson, Donavin Spears and Darek Pyle with their time of 3:45.15.
When track stepped outside, that only excelled Ratliff’s ambition as he took second place in the MVL with an 11.41 time in the 100-meter dash, second place in the 200-meter dash with a 22.88 time and first place in the 4x400 with a 3:36.34 time with teammates, Stenson, Austin Tharp and Jacob Vance.
After the MVL titles, Ratliff went to District where he finished the 100-meter dash in 11.06 seconds, the 400-meter dash in 49.20 seconds and claimed first, the 200-meter dash in 22.65 seconds for second place and third place in the 4x400 with Stenson, Zach Butler and Tharp with a time of 3:33.30.
After making easy work at Districts, Ratliff moved on to Regionals and advanced in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.30 and a 400-meter dash time of 49.93.
States was the next step for Ratliff with a 12th-place finish in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.13.
Without advancement in that event, Ratliff took more strength to the 400-meter dash to get third-place in the prelims with a 49.30 and third-place in the finals with a 48.62. He took 31st overall in the state.
Once school was out, Ratliff’s track was not over because he, with Tharp, Vance and Spears, took their 4x400 speed to Nationals in North Carolina.
His track practice then ended for the summer and he turned to football practice again, but now he has both to work toward for the spring.
Ratliff will slowly switch his mind back to football when the ceremony to welcome the athletes for the All-Star game approaches.
“It’s an honor and I can not think of much more to say other than Go Panthers.”
With so many titles and records under his belt, Ratliff has slowly made his name to the same rank as Wycinski, and he still has the game and track season to go.
Lady Generals' season ends, but their story lives on
By EMILY MOORE
COLUMBUS — The Lady Generals made a run for the ages, but it ended in tears in heartbreak as Sheridan got the 48-56 loss in the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) State Semi-Final game against Rogers High School from Toledo.
It was the first State Semi-Final game The Lady Generals have made an appearance in since 2004 and they made it worth a remembrance.
Coming into the game, The Lady Generals knew who they were about to face, Ohio’s Player of the Year, a two-time gold medalist for Team USA 17u and a South Carolina commit, Zia Cooke.
Sheridan was about to face the ultimate competitor and The Lady Generals played in a way that shocked spectators.
The Lady Generals brought out a tough defense to stop Rogers from scoring more than eight points in the first quarter, and Sheridan’s freshmen brought offensive power to the court.
Faith Stinson made her move in the paint to get an easy layup around her Lady Rams defender and Bailey Beckstedt showed she had ore than just speed and blocking skill with her beautiful drain from behind the arc.
Emma Conrad was the first Lady General of many to make an appearance on the foul line as she drained her two attempts and Sheridan was only down by one point after the first quarter.
The Lady Generals brought skill to the table that implied they were going to take the win from Cooke and The Lady Rams in the second.
Beckstedt made a field goal and Kendyl Mick made three, but it wasn’t until Conrad’s field goal at 5:09 that Sheridan claimed a lead.
According to Conrad, the momentum shift when Sheridan gained the lead brought more fight to their team.
“I feel like our offense was finally starting to click and I was starting to feel more confident on the floor,” Conrad said,
“From the beginning, I wasn’t really being very aggressive offensively, but our offense was starting to do a lot better and we started to get our confidence throughout the game.”
Their lead did not last long as Rogers took it right back, but Conrad added another point from the free throw line.
Cooke really came out offensively in the second quarter with 11 points to reclaim the lead and The Lady Generals fell to an 18-25 score at the half.
The gym cheered in an uproar as the red and white Lady Generals ran onto the court in the second half and that momentum stuck with them as they outscored Rogers 17-15 before the final quarter.
Stinson was the clutch offensive player with 10 points total in the third quarter off of three field goals and four drained free throws.
Aubrie White consistently took her open spot at the corner of the arc and proved it was a favorite spot of her as she swished one from the right side arc corner.
Beckstedt brought the ball inside the paint for an easy layup against a defender who towered over her.
Conrad made a third appearance on the foul line and drained her two attempts.
A frustrating final quarter was the cause of Sheridan’s defeat when they quickly realized that Cooke’s speed, talent and experience were overpowering them.
Cooke was skilled with claiming fouls, some questionable, which caused the Sheridan bench and bleachers to want to fight for a victory.
Head coach JD Walters said Sheridan tried to fight against Cooke’s plan to gain fouls, but her skilled ranked higher.
“We tried not to foul her late, but she’s so good and so quick, she iced the game, 8 for 8 at the line, but she is hard to defend because she can jump over you and shoot, not a lot of girls can shoot overtop of Kendyl Mick,” he said.
To try to prevent themselves from fouling her, Sheridan had to find a new tactic, one that would target a different Lady Ram.
Stinson said Rogers knew how to play to go against Sheridan’s plan.
“I feel like we needed to foul other players other than her, especially when they have the ball,” she said.
“It was smart on their part because they gave her the ball whenever they could, which allowed us to foul her.”
Stinson made a field goal, along with Mick and Conrad.
It was a battle from the foul line as Rogers’ Cooke shot for 12 of her 13 attempts on the free throw line and Stinson made one, Beckstedt made four and Mick made two.
Rogers head coach Lamar Smith said Sheridan proved their worth and brought a fight to the table.
“I knew it was going to be a game of runs, I knew they (Sheridan) were going to fight, they play hard and they are a well-coached team,” Smith said.
“They played very aggressive and they are a physical team.”
When the final buzzer rang, no sadness was shown, but cheering, appreciation and hearts that were proud of The Lady Generals had a standing ovation as Sheridan’s historic 2018/19 girl’s basketball team stepped off the court for the final time of the season.
The community support showed for Sheridan was the reason Walters, Stinson and Conrad said they made it as far as they did.
“People have supported them all along, we have a privileged community and we have a lot of people that support these girls no matter what happens,” Walters said.
“I only knew that the farther we went, the bigger the crowd would be,” Stinson mentioned.
A career ended as Conrad told her appreciation and love for the Perry community.
“I’m sad that basketball is over, ill never get to play it, but I’m more sad that I don’t get to be with my friends and I don’t get to be a part of Sheridan athletics anymore,” Conrad said.
“That’s what hurts the most because it’s such a good thing to be a part of.”
Her career ended, but her dream came true when she stepped on the shiny Ohio State University wood, along with the matching dreams of her teammates.
This was like a dream come true, its been a crazy ride,” Conrad said.
“We’ve exceeded our goals every year, we all want to be good, we all want the same thing,” she said.
“We knew what we wanted and worked really hard for it.”
Stinson, as a freshman in the State Semi-Final game, was Sheridan’s leading scorer with 15 points.
Their performance was one for the books, and Walters agreed.
“I told the girls in the locker room, that was the hardest I’ve ever seen them play,” he said.
“There’s absolutely nothing else these girls could have done effort wise, they played as hard as they could.”
The height was not a concern for Rogers, but Sheridan proved they could out-rebound The Lady Rams without their height they had over them.
Sheridan had 42 rebounds to Rogers’ 28.
Walters said it was a number one goal for his team to do every single game, but their downfall came because they couldn’t make shots.
“If you would’ve told me we were going to out rebound them by 14 today, I would’ve told you we are going to win that game,” he said.
“Sometimes the ball just doesn’t go in.”
Going against Ohio’s Player of the Year, Sheridan knew what they had to do to prepare to face her.
Walter said he had practiced all week as her on the court so The Lady Generals could make their practices a game scenario.
“I thought we prepared for her well, there’s just some things you cant prepare for,” Walters said.
“You cant prepare for a girl to shoot jump shots off the dribble - I was practicing as her all week and they were trying to guard me, and I cant shoot like that.”
Even though multiple seniors are leaving the team, the seniors who have been with Walters from the beginning, the Sheridan Girls Basketball team will forever have a program that works hard and supports more.
Walters said his program is full of not one, but many good girls and good player, which made his head-coaching job easy.
“I coach good players, and when you coach good players, its easy for you, all you gotta do is let them go play,” he said.
Sheridan gymnast makes history
By EMILY MOORE
HILLIARD — The Lady Generals made history in Columbus from March 1-2 at the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) State Tournament.
After Sheridan took the runner-up spot for the Team Competition on Friday, multiple Lady Generals placed for Individual Events and Sydney Bradley claimed victory as the 2019 State Champion.
For the Team Competition, The Lady Generals claimed second place with a total of 146.225 points, jut under their victors, Broadview Heights with a 147.650.
Sheridan began Friday’s competition on Bars and scored 36.625 points, but moved to Beam after their break and outscored their victors with 36.575 points over Broadview’s 35.525.
Sheridan scored a 36.350 on Floor, and a 36.675 on Vault to claim the second place Team spot.
The Lady Generals had to change their outlook on the competition on Saturday though.
They could no longer compete as a team, but as individuals and they were being judged on every single motion while doing a routine.
The Lady Generals began on Floor with Bradley, Rylee Rodich and Madison and Sarah Snider as the Sheridan competitors.
Bradley’s stellar performance gave her the third place spot on the podium with a 9.450.
Rodich tied for 11th place with a 9.250, Madison took 19th with a 9.1 and Sarah claimed 21st with a 9.0.
After a quick warm-up in the second round, The Lady Generals walked toward the Vault in the third round of events.
Bradley showed her skill with a hard sprint, a high jump and a beautiful flip to land gracefully and claim third place on the podium with a 9.525.
The only other Lady Generals to place on vault were the Snider sisters; Madison took a tie with 21st place with a 8.975 and Sarah claimed a tie for 24th with a 8.875 score.
The Bars were the next event for The Lady Generals to face for the Individual Competition.
Sheridan had two placers on the podium for the Uneven Bars event, including Bradley and Madison.
Bradley took second place with a 9.475 and Madison claimed fourth with a 9.275.
Rodich tied for ninth place with a 9.150 and the Lady Generals had one more event to go to make an impact.
The final event was the Balance Beam and according to coach Lori Martin, The Lady Generals had a good Beam day.
Her word proved true as Sheridan put one on the podium, Madison in sixth place with a 9.325.
Her sister, Sarah, took 12th place with a 9.225 and Brooklyn Heller claimed a tie for 15th place with a 9.1.
The final countdown to the winners began the second Sheridan final competitor stuck their Beam dismount.
Once the final round ended, each gymnast made their way back into the competition gym and lined up neatly and near perfection, as gymnasts are in their sport.
Uneven Parallel Bars was first, and Bradley and Madison took their first stand on the podium.
Balance Beam was the second event to announce victors and Madison took her second stand on the podium.
Next was Floor Exercise and Bradley claimed her second place tie spot for her second time on the podium.
The final event was Vault and Bradley stood in third place on the podium as her third time up.
Bradley, Madison and Rodich were then three of the many gymnasts to receive an All-State certificate as the next victors to be announced.
As tensions were high and a needle dropping could be heard in the gym, the All-Around victors were announced.
Starting in sixth place, two gymnasts were announced in a tie.
Fifth place was announced, then fourth and third next.
Second place went to a North Canton Hoover gymnasts and every breath ceased to exist as hearts pounded and Bradley was announced as the first place victor and All-Around Champion.
Instant tears from all Lady Generals and coaches streamed down faces and Bradley took her spot at the top of the podium as the best high school gymnast in Ohio.