(3-15-25) History will be made next weekend at UD Arena…the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) will host three new division State Championship game…D V, D VI and D VII.

Marion Local and Monroe Central will be playing in one of those of those title game and the opportunity to be crowned as the first-ever D VI State Champion.

The Seminoles (25-3) and the Flyers (26-2) will play at 2 p.m. next Saturday (3-22-25) at the University of Dayton to make history.

Last night at the Bowling Green State University Stroh Center Marion Local beat Colonel Crawford 52-38. It was Colonel Crawford’s first-ever state final four appearance

WMFD story – Marion Local Ends Colonel Crawford’s Season in Division VI State Semifinals

Marion Local was 16-of-35 (45.7%) from the field, 4-of-13 (31%) from behind the 3-point line, and 16-of-19 (84.2%) from the free-throw line, and they out rebounded the Eagles 31-20. The Flyers committed just 10 turnovers.

Scoring for Marion Local was by Austin Niekamp, who led all scorers with 18 points….Grant Kremer (7 points), Ryan Homan (11), Kale Ahrens (5), Brayden Mescher (11).

Marion Local defeats Colonel Crawford, advances to first state title game since 2018

Hometown Stations

For the first time in forty years a boys basketball team (Monroe Central) from Monroe County will play for a state championship. Skyvue was the last team who played in the 1985 Class A state finals.

Monroe Central’s Chance Allen had 20 points, Tucker Howell, the school’s all-time leading scorer, had a double-double with 14 points. and a game-best 13 rebounds in the Seminoles 58-54 win over Kirtland in the D VI state semifinal game last night at the Rike Center at Otterbein University.

After the win Monroe Central head coach Mason Lang told the Marietta Times…

“It feels good to win, but we’ve got to make free throws and limit our turnovers.

I thought we took control of the game three or four different times, but we’ve still got some things to work on,” Lang added. “I’m really proud of the way the boys worked through some adversity. Kirtland made a run and took the lead there late in the third quarter. We could’ve folded but we finished strong.”

Monroe Central was 4-for-15 from the free throw line for the game.

Tournament Trail

Marion Local

  • 2/21 Allen East W 66-39
  • 2/26 New Bremen W 40-30
  • 2/28 Coldwater W 45-42
  • 3/4 Miami Valley Christian Academy W 64-29
  • 3/8 Anna W 58-43
  • 3/14 Colonel Crawford W 52-38

Monroe Central

  • 2/21 Crooksville W 73-33
  • 2/25 Malvern W 63-47
  • 2/28 Hiland W 54-33
  • 3/5 North Adams W 66-52
  • 3/8 Eastern W 68-44
  • 3/14 Kirtland W 58-54

Midwest Athletic Conference Dry Spell Ends

The last MAC team to win a state title was in 2018 when Marion Local beat Cornerstone Christian in two overtimes 52-51.

The last trip to state by a MAC team was in 2019 when St. Henry lost in the State Semifinal game to Berlin Hiland 57-50. Hiland would lose to Crestview in the State Final game.