(11-24-25) In the history of Ohio girls high school basketball West Holmes’s Lisa Cline is on top of that list. She has many accomplishments during her high school years. One that many fans probably didn’t know is that Cline played in a 1985 AAU tournament held in New Bremen and Minster.
Cline was a member of the Huiffy’s team assembled by Dave Schmidt and coached by Celina’s Hall of Fame Coach Jack Clouse. Cline, in a St. Marys Evening Leader story, was said to be the unofficial MVP, even though Huffy’s was upset in the semifinal game by Parkway 73-72 with on a shot that was made with just 5 seconds remaining in the game.
During the tournament Cline averaged over 30 points in four games…including a tournament high of 41 points in a win over Northwest 94-71.
In 2007 Cline was inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame.
above from St. Marys Evening Leader
Other members of the 1985 Huffy’s team included Celina’s Kelli Maier, Melinda McMillan and Sue Hill. Hardin Northern’s Jill Jolliff and Tanya Crowe, Zanesville Rosecrans Dee Ann Mell, Mendon’s Denise Trisel and Houston’s Jo Motter.
McMillan, Maier, Hill and Coach Clouse
Jolliff, Crowe, Trisel, Motter and Mell
Courtesy Wayne County Sports
For decades, Ohio has been home to fierce rivalries, packed gymnasiums, and the kind of high-school basketball passion that borders on religion. Yet even in a state known for its hardwood tradition, no three-year run—boys or girls—has ever matched what unfolded in Millersburg between 1984 and 1986. Before that first breakthrough season, West Holmes High School had never even qualified for the state tournament. They were respected, competitive, and well-coached, but not yet a program feared across Ohio.
Everything changed in 1984.
Under the direction of head coach Jack Van Reeth, the Knights entered the season with quiet confidence and a roster that blended talent, toughness, and a rare level of basketball maturity. The core of that team believed in each other long before the wins started piling up. And once the season tipped off, West Holmes didn’t just win—they overwhelmed opponents, executing Van Reeth’s disciplined schemes with surgical precision. By the time they reached the Class AA Final Four, the Knights were 26–0 and carrying a momentum that felt almost inevitable.
Their semifinal matchup against Marion River Valley revealed their resilience. It was a tightly contested game—far from a runaway—and West Holmes had to rely on late poise to escape with a 54–51 victory. That win set up a championship showdown against a familiar, red-and-black rival that needed no introduction: the Orrville Red Riders.
This wasn’t just a title game. It was a collision of communities separated by only a handful of miles and a rivalry built from years of conference clashes. West Holmes had won both meetings during the regular season, but no one in Millersburg or Orrville believed that would guarantee anything on the state’s biggest stage. In St. John Arena that night, the air felt thick with history. Two small towns had traveled to Columbus to settle something bigger than a trophy.
The game immediately lived up to its billing. According to longtime OHSAA historian and girls basketball expert John Feasel, it remains one of the greatest Final Four games ever played in Ohio. The lead swung back and forth throughout the night. Momentum shifts were constant. The defensive pressure was ferocious. Fans from both sides stood for entire stretches of the game, too nervous to sit, too invested to blink.
Through three quarters, Orrville held a three-point lead, riding a gritty defensive effort that slowed the Knights’ tempo just enough to create tension. But West Holmes refused to wilt. They matched Orrville’s physicality, chipped away at the lead, and outscored the Red Riders 6–3 in the fourth quarter to force overtime. By then, it was clear this would come down to one moment, one shot, one player willing to step into history.
Orrville led 35–34 deep into overtime, clinging to life and sensing their chance to flip the rivalry on its head. But as the Knights worked the possession patiently, the ball found the hands of their young star, sophomore guard Lisa Cline. Poised, unfazed, and fearless, Cline rose from the foul line and buried the jumper that would echo through West Holmes basketball lore forever. Moments later, as the final horn sounded, West Holmes secured a 36–35 victory—its first state championship, its first perfect season, and a new identity as a program that had officially arrived on the biggest stage.
The Knights finished 28–0 that year. And they weren’t done.
The following season, the Knights went undefeated again, rolling through the schedule with the confidence of a champion and the hunger of a challenger. Then they did it again in 1985–86, completing a three-peat of perfect seasons that few programs in the country—at any level—could dream of replicating. West Holmes didn’t just win three consecutive state titles. They went undefeated three years in a row. That level of sustained dominance is almost unheard of in high-school sports.
During the 1986–87 season, the program extended its winning streak to 108 straight games before finally falling—an Ohio state record, boys or girls, that still stands untouched. It’s a number that may never be approached again, especially in an era when balance, travel ball, and competitive parity make extended dynasties nearly impossible.
At the heart of those first championship teams stood Lisa Cline, a player who embodied the spirit of the Knights’ rise. Born January 22, 1967, in Millersburg, Cline grew up in a basketball family. She admired her brother Mike, who played at Ohio State, and from a young age she dreamed of wearing scarlet and gray herself. But first she built a legacy at West Holmes that remains extraordinary even decades later.
Cline still owns several school records: the most points in a single game (76), the most points in a season (1,034), and the most field goals made both in a season (448) and over a career (1,247). Those numbers are more than records—they are snapshots of a scorer with unmatched touch, fearlessness, and consistency. She played varsity from 1982–85, contributing to the first two state championships and laying the foundation for the 108-game run that would become immortal.
Her transition to Ohio State was seamless. As a freshman in 1986, she earned Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors. By the time she graduated in 1989, she had become one of the most decorated players in Buckeye history: Big Ten Player of the Year, Kodak All-America Honorable Mention, and a four-time All-Big Ten selection. She helped guide Ohio State to three Big Ten Championships and to the NCAA Sweet 16 in each of her four seasons—a rare feat of consistency and excellence.
Statistically, Cline finished her collegiate career as the second-leading scorer in Ohio State history with 1,750 points, and she still ranks among the program’s top scorers today. She remains one of only two Buckeyes to record at least 1,500 points, 400 assists, and 200 steals, a testament to her versatility and two-way impact. Her 11 steals at UCLA on December 30, 1988—another program record—showcased the intensity and competitiveness that defined her career.
Cline also represented the United States as a member of the USA Select Team in 1988 and 1989 and competed in the 1987 Olympic Sports Festival, proving that her impact stretched far beyond Columbus and far beyond Ohio. When she was inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007, it was simply another affirmation of a career that had already become legendary.
Today, the story of the West Holmes Knights from 1984 to 1986 is more than a record book entry. It is a tale of a small-town team that redefined what dominance could look like. It is the story of a coach who built a culture, a community that rallied behind a group of remarkable young women, and a player in Lisa Cline whose brilliance elevated the Knights into a dynasty that may never be duplicated.
What happened in Millersburg during those years was not just success—it was history. And that history continues to inspire athletes across Ohio who still dream of writing their own unforgettable chapter on the hardwood.
Stateline Sports Network 