2023 was a great year for area sports. Teams and individuals faced huge obstacles and overcame them to give the area historic performances and seasons.
Below are the top high school sports stories of 2023:
1. Area track & field athletes bring home state championships: The area’s best athletes traveled to Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus. In front of thousands of spectators, five individuals and the Westlake girls 4×800-meter relay team brought home state championships.
The legacies of Keystone’s Ryne Shackelford and Katie Clute (3,200 meters) were cemented. Clute defended her state championship in the 3,200, and she won the 1,600. Clute also ended her career with a pair of gold medals in cross country.
Olmsted Falls track and field: Katie Clute caps off legendary career on top
Shackelford three-peated as the Division II long jump champion to total five track and field state championships.
As a four-time football All-Ohioan, he is arguably the greatest athlete in Keystone history. He recently finished his first football season at Purdue.
Midview’s Alexis Weber won the Division I high jump with a 5-foot-7 jump and also took second in the long jump.
Division I state track: Midview’s Alexis Weber sets a new standard for Middies track
Underclassmen made it to the top of the mountaintop, too. Oberlin and Notre Dame commit Evan Hudson won the Division III state championship in the 400 in 48.69 seconds. Lorain's Simone Whitt was a state qualifier in the shot put as a freshman and captured the Division I state championship the following year, with a 43-3 1/2 throw.
Division III state track and field meet: Evan Hudson wins 400 state title, finishes second in 200
Westlake’s 4x800-meter relay team (Maggie Hennessey, Sydney Peer, Sarah Colman, Sarah Peer) was the first to win gold in the first event with a 9:04.74. Sarah Peer and Hennessey will return for the 2024 season.
2. Olmsted Falls Brooke Largent survives life-threatening injury at Elyria: A softball collision in short center field turned a routine play into a life-threatening turn of events on April 11.
In a Southwestern matchup with Elyria, Olmsted Falls freshman Brooke Largent (Olmsted Falls Coach Dan Largent’s daughter) and teammate Alanna Tighe crashed into each other on a short flyout.
Despite showing no signs of bleeding, Elyria trainer Ann Hamker detected internal bleeding, which resulted in swift actions from medical response teams.
Largent suffered a lacerated kidney, liver and collapsed lung, and she was transported to MercyHealth - Lorain Hospital, then to MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland, where her mom April Largent is a trauma nurse manager.
Largent recovered at MetroHealth. Upon hearing the news, a flood of area softball teams publicly supported her. She is a three-sport athlete in volleyball, basketball and softball. Though she was unable to participate in the fall, she was cleared to play basketball and the upcoming spring.
3. Midview, Olmsted Falls girls basketball reach final four: With the talent level and depth of quality teams, the 2022-23 season could have been the greatest girls basketball season in the history of the SWC.
Two programs that never reached the state tournament, conference rivals Olmsted Falls and Midview (23-5, 11-3 in SWC) sharpened their edges in the SWC gauntlet and against each other for the Middies to come out of the Northeast Ohio region and the Bulldogs to emerge from the Northwest Ohio region in the Division I tournament.
High school girls basketball: Midview, Olmsted Falls in final four is a crowning achievement
Olmsted Falls (25-4, 14-0 in SWC) was led by All-Ohioans Paige Kohler (Bowling Green State University), Mia Kalich (Seton Hill), and Danielle Cameron (Youngstown State signee), who was a junior at the time.
Midview was led by Lorain County Miss Basketball award winner Mary Meng (Michigan State) and a junior Olivia DiFranco (Eastern Michigan signee). DiFranco became the Middies' all-time leading scorer.
High school girls basketball: Mary Meng wins 2023 Lorain County Ms. Basketball
A potential rematch in the Division I State championship game was not in the cards, but Midview lost to Cincinnati Princeton, 61-57, in a state semifinal. Olmsted Falls toppled Pickerington Central, 58-53, in its state semifinal, but also fell to the Vikings, 69-51.
4. Keystone's Tristin Green wins Division III state championship at 157 pounds: Lorain County’s most recent wrestling state champion was in 2019. That was until Tristin Green bulldozed his way to the Division III state championship at 157 pounds.
Keystone’s Tristin Greene dominates to win Division III 157-pound title
Greene came back from a fourth-place finish as a sophomore the year prior. He had a record of 47-2 in his state championship tour as a junior. His season was encapsulated by a 13-3 major decision against Preble Shawnee’s Brayden Doran.
Greene has returned for an encore and is driven for a state championship repeat.
Keystone wrestling: Defending state champion Tristin Greene continues to challenge himself
5. Rocky River and Bay take rivalry to Division II state semifinal stage: Bay and Rocky River both had high expectations for the girls soccer season, after the rival schools made deep playoff runs last year.
The difference was Rocky River was dropped back down to Division II from Division I with the Rockets.
Rocky River (23-1) was led by Ohio Ms. Soccer award winner Sophia Sindelar, along with Division II All-Ohioan Ava Patti (first team) and Mackenzie Russell (second team). The Pirates dominated opponents to finish the regular season with an undefeated 16-0 record.
Girls soccer: Rocky River’s Sophia Sindelar brings home Ms. Ohio Soccer award
Bay (19-3-1) had two-time All-American and Notre Dame commit Tessa Knapp, who is on pace to become the OHSAA’s all-time leading scorer. She recorded her second straight 50-goal season.
The Pirates defeated the Rockets, 7-2 in the regular season. The teams were in position to potentially meet in a Division II state semifinal.
Eventually, both teams came out of their ends of the regional round to play for a state final berth at Avon’s Mark Wahlberg Chevrolet Stadium. In a thrilling match, the game advanced to penalties, in which the Pirates pulled through.
Girls soccer: Rocky River beats Bay in shootout epic, 2-1, advances to state title game
Rocky River advanced to the Division II state championship match and bowed out to Cincinnati Summit Country Day, 1-0.
6. Olmsted Falls boys lacrosse fulfills destiny for Division II state championship: It was a season when all the stars aligned for its Division II state championship run and a story-book ending for its senior class.
Its story dated to the senior class’ eighth-grade year, as it fell short in the middle school state championship in Columbus.
The up-and-coming Bulldogs were driven to make it back to Columbus. With the new division alignment in the offseason, the move to Division II opened an opportunity to accomplish their ultimate goal.
Olmsted Falls lost its first game of the season and went on to win 20 straight games. It outscored opponents, 327-96, with Gavin Moore, Michael Candow and Rocco Conti leading the way. The team’s football background turned Olmsted Falls into a punishing defense.
The Bulldogs reached the regional final. They trailed Toledo St. John’s Jesuit, 4-3, with 12 seconds remaining in regulation until Conti scored a goal to force overtime. Candow found Moore for the game-winning goal to win, 5-4, in overtime.
Olmsted Falls went to Medina and defeated University School, 11-5, in a Division II state semifinal.
The team made its return to Columbus at Historic Crew Stadium and defeated Columbia St. Francis DeSales, 13-9.
7. Avon football reloads, make return to state tournament: With a new quarterback, wide receivers and almost an entirely new defense, a lot of questions loomed on how well Avon football would fare, after it didn’t win a Division II, Region 6 championship for the first time since 2016.
Yet, Avon proved to the whole state that it reloads. The Eagles started it off with an evenly matched scrimmage with the soon-to-be Division II state champion Massillon Washington.
The Eagles' dominant running game and historic defense turned heads to have an average margin of victory of 30 points per game, which equated to a running clock.
First-year quarterback Nolan Good (Southwestern Conference Most Valuable Player) brought balance to the offense for a 10-0 regular season and won its eighth straight Southwestern Conference championship.
Avon lost Good for the rest of the year during its playoff run. Avon rallied around backup quarterback Blake Elder (Coach Mike Elder’s son), to defeat Olmsted Falls (33-23) in a Division II, Region 6 semifinal and Medina Highland (28-14) in the Region 6 final. Coach Elder was named the Division II co-Coach of the Year.
Avon’s season was cut short against Akron Hoban, 17-14. Though Avon will graduate key players such as Luke Hamilton (Division II Co-Offensive Player of the Year), Jakorion Caffey (2023 Golden Helmet Award winner) and Carson Canning (first-team All-Ohioan), it has a solid foundation to build upon for the next year.
8. Lorain County League football sees "banner year": After the Lorain County League postseason awards were announced, Columbia Coach Jason Ward described the 2023 football season as a “banner year.”
After competing against each other for seven weeks, Clearview, Columbia, and Black River reached the second rounds of their respective tournaments in Division V, Region 17 and Division VI, Region 22.
With seven All-Ohioans on its roster, Clearview (10-3, 6-1 in LC8) reached its first regional semifinal appearance in 20 years to defeat Burton Berkshire, 33-12, and Creston Norwayne, 19-16.
In Ward's final coaching year, after 18 seasons, Columbia reached the second round for the third straight season. The Raiders were led by running back Marco Cirigliano, who became Lorain County's all-time leading rusher and was a two-time Division VI first-team All-Ohioan.
Master motivator Jason Ward inspires generations at Columbia football
9. Avon and Avon Lake volleyball take Silver Rail rivalry to Sweet 16: The Silver Rail rivalry has its notoriety for football in the fall, but it also found its way on the volleyball court in the Division I, Norwalk Regional tournament.
Avon (25-2) and Avon Lake (24-3) shared the SWC championship with 13-1 conference records and elected to compete in the Northwest Ohio regional tournament.
Coached by Shana Miocinovic, high-caliber outside hitters including Aubrey Kirk (2023 Lorain County Ms. Volleyball winner) and Stephanie Smith and a cast of stars, the Shoregals knocked off Wooster in four sets in their district final.
Avon was led by a cast of young stars. It also had All-Ohioan outside hitters Londyn Stone (second team) and Grace Busold (honorable mention). With first-year coach Kara Coffman, Avon defeated Hoban in a five-set thriller.
The fifth-set experience came in handy in Avon's rematch with Avon Lake in the Division I Norwalk regional semifinal, as the Eagles forced a fifth set and won it 15-7, to advance to the Elite 8.
Avon vs. Avon Lake volleyball: Eagles rally in five-set classic to reach elite eight
Avon’s victory was short-lived as it would fall to Toledo St. Ursula Academy in a close four-set Norwalk Regional final match.
10. Former Elyria wrestling coach Erik Burnett inducted to National Wrestling Hall of Fame: With a resume as long and as accomplished as former Elyria wrestling coach Erik Burnett's, one wondered how far it would take him.
After stepping down in 2022, Burnett was inducted in the Ohio Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.
In the grueling sport of wrestling, Burnett forged 107 state qualifiers and 12 state champions over the span of 25 years.
Elyria’s Erik Burnett to be inducted into National Wrestling Hall of Fame
The four-time state champion at Oberlin is viewed more than just a wrestling coach, but also as a life mentor that impacts everyone around him.
