Ohio

These central Ohio high school football players had best second-round OHSAA playoff games

Published

4 months ago

November 11, 2025

These central Ohio high school football players had best second-round OHSAA playoff games

As the number of central Ohio high school football teams remaining in the playoffs dwindles each week, the definition of top performances expands.

Yardage, touchdowns, tackles and sacks take even more of a back seat to a simpler statistic – the final score.

Here is a look at which central Ohio players had the best games in the regional quarterfinal round of the playoffs.

This list was gathered from games covered by the USA Today Network and statistics submitted by area teams. Teams are encouraged to submit stats as soon as possible after games to sports@dispatch.com, dpurpura@dispatch.com and fdirenna@dispatch.com.

Blake Bogenrife, West Jefferson

Stats: The senior receiver caught three passes for 78 yards against No. 6 Toronto in Division VI, Region 23, none bigger than his 40-yard touchdown reception from Austin Buescher with 2:36 left as the third-seeded Roughriders (10-1) won 21-20. West Jefferson converted three third downs on the winning drive.

Next game: Nov. 14 vs. Beverly Fort Frye

Levi Davis, Olentangy Orange

Stats: The Pioneers’ senior quarterback helped break open a close Division I, Region 3 contest, scoring twice in the last 13 minutes and finishing with 342 all-purpose yards (255 rushing, 87 passing) as top-seeded Orange (11-0) went on to a 43-14 win over No. 8 Olentangy Berlin.

Next game: Nov. 14 vs. Olentangy Liberty

RJ Day, DeSales

Stats: The junior quarterback threw for a single-game program-record 482 yards and three touchdowns, including the winning score to Jordan Karhoff from 11 yards with 5 seconds left, to power the No. 2 seed Stallions (9-2) to a 33-29 win over No. 7 Ashland in Division II, Region 7.

Next game: Nov. 14 vs. Massillon Washington

Miles Marshall, Centerburg

Stats: The junior running back amassed 193 yards and all four touchdowns (17, 2, 38 and 4 yards) for the top-seeded Trojans on 26 carries in a 28-14 win over No. 8 West Lafayette Ridgewood in Region 23.

Next game: Nov. 14 vs. North Robinson Colonel Crawford

Edward Oakley, Upper Arlington

Stats: The junior kicker connected on field goals of 29 and 32 yards in the final minutes, the latter in the closing seconds, to turn a three-point deficit for the sixth-seeded Golden Bears (10-2) into a 30-27 win at No. 3 Pickerington North in Region 3. Oakley also kicked a 37-yard field goal in the second quarter.

Next game: Nov. 14 at Pickerington Central

Watch OHSAA football playoffs on NFHS Network

Ben Rucker, Olentangy Liberty

Stats: The junior defensive lineman returned a fumble 43 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter, highlighting a defensive effort that saw the fifth-seeded Patriots (8-4) hold No. 4 Olentangy (8-3) to just 22 yards rushing in a 17-0 win in Region 3.

Next game: Nov. 14 at Olentangy Orange

Eli Stumpf, Big Walnut

Stats: The junior quarterback ran for a 16-yard touchdown and passed for scores of 44 and 8 yards to Brody Hatfield in the first half of a Region 7 game against Walnut Ridge, leading the Golden Eagles (10-1) to a 43-0 win. Stumpf completed 10 of 15 passes for 141 yards.

Next game: Nov. 14 vs. Canal Winchester

Nick Vanhoose, North Union

Stats: The senior running back had 121 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries, scoring from 12 and 2 yards in the second quarter as the eighth-seeded Wildcats (8-4) blew out No. 1 Williamsburg 47-14 in Division V, Region 20. Griffin Osborne also ran for 106 yards and two touchdowns on six carries.

Next game: Nov. 14 at Carlisle

Cyren Wallace, Danville

Stats: The sophomore running back had eight carries for 118 yards and three touchdowns and returned a second-half interception for another score as the 11th-seeded Blue Devils (7-5) routed No. 3 Fisher Catholic 59-8 in Division VII, Region 27.

Next game: Nov. 14 at Waterford

High school sports reporter Dave Purpura can be reached at dpurpura@dispatch.com and at @dp_dispatch on X.

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Ohio

Which central Ohio girls wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

Published

9 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Which central Ohio girls wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

The Olentangy Orange girls wrestling team pulled away on day two of the district tournament for its fourth consecutive title since the Ohio High School Athletic Association added the sport in 2023 and sixth overall.

The Pioneers (183) finished ahead of runner-up Marysville (131) on March 8 at Big Walnut. The top four finishers in each weight class advanced to state March 13-15 at Value City Arena.

“It gets tougher every year,” Orange coach Brian Nicola said. “This is one the toughest districts in the state. You have all these great teams here and everyone comes in ready to battle. The girls wrestled really hard, so I was very excited.”

Mackenzie Carder (120 pounds) and Lacie Knick (130) won titles for Orange, which will have eight wrestlers at state as its seeks a third consecutive title in that tournament.

Marysville has five state qualifiers, led by 100-pound district champion Avery Riley.

Canal Winchester senior Razilee Wisseh advanced to her fourth state tournament and earned her 150th career win, beating Gahanna Lincoln’s Jordan Mills 9-4 in the 170 final.

Here are the central Ohio state qualifiers from the girls district tournament. When four qualifiers are listed for a weight class, they are in order of finish.

100: Avery Riley (Marysville), Kenleigh Ballance (Pickerington North), Mila Cruz (Watkins Memorial), Aaliyah Dawson (Reynoldsburg)

105: Hali Rayburn (Hilliard Bradley, third), Ellianna Perry (Watkins Memorial, fourth)

110: Ashlynn Brokaw (Mount Vernon, first), Andrea Acheampong (DeSales, third), Delaney Tackett (Orange, fourth)

115: Reagan Johnson (Thomas Worthington, first), Arden Heckman (Westerville North, third), Malaya DiMasso (Olentangy Liberty, fourth)

120: Mackenzie Carder (Orange, first), Cami Leng (Marysville, second), Skylar McCuen (Olentangy, fourth)

125: Kendleigh Dowalter (Grove City), Kara Hockenbery (West Jefferson), Kelly Lemons (Bradley), Sarah Amonette (Orange)

130: Lacie Knick (Orange, first), Mina Gee (Gahanna Lincoln, second), Payton Morse (Watkins Memorial, third)

135: Adison Justice (Licking Valley, first), Chloe Tompkins (Orange, second), Katelyn Norris (Big Walnut, third)

140: Nora Johnson (Hartley, second), Alanna Smith (Orange, third), Cara Leng (Marysville, fourth)

145: Reese Thomas (Jonathan Alder, first), Tara Davis (Orange, second), Andrea Mendez (Marysville, third)

155: KyLee Tibbs (Gahanna, first), Maya Keane (Hartley, second), Tamia Davis (Orange, third), Brielle Proffitt (Watkins Memorial, fourth)

170: Razilee Wisseh (Canal Winchester), Jordan Mills (Gahanna), Grace Glandorff (Bradley), Evelyn Krauss (Delaware Hayes)

190: Mykah Bailey (Gahanna, first), Abbey Enders (Liberty, second), Emma Bolton (Highland, third)

235: Tara Nagel (Madison-Plains, first), Maci Lee (Marysville, fourth)

High school sports reporter Frank DiRenna can be reached at fdirenna@dispatch.com and at @DispatchFrank on X.

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Which central Ohio boys wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

Published

21 hours ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

Which central Ohio boys wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

The Dublin Coffman boys wrestling team continued its dominance in central Ohio at the Division I level, winning its eighth consecutive district title March 7 at Hilliard Darby.

The Shamrocks scored a tournament-record 263.5 points in the two-day event, easily outdistancing runner-up Olentangy Liberty (153.5). Coffman set the previous record of 247 in 2022.

Coffman had six champions and qualified 10 wrestlers for the state tournament March 13-15 at Value City Arena.

The top four wrestlers in each weight class advanced.

“The [tournament] record was a good goal for the team to set,” Coffman coach Chance Van Gundy said. “We just have to wrestle our best [at state] and see where that lands us.”

In Division II at Wilmington, DeSales won the title (230.5) ahead of CCL rival and defending state champion Watterson (212).

DeSales had three champions and qualified nine wrestlers for state, while Watterson had four champions and advanced eight to state.

“The guys wrestled tough from whistle to whistle,” DeSales coach Collin Palmer said. “Some of them had to dig deep and figure out ways to win matches, and they did just that.”

Here are the central Ohio state qualifiers from the boys district tournaments. When four qualifiers are listed for a weight class, they are in order of finish.

Division I (Hilliard Darby)

106 pounds: Jacob Willaman (Olentangy Berlin), Ryan Noble (Watkins Memorial), Cole Perry (Olentangy Liberty), Ricky Molasso-Matessa (Upper Arlington)

113: Loc Webber (Dublin Coffman), Zac Dodt (Thomas Worthington), Trevor Bridges (Teays Valley), Brian Waller (Marysville)

120: Oliver Lester (Coffman), Brady Todd (Worthington Kilbourne), Nick Coverstone (Hilliard Darby), Mason Spence (Westerville North)

126: Tommy Wurster (Coffman), Josh Zimmer (Teays Valley), Jake Shirck (New Albany), Cole Dodson (UA)

132: Blaze Van Gundy (Coffman), Jack Williams (Marysville), Grant Sedlick (UA), Maddux Nauman (Berlin)

138: Finnegan Cox (Delaware Hayes), Preston Schuler (Olentangy), Alex Mickens (Liberty), Brayden Becker-Shaw (Berlin)

144: Huggy Williams (Liberty), Trent Sharp (Marysville), Austin Rohrbach (Hilliard Bradley), Isaiah Callahan (Coffman)

150: Aiden Milam (Liberty), Cash Clark (Berlin), Landon Moses (Olentangy), Daksh Adengada (Dublin Jerome)

157: Eli Esguerra (Coffman), Mavrik Gregory (Mount Vernon), Carter Shank (Marysville), Jacob Ramirez (Central Crossing)

165: Grayson Woodcock (Coffman), Chase Cone (Berlin), Keegen Andrews (Marysville), Derek Deichert (Westerville South)

175: Kile Sentieri (Marion Harding), Rylan Moran (Westerville Central), Gauge Woods (Bradley), Hamde Bakeye (Whitehall-Yearling)

190: Dylan Frass (Liberty), Michael Feeney (Coffman), Luke Mullins (Mount Vernon), Peter Graham (Teays Valley)

215: Logan Krooner (Darby), Mason Parrill (Coffman), Jackson Lane (Liberty), Cooper Frye (Delaware)

Heavyweight: Daniel Stephens (Olentangy), Tyson Keyes (Darby), Braylon Wright (Coffman), WoJo Moore (Watkins Memorial)

Division II

Wilmington

106: Mark Mobley (DeSales, first), Sid Hunt (Watterson, second)

113: Henry Geiger (Granville, third)

120: Rayce Watson (Jonathan Alder, first), Eddie Vitu (DeSales, second), Nash Finley (Granville, third)

126: Josh Sheets (DeSales, first), Anthony Bergeron (Granville, second), Elias Kline (Bloom-Carroll, fourth)

138: Grayson Debevoise (DeSales, first), Thomas Lindsay (Watterson, second)

144: Blake Eckelbarger (DeSales, second)

150: James Lindsay (Watterson, first), Reed Bodie (DeSales, second)

157: Tommy Rowlands (Watterson, first), Jonah Jenkins (DeSales, second)

165: Luke Sanchez (Granville, second), Joel Welch (DeSales, third), Miles D’Orazio (Watterson, fourth)

175: Paul Byerly (Jonathan Alder, fourth)

190: Landon Lucas (Watterson, second)

215: Michael Boyle (Watterson, first), Tanner Arledge (DeSales, second)

Heavyweight: A.J. DeMassimo (Watterson, first)

Norwalk

106: Brody Miller (Licking Valley, third)

113: Vincent Martiah (Hartley, second)

120: Brady Byler, (Highland, third)

126: Joe Curry (Licking Valley, first), Carson Schehl (Lakewood, second)

138: Ayden Douglas (Licking Valley, second)

144: Kasey Clark (Highland, third)

165: Cael Gilmore (Highland, first)

215: Joe Zang (Hartley, fourth)

Gallipolis

106: Kevin Downing (Circleville, fourth)

190: Eli Wright (Westfall, second)

Division III

Coshocton

113: Conner Wygle (Utica, second)

Troy

106: Parker Frakes (Liberty Union, fourth)

113: Rocco Castricone (Mount Gilead, third)

138: Jimmy Landis (Liberty Union, third)

165: Rylan Puckett (West Jefferson, second)

190: Bobby Kapala (Ready, second)

215: Ayden Cordle (West Jefferson, fourth)

High school sports reporter Frank DiRenna can be reached at fdirenna@dispatch.com and at @DispatchFrank on X.

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At the Buzzer: Ohio State 91, Indiana 78

Published

1 day ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

At the Buzzer: Ohio State 91, Indiana 78

Quick thoughts on a 91-78 loss at Ohio State:

How it happened

Indiana’s defense was non-existent in the first half of Saturday’s regular-season finale at Ohio State. The Buckeyes feasted on a soft Hoosier defense, scoring 50 points on 67.9 percent shooting from the field. Ohio State scored 1.46 points per possession and led 50-33, the largest halftime deficit for Indiana in a game this season. The Buckeyes were red hot from the perimeter, shooting 8-for-13 on 3s. Three different Ohio State players scored in double figures – Amare Bynum with 14, Bruce Thornton with 12 and John Mobley Jr. with 11. For Indiana, it was a half to forget offensively as well. The Hoosiers shot 1-for-8 on 3s and committed eight turnovers.

Things didn’t get better early in the second half, as the Buckeyes extended their margin early in the half. Ohio State stretched the lead to 24 points at 69-45 on a pair of Thornton free throws with 12:18 to play. The Hoosiers, however, didn’t fold completely and made five of seven shots to cut the deficit to 15 points at 73-58 by the under-eight media timeout. Indiana then trimmed the lead to 13 at 81-68 with 4:48 left on a pair of Tucker DeVries free throws and then to 11 at 81-70 on a DeVries layup with 4:03 to play. The Hoosiers, however, would get no closer than 10 down the stretch as they dropped a critical game and finished the regular season 18-13 overall and 9-11 in the Big Ten.

Standout performers

Lamar Wilkerson led Indiana with 18 points and now has the single-season record for points by a Hoosier in Big Ten play. DeVries added 17 points, five assists and three rebounds.

Statistics that stand out

The Hoosiers were carved up defensively as Ohio State scored 1.34 points per possession. The Buckeyes shot 11-for-24 on 3s and had five players score in double figures. The 91 points for Ohio State were the second-most in a Big Ten game this season for the Buckeyes.

Up next for IU

Indiana begins postseason play on Wednesday night in the 2026 Big Ten tournament at the United Center in Chicago. The Hoosiers will be the No. 10 seed and will play the winner of the No. 15 vs. No. 18 game at 6:30 p.m. ET on BTN on Wednesday.