Pickerington Central, Africentric enjoying journey
There were sighs of relief as well as cheers after Pickerington Central and Africentric jumped over mental barriers that were just as tall as the physical ones to reach the girls state basketball tournament.
The Tigers had wallto-wall talent and were expected to get to Value City Arena the previous two seasons but were defeated on a threepointer at the buzzer by Dublin Coffman in 2016 and lost by two points to Newark last season.
As for the Nubians, it didn’t matter that their roster was had seven freshmen, three sophomores, three juniors and only two seniors. After all, they had made eight appearances in the final four, with five championships.
Pickerington Central coach Johnathan Hedgepeth leaned on the experience of having been an assistant under Jerry Francis on the school’s boys team that won it all in 2012.
“Jerry Francis has taught me a lot,” he said. “Jerry has a lot of experience — a wealth of knowledge — and he has been a great mentor. Seeing our girls program where it was and my daughter coming up to play (she graduated in 2016), I wanted to be part of revitalizing it like I did with the boys.”
The Tigers (26-2) will play in their first state tournament since 2006 against Mason (24-3) in a Division I semifinal at 8 p.m. Friday.
It once was a rite of passage for a Pickerington girl to play in the final four. The team has been in 11 state tournaments, with championships coming in 1985, ’90, ’92, ’93, ’98 and ’99 (before Pickerington North opened in 2003).
“This means a lot not just for me, but our program and community because it is an athletic community,” Hedgepeth said. “Our football team won the state championship. It’s just great to be part of this.”
Senior guard Adrian Crockwell can fill in teammates about how to carry oneself inside the big arena. She played on state semifinal teams for Newark in 2015 and Reynoldsburg in ’16.
“I feel good getting back for my third time and I just want to win it all this time,” she said. “We definitely can’t treat it like another week. We know there is going to be a big crowd and we have to keep our heads. We have to play like we know how to play.”
Junior guard Madison Greene said the players won’t be just glad to be there.
“This is like the best feeling, but we still have two more games left and we have to take it one game at a time,” she said. “Our fans have been with us all year. Now, it’s the big moment and they be with us all the way to the end.”
Africentric (25-3) will play Ottawa-Glandorf (25-2) in a Division III semifinal at 8 p.m. Thursday.
“This is special,” coach Will McKinney said. “We’re a young group — inexperienced — and I’m proud of them. It wasn’t just a gut-check, but a heartcheck. It doesn’t get much better than this. We’ve seen everything we can see to this point.”
The Nubians defeated Berlin Hiland 61-60 in overtime in a regional championship at Marietta. The Hawks have been to a state record 24 state tournaments.
Point guard Jordan Horston said her teammates have matured.
“They aren’t freshmen anymore — they’ve grown up,” she said. “Now, they have to stay focused. Berlin Hiland was a great team, and this game helped us.”
Solon (26-2) vs. Wadsworth (25-3), 6 p.m.; (26-2) vs. Mason (24-3), 8 p.m. Semifinal winners, 8:30 p.m.
Bellbrook (19-8) vs. Gilmour Academy (24-4), 1 p.m.; New Philadelphia (24-2) vs. Toledo Rogers (25-3), 3 p.m.
Semifinal winners, 5:15 p.m. Elyria Catholic (22-5) vs. Versailles (27-1), 6 p.m.;
(25-3) vs. OttawaGlandorf (25-2), 8 p.m.
Semifinal winners, 2 p.m. Buckeye Central (26-1) vs. Ottoville (26-2), 1 p.m.; Waterford (26-1) vs. Minster (24-3), 3 p.m.
Semifinal winners, 10:45 a.m.