Brock Netter, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
COLUMBUS — Stories about the 2024-25 Fairfield Union girls basketball season will be told for decades to come throughout Lancaster.
The greatest team — and season — in school history was still undefeated at 27-0 entering Saturday’s Division IV state semifinal.
“This team and these girls are legends. As a Fairfield Union graduate and coach, this team is so special and I couldn’t be more proud of them,” Fairfield Union coach Keith Barr said, with tears in his eyes. “No one saw this type of season coming, and to make it this far and be in the same company as that 1999 team is incredible.”
CREDIT: Dustin Lansing
However, heavy is the head that wears the crown.
Being unblemished means teams are aiming to be ‘the one’ to knock you off, and the Falcons met that group on Saturday.
Archbishop Alter flipped the script on Fairfield Union, holding the Falcons to just nine points in the second half and bringing their season to an end in a 46-33 defeat.
“We just ran into a really good team today, and they flipped the script on us defensively when it mattered the most,” Barr said. “It was just one of those games where they made shots and we didn’t. Alter has been on this stage before, so we knew they weren’t going to be rattled on anything. Our girls handled this stage really well. It just didn’t go our way.”
The Falcons’ defense wasted no time getting active, forcing six Knight turnovers in the opening five minutes of the game. Meanwhile, offensively, Christian Thompson had four early points before Samantha Sattler canned a corner triple to go ahead 9-4.
However, the Knights (19-8) methodically ended the first on a 7-2 run behind Maddie Moody and Izzie Arcuri to tie the game at 11-11.
Both teams traded nine points apiece as the second was nothing but high-octane offense, keeping the game tied at 20-20.
However, Moody and Da’Shai Shepard scored back-to-back baskets to give the Knights their first lead at 24-22. They eventually took a 27-24 lead into halftime, courtesy of a 7-2 run.
“Moody is a heck of a player and she made some really tough shots that not just kept them in the game, but gave them the lead,” Barr said. “We told the girls that she was going to get hers because that’s what good players ultimately do. But we made her work and she was getting them to fall.”
After an opening bucket from Thompson in the third, AA’s Samantha Pothast responded with back-to-back 3’s to push the Knights’ lead to 33-26.
Pothast scored all eight of the Knights’ points in the quarter, compared to Thompson’s four for the Falcons as AA controlled a 35-28 lead heading to the fourth.
“We couldn’t buy a bucket in the third quarter, and that was our downfall ultimately,” Barr said. “Alter hit some shots when they had to, and we didn’t. That’s really what it came down to. They handled our pressure really well after the first quarter. We were so worried about Moody, so we decided to put Christian on Moody, and maybe we should have done it earlier. But that gave them some open shots and [Pothast] drained them.”
Those two 3’s from Pothast turned out to be the biggest shots of the game, and the Falcons couldn’t answer down the stretch.
With the clock ticking, it felt like the bucket had a lid as shots rolled in and out, ultimately leading to free throws on the other end for the Knights — and the season’s end for the Falcons.
CREDIT: Dustin Lansing
“I think we got a little impatient and took some quick shots and we got a little stagnant, especially in the second half,” Barr said. “We didn’t swing the ball as much as we should have, and again, we didn’t make shots. They were daring us to shoot, and we got some good looks, but it was like there was a lid on the basket.”
Thompson finished with a team-high 16 points, followed by Sattler with six points for the Falcons. FU now says goodbye to five seniors in Thompson, Sattler, Averey Cottrill, Alexis Leith and Jill Cooperider.
“There’s no reason to hang their heads. I know it’s tough right now because it’s fresh on their minds, but one day they’ll look back and truly realize what they achieved,” Barr said. “This senior class is so special. They’ll be tough to replace, but they laid such a great foundation. The support the community gave these girls was unbelievable, and we had some younger kids who hopefully looked at this game and aspire to be on this stage one day.”
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