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DAYTON — One year ago, Portsmouth’s Sienna Allen and Daysha Reid sat in a press conference with head coach Amy Hughes and answered questions about why they had taken a loss in a state semifinal contest.
Tears were shed. Hope had been lost.
But the very next day, that loss was history and the program’s future came into focus.
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
One year later, those tears, that loss and every ounce of the work that Hughes’ group had put in to make a return trip to Dayton had paid off.
Thanks to a consistently feisty defense that caused 24 turnovers and a never-say-die cast of scorers, the Trojans (27-1) handed Norwayne (25-4) a 53-38 loss in Saturday’s Division V State Championship at the University of Dayton Arena — the program’s first-ever state title victory.
“This is a dream come true and I’m so proud of these nine girls,” Hughes said. “We’ve talked about this ever since walking off the court last year, and sometimes talking openly about a goal can be seen as arrogant, but I think we made the right choice in doing so. These girls had the right attitude, played great defense and really earned it.”
PHOTOS: Images from Portsmouth’s win over Norwayne in Division V State Championship
Allen started the day’s scoring with 7:28 left in the first quarter, getting a floater to fall in front of two defenders. Norwayne answered on the other end in the form of two free throws from Ava Maibach.
With 6:27 to go, Keke Woods gave Portsmouth a 4-2 lead but Norwayne’s Allie DeMassimo nailed a 3 shortly after, giving the Bobcats their first lead of the day.
The Trojans pulled back in front with a transition lay-up from Reid but Maibach provided another answer with an easy lay-in, making it 7-6.
With 3:28 remaining, Woods scored — another transition bucket— to put Portsmouth ahead 9-7.
Maibach then split a pair of freebies at the charity stripe before Allen dialed long distance with 59.1 seconds to play. That 3-ball started a quarter-ending 7-0 run, which included another score from Allen and a jumper from Hayven Carter, to make it a 16-8 tally heading to the second.
In the first quarter alone, the Trojans forced nine turnovers — most of which led to scores on the opposite end.
“When they scored their first three baskets, that was what really locked us in since we knew we were better,” Portsmouth Daysha Reid said. “It came down to us picking up the momentum, and Amy and Pappy (Portsmouth assistant coach Mike Hughes) were telling us that we were slacking, so we knew what we had to do.”
A drive to the hoop from Maibach provided the second’s first score, bringing the Trojans’ lead to 16-10, before Norwayne’s Hannah Froelich cut the deficit to 16-12 with two free throws.
But Reid stopped the burst of momentum with a basket off an inbound set, which was followed by another score from Carter with 4:38 to play, producing a 20-12 score.
The two then traded buckets, and turnovers, before Allen extended the lead into double digits at 25-14 with two freebies at the 2:34 mark. Carter ended the half with a bucket, pushing the advantage to 27-14 and sealing a dominant first half performance.
“The game all starts with defense, so that’s where I use my energy to kind of help speed the game up and get us running in transition,” Woods said. “I just try to be everywhere on the court and make a play as much as possible for my team.”
Froelich began the third with a three-point play the old-fashioned way, but Allen scored on the other end before assisting on a bucket to Woods following a turnover, making it a 31-17 score with 6:57 left.
Portsmouth’s defense continued to suffocate every ounce of Norwayne’s offensive game plan. Two more turnovers led to two more scores — Carter and Reid — to make it 35-17 and force the Bobcats into a timeout with 6:20 to go.
“We’ve been playing with one another every since we were young, so our chemistry has been there for a long time,” Reid said. “It’s a family here, so we know how everyone plays and there’s so much love for one another that it makes the game easier.”
Woods scored after the timeout, extending the run to 10-0 and the lead to 37-17, before DeMassimo finally fired back for Norwayne with a 3-ball. But the Trojans kept their feet on the gas as Woods and Carter added buckets, making it 41-20 with 4:40 to go.
When Salem Allen added a 3-ball of her own with 3:15 remaining, it produced the Trojans’ largest lead of the day at 44-22.
By the start of the fourth, the Trojans’ lead had been cut to 46-28, but they were well on their way to claiming the program’s first-ever state championship.
“That late loss to Mount Notre Dame really humbled us and let us know to not just automatically think we’re going to win any game,” Woods said. “It’s 50-50 all the time, so that really pushed us harder to keep working and drove us to want to win it all.”
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
Allen led the way with 17 points, five rebounds and four assists while Carter and Woods each scored 11 points. Reid also chipped in with 10 points in her final game as a Trojan.
“Can we repeat next season? Yeah we can since we’re all mostly back,” Portsmouth’s Haven Carter said. “That’s the goal.”
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