GIRARD – The Mapleton girls basketball team saw its impressive Division VI district tournament run come to an end Saturday at Girard High School in a 54-38 loss to Canton Central Catholic.
The 11th-seeded Mounties led 10-9 after the first quarter, but the second-seeded Crusaders started the second period on a 10-2 run, then had a 12-0 burst to open the second half that pushed them ahead, 33-16.
Those two stretches proved to be the difference for CCC (20-5), which is ranked 12th in Division VI by MaxPreps.
The Crusaders advanced to play Waynedale (18-7) on Wednesday at Uniontown Lake High School in the Sweet 16.
“I think we left it all out there in terms of how hard we played,” Mapleton head coach Matt Hess said. “But they got us out of our composure several times tonight.
“We would get a steal and then force a quick shot or turn it over, and you can’t do that at this stage of the game when you’re playing more athletic teams and teams that have been there before.”
Mapleton (19-6) was playing in its first district final since 2015 and got as close as 40-33 early in the fourth quarter, but turnovers and missed free throws continuously kept MHS from keeping things close down the stretch.
Central Catholic got a combined 39 points from two players, including junior guard Grace Finefrock (game-high 24 points) and senior 1,000-point post player Lily Belden (15 points).
Belden fouled out with 2:50 left to play, but the Crusaders led 43-35 at that point, eventually seizing their second straight district title.
Mapleton received a team-high 11 points from Addison Hess (10 rebounds, five steals), while Audrey Hellickson added nine points, five rebounds and five steals.
Kenzie Hellickson had five rebounds and Aubree Hess chipped in six points and four boards.
“We still accomplished a lot this year,” coach Hess said. “I’m proud of the girls and proud of the community. The support we had was neat to see; it brought back a lot of memories from when we were making those runs 10 years ago (four straight district finals from 2012-2015).”
Saturday marked the final game for seniors Audrey Hellickson and Kendall Ramey, who helped the Mounties finish with 19 wins for just the second time since 1994.
“Those seniors have been with us the whole ride here,” Hess said, “and I’m super happy with what they’ve taught these younger girls in terms of what it takes to get to this level.”
Mapleton also collected a runner-up finish in the Firelands Conference for a second consecutive season to unbeaten New London (21-4, 14-0). The senior-led Wildcats, ranked No. 18 in Division VI, lost 44-41 to Ottawa Hills in their district final Saturday.
All six of the Mounties’ losses this season came to district championship qualifiers, including CCC, New London, Norwayne (No. 2 in Division V), Elyria Catholic (No. 12 in Division IV) and Triway.
Those six losses also were tied for the fewest in a season for MHS since 1999.
“I feel like we’re a really good team,” coach Hess said, “but in order to be a great team, there’s a lot of things we need to clean up to put us in position to compete with (the more elite teams) in the area right now.
“But I’m excited about what the future years hold.”
(Photos courtesy of Rachael Leibolt)
