“We flew under the radar a little bit and now it’s kind of flipped, which is a great thing” Finn said.
Fairmont will be top of mind this season as the GWOC favorite.
They unsurprisingly earned the top-seed in the North bracket of the Southwest District and won a district title. Fairmont bowed out after falling to Cincinnati Princeton, the eventual Division I state runner-up. The Firebirds are ready for the challenge of having heightened expectations coming off that run, Finn said.
The Firebirds return two All-Ohio performers in senior Kaylah Thornton and sophomore Janiyah Hargrave. Thornton recently signed to play at Akron next year. Hargrave is a four-star recruit and has received several Power 4 offers, according to On3.com.
The pair appeared near the top of every statistical category in the GWOC, but the off the court energy both bring has Finn the most excited to watch them on the floor again.
“The one thing about Kaylah is she smiles all the time, even on the floor,” he said, “and Janiyah kind of feeds off that energy, just like the other girls do too. It’s just fun to be with a group that love basketball, and they also love just being together.”
Seniors Lena Buskard and Nico Cornett and junior Peyton Adams earned all-league honors last year. In all, the team’s top seven scorers from last season, including senior Chloe Randall and sophomore Maliyah Bailey, return this winter.
“We have great depth,” Finn said. “I think our focus on defense is really big for us. We can put up points and we know that we’ll see all kinds of different zones, but if we can put on the pressure, that’s what our kids like to do and it kind of drives some of the things that we can do offensively.”
Fairmont begins its season at 6:45 p.m. Sunday against defending D-I state champion Pickerington Central at Winton Woods High School as part of the Journey to the Tourney showcase. The Firebirds also have a matchup with Western Reserve and Brooklyn Hall, a South Florida commit, at the two-day Classic in the Country event in January. Fairmont also will host a rematch with Princeton in early February.
At the top of the priority list first is repeating as GWOC champs.
“It’s just a really strong, competitive conference with really good coaches and some really talented kids,” Finn said.
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Top seniors
Katie Berrey, Waynesville, 12.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 4.1 spg, 5.5 apg, 43.8 FG%
Bella Cherry, Tri-County North,17.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 5.4 spg, 3.9 apg, 38.8FG%
Evelyn Conner, Oakwood, 15.4 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.3 spg, 1.3 apg, 45.9 FG%
Braelyn Even, Badin, 14.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 3.9 spg, 4.7 apg, 46.7 FG%
Katie Fox, Lakota West, 16.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 2.2 spg, 4.8 apg, 41.2 FG%
Aubrey Fritz, Stebbins, 14.1 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 3.5 spg, 3.1 apg, 41.2 FG%.
Adalynn Hines, Tri-Village, 16.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.3 spg, 2.0 apg, 42.1 FG%
Kiera Healy, Carroll, 15.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 2.9 spg, 2.1 apg, 45.8 FG%
Sammy Russell, Tecumseh, 21.9 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 4.1 spg, 4.5 apg, 40.2 FG%
Kaylah Thornton, Fairmont, 15.7 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 5.0 spg, 2.3 apg, 46.5 FG%
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Top underclassmen
Libby Bunsold, Soph., Bellbrook, 11.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 7.1 spg, 5.2 apg, 46.1 FG%
Lilly Bushey, Soph., Springfield Northwestern, 14.9 ppg, 10.8 rpg, 1.5 spg, 2.1 apg, 44.5 FG%
Janna Cary, Soph., Talawanda, 13.5 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.9 spg, 30 apg, 42.9 FG%
Ava Combs, Jr., Legacy Christian, 10.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.1 spg, 1.9 apg, 41.3 FG%
Zoey Conn, Jr., Graham, 15.9 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 2.2 spg, 2.7 apg, 44.3 FG%
Emma Dady, Jr., Vandalia Butler, 9.7 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 0.9 spg, 0.9 apg, 51.6 FG%
Lauren Fabrick, Jr., Bellbrook, 15.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 3.7 spg, 2.7 apg, 43.0 FG%
Michaela Firks, Soph., Milton-Union, 12.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 2.6 spg, 3.7 apg, 38.3 FG%
Janiyah Hargrave, Soph., Fairmont, 17.1 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.8 spg, 2.1 apg, 44.2 FG%
Caitlyn Jefferson, Soph., Bethel, 16.8 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.2 spg, 0.6 apg, 36.9 FG%
Jolie Gudorf, Soph., Brookville, 19.5 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 4.8 spg, 3.8 apg, 40.6 FG%
Lucy Luers, Soph., Bishop Fenwick, 14.5 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 2.0 spg, 1.9 apg, 45.9 FG%
Brooklynn Kimball, Jr., Fairborn, 13.1 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 3.3 spg, 2.9 apg, 27.2 FG%
Abbi Mader, Soph., Tippecanoe, 18.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 4.0 spg, 2.4 apg, 48.7 FG%
2025 state runner-up
D-VI, Region 16 — Alter
D-VII, Region 28 — Fort Loramie
2025 regional champs
D-I, Region 3 — Springboro
D-IV, Region 16 — Alter
D-VII, Region 28 — Fort Loramie
2025 district champs
D-I, Region 3 — Springboro
D-I, Region 4 — Fairmont
D-III, Region 12 — Badin, Carroll, Chaminade Julienne
D-IV, Region 16 — Alter, Urbana
D-V, Region 20 — Brookville, Versailles, Waynesville
D-VI, Region 24 — Anna, Arcanum
D-VII, Region 28 — Fort Loramie, Legacy Christian, Mississinawa Valley
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