Throughout the OHSAA school year there are tens of thousands of high school events across the state. There are twenty sports recognized by the OHSAA along with several other sports that are on their way. All of the hard work by players and coaches comes to fruition in the state finals. After analyzing and looking at the many state championship events, I have come up with a "Top 10 Moments" from the 2007-08 athletic season. So without further ado...

1. Coldwater shocks Youngstown Cardinal Mooney in Division IV football final

In a rematch of the 2006 Division IV final, Coldwater pulled off the biggest upset of the 2007 state championship games by defeating heavily favored Cardinal Mooney, 28-27 at Massillon Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. Mooney was undefeated, ranked No. 1 in Division IV all season long, ranked in the top 25 in several national polls, and was in discussion of being the best team in the state regardless of division. After the Cardinals had a comfortable 21-7 lead entering the final quarter, Coldwater scored 21 unanswered points to take a 28-21 lead. Mooney put together a late touchdown drive and scored with 20 seconds left to play. A blocked extra point by Coldwater's Kurt Schlarman secured the lead for the Cavaliers and later Adam Homan recovered Mooney's onside kick to seal the state title.

2. Chambers' buzzer-beater stuns Libbey as Chillicothe wins Division II boys basketball title

Chillocothe's memorable 2007-08 season culminated in unbelievable fashion. The Cavaliers overcame a 14-point deficit mid-way through the third quarter in the Division II state championship game to eventually force overtime. In front of nearly 15,000 at Value City Arena, Chillicothe senior Ray Chambers' layup with under a second to play in overtime gave his team a 70-69 victory over favored Toledo Libbey. Chambers' teammate Anthony Hitchens (24 points, six rebounds, and five assists) led the way for the Cavaliers. Libbey's William Buford, Ohio's Mr. Basketball in 2008, had a spectacular game (29 points, six rebounds and five assists) as the Cowboys came up just short of a state championship.

3. St. Paris Graham shatters state wrestling meet record

There may not have been a team in Ohio that accomplished more than the St. Paris Graham wrestling team. The Falcons' regular season was highlighted by a dismantling in a December dual against Ohio's long-time wrestling kings: Lakewood St. Edward. Graham went on to solidify their stronghold on Ohio wrestling by surpassing their own Division II state meet record with 221.5 points. The Falcons placed 12 of their 14 wrestlers as the state meet, which included four champions. The eight-time defending Division II state champions claimed their first national title in the process of what surely will go down as one of the all-time great wrestling teams in Ohio's history.

4. Cincinnati Mount Notre Dame wins Division I girls basketball title at buzzer

Although there was plenty of debate about the final shot, the referees ruled freshman Kathryn Reynolds' final shot a good one as Mount Notre Dame defeated Lakota West 69-67. After one of the heaviest snow storms in Columbus history, the girls' state championship games were delayed two days. In continuing with the wild and unpredictable events preceding the game, the big-school title game lived up to the hype as the Cougars (26-2) won their third straight title. Tia McBride led the MND with 24 points and Amber Gray, the 2008 Ms. Basketball out of Lakota West, had 23 points for the Firebirds (26-2).

5. Cincinatti St. Xavier blanks Mentor in Division I football final to cap perfect season

St. Xavier's defense shut out the mighty Mentor offense, led by Mr. Football Bart Tanski, by the score of 27-0 as the Bombers finished a perfect (15-0) season and their second Division I title in three seasons. It was only the second shutout in Division I title game history. St. X running back Darius Ashley (271 yards, 2 TD's) broke a big-school title game rushing record as he helped the Bombers rush for a total of 371 yards. St. Xavier picked up their fourth shutout of the year and they proved they deserve the title as Ohio's best and also the high rankings (including some No. 1 rankings) they received from every national poll.

6. Lakewood St. Edward dominates winter sports

Most schools would be very happy to win a single state championship in any sport over a five or ten year period. St. Edward nearly pulled off three team state titles in just the winter sports season. For the 11th straight season the Eagles captured the Division I state wrestling title. Just over a week later, St. Edward defeated Gilmour Academy in Nationwide Arena for their 11th state hockey championship. The number of wrestling *23) and hockey (11) titles are both more than any other school in Ohio. As St. Eds was going for the trifecta in winter sports titles, something Ohio has never seen before, they came up short in the basketball final six days after their hockey title. The road block to a second basketball state championship was Newark as the Eagles fell 65-52 on a Saturday night in Value City Arena.

7. North Canton Hoover wins pitcher's duel over Elyria for Division I softball title

The players, coaches, and fans new it was an instant classic once the final run had scored. Two of the best pitchers (Hoover's Jessica Simpson and Elyria's Tess Sito) in the entire state went head-to-head for nine innings before either team could get on the scoreboard. It wasn't until two outs in the bottom of 10th inning when the softball Division I title game was decided. Hoover's Erin Riccardi hit a two-out RBI single to defeat Elyria for the title for the second time in three years. Simpson (two hits, one walk, six strikeouts) went the distance for Hoover and Elyria's junior star Sito (four hits, two walks, 14 strikeouts) was nearly perfect.

8. Mother of Mercy defeats Mount Notre Dame in all-Cincinnati volleyball final

There is not a more talented region of volleyball outside of Cincinnati. The Girls Greater Cincinnati League may be the top volleyball conference in the nation. It was only fitting that the 2007 volleyball state championship was once again between two GCCL schools: Mother of Mercy and Mount Notre Dame. In a rematch of the 2006 final, this classic went to Mother of Mercy as they pulled off a 15-11 win in the deciding fifth game. The win gave the GCCL their 12th Division I title in 15 years and further proved where the best volleyball is played. Mercy won their first state title since 1982 behind a strong performance by Missy Harpenau (27 kills). The senior was later named National Player of the Year by PrepVolleyball.com and is headed to the University of Cincinnati to continue her volleyball career.

9. Cleveland Heights ends Cleveland Glenville's streak of Division I boys track and field titles

Cleveland Heights captured their first boys track and field state title since 1982 as they dethroned nearby Cleveland Glenville, who had won the previous five state titles. The Tigers edged Cincinnati LaSalle 44-41 with a fifth-place finish in the final race of the day, the 4x400. Cleveland Heights' seniors Jared Hall, Wael El-Halaby, Dontave Cowsette, and junior Bryan Underwood are among the athletes that contributed towards the Tigers' state title.

10. Central Ohio dominates state swim meet

The Columbus-area crowned two teams as swimming state champions as St. Charles captured the boys title and Upper Arlington won their fourth straight Division I girls title. The big story was St. Charles ending the state championship streak of Cincinnati St. Xavier, who the previous nine state titles. The Cardinals finished with 266 points to defeat Cincinnati St. Xavier by 20 points. Upper Arlington finished with a record 449 points to outdistance second-place Cincinnati St. Ursuline.

Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Monday, June 9th:

Track and Field: Buckeyes get track trifecta

Track and Field: Memorable final prep meet for Cory Leslie

Track and Field: State Meet Leftovers

Track and Field: Michael Willey's Perfect Race

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COLUMBUS -- Walsh Jesuit completed a stellar season in dominating fashion, shutting out Canal Winchester, 6-0, to win the Div. II state championship Saturday morning.

Senior lefty David Starn went the distance, striking out nine, and six different players drove in the Warriors' runs.

Walsh was steady and efficient -- hallmarks of a program that's now won three state titles since 1999 -- in just about every aspect of the game. The Warriors manufactured runs, gunned down lead runners and escaped two bases-loaded jams to preserve the shutout.

Sophomore Johnny Fasola and junior Matt Keller had two hits apiece for a young Walsh team that finished 26-3 and might be even better the next two seasons. The Warriors' only losses were to Div. I state finalists St. Ignatius and St. Edward.

They jumped on Canal Winchester (22-13) with two runs in the first inning and two more in the second. Ross Brunello's RBI double started the scoring, and Ryan Berry knocked in Brunello later in the first.

Berry and Joe Pawlowski delivered RBI singles in the second.

The Indians loaded the bases with two outs in the third but couldn't convert, then started the fourth with two baserunners before Walsh picked off Wes White in a rundown and Starn struck out the final two batters of the inning.

Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Thursday, June 5th:

Baseball: Cincinnati Moeller falls late to Cleveland St. Ignatius

Moeller, the 2004 Division I baseball champions, fell short of their attempt at another baseball title as St. Ignatius scored three runs in the seventh and final inning for a 7-5 victory in a Division I state semifinal. With the bases loaded and two outs in the seventh, a Kirby Becker fly ball was misplayed in the outfield with led to two runs scoring. The Wildcats scored their final run on a wild pitch by Moeller. St. Ignatius, the 2002 champs, is looking for their second state baseball title. The Enquirer

Baseball: Lakewood St. Edward will meet rival St. Ignatus in baseball final

St. Edward defeated Lakota West, the defending big school baseball champions, 6-3 yesterday behind the play junior outfielders Vince Marquard and Brian Boland. Marquard and Boland combined for four hits, three runs scored and four RBI as the Eagles will now move on to play rival St. Ignatius in the final in Columbus on Saturday. The Plain Dealer

Track and Field: Preview of the State Meet

Steve Blackledge is covering his 30th state track and field meet and he made his predictions of the winners for each of the divisions. Cleveland Heights, Sandusky Perkins, and Bluffton round off Blackledge's predicted state champions for the boys while Cleveland Heights Beaumont, Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, and Gates Mills Gilmour are his predictions to win girls state titles. The Dispatch

Baseball: Walsh Jesuit will play for DII state title

The Warriors of Cuyahoga Falls Walsh Jesuit found a way in Thursday's Division II state semifinal as they were victorious over Springfield Kenton Ridge, 2-1. The game went to extra innings before Matt Pallock's bloop hit in the ninth inning gave Walsh Jesuit the win. The Warriors, 29-3, will meet Canal Winchester in the state final at 10 a.m. Saturday at Cooper Stadium. Kenton Ridge finishes its season at 21-7. Akron Beacon Journal

Softball: North Canton Hoover prepares for Grove City

The Hoover Vikings, No. 3 in the state, have an edge when it comes to experience, as ten of their seniors are making their second trip to the state softball tournament. Grove City, No. 2 in the state, has only one senior on the team and none of the players have gotten this far before. The starters for today's Division I semifinal are Hoover's Jessica Simpson and Grove City's Paige Myers. Canton Repository

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Thursday, June 5th:

Baseball: State Tournament Preview

Track and Field: Brother/Sister combo at Columbus DeSales

Track and Field: Toledo Bowsher girls, Eastwood boys have shots at state crowns

Softball: Mason gets another shot at state power Elyria

Baseball: Walsh Jesuit two wins away from fourth title

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Wednesday, June 4th:

Baseball: Lakota West is set on repeating

Track and Field: Massillon Perry girs eye state title

Lacrosse; Upper Arlington and Worthington Kilbourne will meet in final

Softball: State softball tournament in Akron lacks local flavor

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Tuesday, June 3rd:

Football: Northeast Ohio Headlines

FSN Ohio unleashed their TV lineup for the upcoming football season. The biggest game on the schedule is St. Ignatius vs. St. Edward. Mentor/Strongsville, Brunswick/Solon, and Lake Catholic/Akron Hoban are also on the schedule. The Cuyahoga County East/West All-Star game will be played on June 13 at Case Western Reserve Universtiy. The Plain Dealer

Boys Basetball: Head Coach Paul Andrews will step down

Paul Andrews will step aside as Lockland boys' basketball coach for at least one year, because of his wife's illness. Lockland athletic director Ken Meibers said Andrews probably will be replaced by former Aiken coach Steve Gentry on an interim basis for one year, pending school board approval Wednesday. The Enquirer

Track and Field; Central Ohio Rumblings

Some thoughts about the recent regional track meets around the Columbus-area. Included are thoughts about a controversial decision in the Division I 300 hurdles, good sportsmanship by a coach, a young athlete overcoming the loss of a parent, and a discrepancy at the Division II regional at Lexington. The Dispatch

Baseball: Knights, Irish advance to City League final

St. Francis DeSales grabbed an early lead and cruised to a 7-2 victory over Clay at Skeldon Stadium to earn a spot in tomorrow night's 6:30 CL championship game here. St. Francis (11-10) will face Central Catholic (14-9), which advanced by beating Start 9-3 in last night's second semifinal. The Blade

Baseball: Canton Central Catholic armed for state

One of the biggest luxuries Central Catholic will take into the Division III state baseball tournament is a pitching staff deep in numbers and talent. Grant McCoury (the starter for Friday's semifinal), Alex Myers, Taylore Baker, Michael Lindsey and Chris Snopel have combined for 28 wins and a 2.39 ERA for the Crusaders this season. Canton Repository

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THE GAMES: Cuyahoga Falls Walsh Jesuit (25-3) vs. Springfield Kenton Ridge (23-6), Thursday, 10 a.m. Canal Winchester (21-12) vs. Chardon Notre Dame Cathedral Latin (22-4), Thursday, 1 p.m.

The winners play Saturday at 10 a.m.

THE SKINNY: If there's a clear-cut favorite in any of the four divisions this weekend, it's Walsh Jesuit. The Warriors are balanced offensively, stocked with arms and athletes and haven't allowed a single run since the sectionals.

But in Kenton Ridge, Walsh is facing an experienced team - the Cougars were state runner-up last season - that's more than capable of ending that scoreless streak. Kenton Ridge embraced the underdog role in its regional final by scoring 17 runs and winning via the mercy rule against a Columbus DeSales squad that entered the game 28-1.

Canal Winchester just keeps finding a way to win on an improbable tournament run, and in its way now is another team that's mixed good baseball with good bounces and big breaks along the tournament trail. NDCL has several players with state tournament experience; the Lions lost the 2006 Division II state championship game to Walsh, 3-0.

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THE GAMES: Cleveland St. Ignatius (27-4) vs. Cincinnati Archbishop Moeller (24-6), Thursday, 4 p.m. Lakewood St. Edward (22-6) vs. West Chester Lakota West (26-1), Thursday, 7 p.m.

The winners play Saturday at 1 p.m.

THE SKINNY: Neighborhood rivals from Cleveland join two perennial Southwest Ohio powers for what seems to be a wide-open Final Four. Though three parochial schools have advanced to Columbus, the lone public representative - Lakota West - happens to be the defending state champ and would probably be considered a slight favorite to repeat the feat.

File photoThe state baseball tournament is being held at Cooper Satdium, home of the AAA Columbus Clippers (Washington Nationals) in Columbus, Ohio.

The neighborhood theme, though, goes deeper than just the possibility of a St. Edward-St. Ignatius final. Moeller defeated its archrival, St. Xavier, in last week's regional semifinals, 9-5, before holding off Lakota East - the neighborhood rival of its state semifinal opponent - by the same score a day later.

Lakota West went the Columbus route for its regional and won a trip back this weekend in dominating fashion. Just as dominating along the way, though, has been a St. Ignatius team that's outscored its tournament opponents 57-4 and shutout perennial power Toledo Start, 12-0, in last Friday's Tiffin Regional final.

Continue reading the entry...

Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Friday, May 30th:

Softball: Lakota East wins 2-1 over Greenville in Division I Regional Semifinal

Baseball: Mayfield and St. Edward are victorious, will meet in Region Final

Baseball: Canton Central Catholic Defeats Youngstown Ursuline

Baseball Toleod Start holds on for a 4-3 Regional Semifinal win over Perrysburg

Baseball: Columbus DeSales, Canal Winchester, Newark Catholic all advance

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Thursday, May 29th:

Softball: Elyria wins pitcher's duel against North Royalton

Softball: Mason shuts-out Fairfield in regional semifinal

Track and Field: Centerville breaks record, advances to state meet

Softball: Lebanon squeaks by Gahana Lincoln in regional semifinal

Softball: Hoover beats Hudson in 10 innings

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Friday, May 23rd:

Softball: Greenville WIns Pitcher Duel, 1-0

The Lakota East Division I district final between Greenville and Hamilton on Thursday involved a pitchers; duel between Greenvillve's Kyli Gunckel and Hamilton's Ashley Boyd. In the end, an infield single by Lady Wave's Madison Shuret with the bases loaded in the first inning was the only run scored as Greenville was victorious. The district title is the third in a row for Greenville (25-5), moving the team into Thursday's regional semifinal at the University of Dayton against the winner of Saturday's Lakota East-Glen Este game. Hamilton ends its season 20-7. Dayton Daily News

Baseball: Mayfield Defeats Mentor in a classic

Top-seeded Mentor and second-seeded Mayfield played in a wild Division I District final at Euclid High School's Serra Field on Thursday. In the end, a magical comeback by the Wildcats gave them a 9-8 win over the top-seeded Cardinals. Mayfield found themselves down 7-0 after two innings before their offense got in gear. The Wildcats would score 8 unanswered runs before Mentor tied the game up, sending it to extra innings. A game-winning RBI single by Ethan Santora in the top of the 10th inning advanced Mayfield to the Canton Regional. The News-Herald

Baseball: Anthony Wayne Shuts Out Mansfield Madison

Behind another strong pitching performance by senior Jason Stidham, Anthony Wayne moves on to the district final where they will face Perrysburg. Stidham only allowed one hit yesterday as the Generals were victorious 4-0. Stidham (6-2) will not start in tomorrow's district final game against Perrysburg, but there's a chance he'll be used in relief, said Generals coach Mark Nell. Mike Frank, who did not play yesterday, will be on the hill. Stidham did his part on offense two as he had the game's only extra based hit in the fifth inning. The Toledo Blade

Baeball: Adena gets easy district win over Southeastern

The Warriors put up two big innings in the first four, then came through with a game-ending two-out rally in the bottom of the fifth to make things official in an 11-1 win over Southeastern in a Division III district semifinal. Chillicothe Gazette

Baeball: Poland gets new set of Cardinals in final

The Bulldogs beat Crestwood 5-3 to make the district final for the fifth straight year. Since winning the district title in 2005, the Poland High baseball team played in three straight district finals against Canfield -- and lost them all. One group of Cardinals left -- Canfield moved up to Division I this year -- and another group stepped in. After defeating Mantua Crestwood 5-3 Thursday, the Bulldogs (15-8) advanced to play Mooney in today's Division II district final at Cene Park. The Vindicator

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Thursday, May 22nd:

Track and Field: Glenville legacy is safe with Tony Overton

Baseball: Cincinnati St. Xaiver scores 9 in the sixth to beat Colerain

Baseball: Maumee's Lethal Lefty: Mike Mason

Baseball: Newark Wins District Champoinship

Baseball: Jackson Wins Division I District Title

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Wednesday, May 21st:

Track and Field: Luttrell twins out to defend state D-III titles

Dayton Christian twins John and Walter Luttrell are preparing for the track and field postseason as the goal of defending their state titles is in sight. The twins join a handful of other area athletes in their quests for state individual and team titles with this week's district meets at Welcome, Troy and West Milton. The top four advance to next week's regionals. Those top four qualify to the season-ending state meets at Columbus on June 6-7. Dayton Daily News

Softball: Eastlake North downs Willougbhy South in district final

Rivals North and South were playing in Eastlake for the district title for the second year in a row. And for the second year in a row, North celebrated a victory. Thanks to Courtney Dwyer's bat and Becky Fortuna's arm, the North softball team moves on to regional play where they will face Brunswick at the University of Akron. The News-Herald

Baseball: Watkins' run of district titles comes to end

In a district semifinal yesterday, Watkins Memorial came up short to Zanesville, 4-3. With the score tied at 3 in the bottom of the seventh, Zanesville's Colten Maxwell reached on a two-out error to score Shayne Miller with the game-winning run. Watkins left a total of five runners on base during the next two innings against Zanesville starter Cole Hudson before he was removed in the seventh after a one-out walk to Sean Fannin. The Newark Advocate

Baseball: Canton Central Catholic claims district title

Central Catholic overcame an early two-run deficit to overtake Chippewa with an 8-4 district championship win. The next stop for Central Catholic - now 26-3 - is the regional semifinal next Thursday afternoon at 5 against Struthers District champion Youngstown Ursuline. Alex Myers (9-0) got the win for the Crusaders, thanks to lots of offensive help by Chris Snoppel, Mike Roman, Michael Marzec, and others. The Independent

Softball: Lady Fliers move on to district final

Sandusky Perkins and Clyde shared the Sandusky Bay Conference softball title with identical 12-2 marks in the league. The Lady Fliers won the grudge match on Tuesday as freshmen Brooke Billings fired a two-hitter in a 3-0 win at Clyde High School to advance to the Division II district championship. The Sandusky Register

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Shaun Spence - ohioHSsports.com

Check back each and every weekday for the top prep headlines from across the state. Here are a list of summaries from some of the major stories around Ohio for Friday, May 16th:

Tennis: Cincinnati St. Xavier blanks Sycamore

Boys Basketball: Cleveland St. Ignatius hires Sean O'Toole

Two sets of Columbus-area twins emerge from mix

Softball: North Canton Hoover and Jackson set for Round 3

Softball: Sylvania Southview defeats Notre Dame

Softball: McDonald blanks Jackson-Milton and Warren JFK beats Lordstown

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