Edgewood has sole ownership of the Southwest Ohio Conference title after recording a 37-24 road win over Mt. Healthy, finishing the regular season at 19-3 overall and 11-1 in the SWOC.
“It’s amazing. It’s great. It’s undescribable,” senior guard Lauren Gerber said. “The feeling and the love that we all have together in this team … this year has definitely been the best.”
“It’s very emotional,” junior guard Cierra Lipps added. “I knew we’d do pretty well this year, but it’s still crazy. I feel like we can accomplish so much, but this is big.”
The Cougars’ only other league crown was garnered in 2015. They shared that SWOC championship with Talawanda.
“This is one of the best groups I’ve been around as far as understanding that team concept,” Edgewood coach Greg Brown said. “The cupboard was bare years and years ago. I would say Edgewood basketball turned the page two years ago, and even last year when we were 11-11.
“It’s basketball, it’s Game 22, it’s a grind, but you find ways to win, and these guys do it. I’m so proud of them. They deserve everything they’ve gotten. It’s awesome.”
Lipps scored 10 points to lead the way in Saturday’s triumph. Gerber had eight points and eight rebounds, while Jessa Brown tossed in eight points.
It wasn’t picturesque basketball, but that’s the standard when you win with defense. The Cougars have ruled the SWOC by allowing only 32.2 points per game.
“At the end of the day, there’s one constant in basketball, and it’s defense,” Greg Brown said. “These guys have said, ‘This is what we’re going to be good at,’ because you can’t control how you shoot sometimes. What you can control is where you’re at defensively, how you box out and where you’re at in space, and that’s what we do.
“It’s not pretty, but we’re 19-3 and sole league champs. People can look at it how they want. I don’t care.”
Edgewood beat the Owls 36-29 on Jan. 11 and started slowly in the rematch. The Cougars were down 7-5 late in the first quarter, then tallied the next 12 points.
“We started off slow, but I feel like we knew what had to happen in the end,” Lipps said. “We wanted to accomplish something that hasn’t happened in almost 50 years, and it’s really exciting to do it.”
Gabrielle Barnett paced Mt. Healthy (8-14, 2-10) with 12 points, but no other Owl scored more than five.
“That was about average for us,” Mt. Healthy coach Greg Moore said. “Defensively, the last few games we’ve played a little bettter. They play hard and I love that in them, but we have a problem scoring the basketball.
“We’re going to keep getting better. I should have seven seniors next year. I’m looking forward to that.”
Greg Brown has been at the EHS helm for 11 seasons. He’s in his second stint as head coach, having returned to the job for the 2014-15 campaign.
Moore said he respects Brown and the way he’s built his program.
“He’s the perfect guy for that team,” Moore said. “When he came back, I could see the change in the attitude, a change in the style of play. They’re so disciplined and stay in what they do. He’s an all-around good guy that deserves that kind of success.”
Both teams will begin Division I sectional play next Saturday. The Owls will square off with Amelia at noon at Lakota East, while Edgewood meets Vandalia Butler at 11 a.m. at Troy.
The Cougars face a difficult matchup — Butler is in the upper echelon of the Greater Western Ohio Conference. But Gerber said her team will head into the postseason with some confidence.
“We’ve got a week to prepare for the tournament, and we’re coming out to play,” she said.
Edgewood 7-11-9-10—37
Mt. Healthy 7-4-4-9—24
EDGEWOOD (19-3, 11-1 SWOC): Jessa Brown 3 1 8, Lauren Gerber 2 4 8, Kayla Curtis 1 0 2, Cierra Lipps 3 2 10, Emma Allen 1 1 3, Sara Schaefer 2 0 4, Katie Curry 1 0 2. Totals: 13-8-37
MT. HEALTHY (8-14, 2-10 SWOC): Destiny Allen 2 0 5, Shauna McKenzie 1 1 3, Gabrielle Barnett 3 4 12, Kohlbi Gover 2 0 4. Totals: 8-5-24
3-pointers: E 3 (Lipps 2, Brown), M 3 (Barnett 2, Allen)
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