VW independent sports/submitted information
Van Wert hosted Defiance Bulldogs WBL wrestling action on Thursday and it was the Bulldogs that came away with a 54-26 victory. With the loss the Cougars dropped to 3-2 on the season. Individual results are as follows:
106 – Owen Bates (VW) 18-0 technical fall over Tristen Draper (D)
113 – Westen Mast (D) fall :54 over Heath Calvelage (VW)
120 – Briceton Sampson (D) forfeit
126 – Tyler Stockman (D) fall 5:34 over Ryan Wallace (VW)
132 – Roman Martin (VW) fall :46 over Keeghan Rittenhouse (D)
138 – Gavin Gonzalez (VW) 17-8 major decision over Nathaniel Marchant (D)
144 – Sam Mast (D) fall :48 over Braddex Agler (VW)
150 – Devon Burker (VW) 20-4 technical fall over Van Foreman (D)
157 – Briggs Wallace (VW) fall 2:52 over Evan Hamot (D)
165 – Evan Davis (D) fall 1:29 over Alden Delgado (VW)
175 – Marcello Rhoda (D) fall :39 over Carter Heath (VW)
190 – Abel Paxton (D) fall 3:34 over Auston Welker (VW)
215 – Tyler Kiessling (D) forfeit
285 – Alex Hinojosa (D) forfeit
The Cougars are back in action Saturday when they travel to Archbold to compete in the Chuck Forward Duals.
POSTED: 01/15/26 at 9:39 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
VW independent sports
Allen East 55 Crestview 51 (overtime)
CONVOY — Crestview and Allen East were tied 45-44 at the end of regulation, but the Mustangs outscored the Lady Knights 10-6 in overtime and won 55-51 on Thursday.
The game was close throughout, with Allen East (7-9, 1-1 NWC) leading 14-13 after one quarter and Crestview leading 22-20 at halftime. The Mustanges carried a 37-30 lead into the fourth quarter but Kaci Gregory scored six points and Zoe Ross added five points of her seven points in the final period to force the extra session.
Gregory finished with 18 points and Lillie Best added 13 points.
Crestview (7-9, 2-2 NWC) will host Van Wert on Tuesday.
Defiance 51 Van Wert 38
DEFIANCE — A slow start was too much for Van Wert to overcome as the Cougars fell to Defiance 51-38 on Thursday night.
The Bulldogs led 12-4 at the end of the first quarter and 25-15 at halftime. The lead grew to 47-28 after three quarters, but Van Wert enjoyed a 10-4 scoring advantage in the fourth quarter. Katie DeAmicis led the Cougars with 20 points, with 18 coming after halftime, including four treys. Amaya Dowdy finished with nine points. Defiance’s Bella Rowlison led all scorers with 21 points, including 15 in the second half.
Van Wert (0-14, 0-4 WBL) will travel to Crestview on Tuesday.
POSTED: 01/15/26 at 9:38 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
VW independent sports
Paulding 52 Van Wert 27
Paulding used a balanced scoring attack to defeat Van Wert 52-27 on Tuesday.
Kate Manz scored 11 points, including six in the second quarter, Tori Schlatter and Kayleigh Dunham scored 10 apiece and Estie Pease scored nine points, all on treys in the third quarter. The Panthers led 12-8 after the first quarter, 24-9 at halftime and 38-19 after three quarters. Amaya Dowdy led Van Wert with 12 points, with nine coming in the second half.
Van Wert (0-13) will play at Defiance on Thursday.
Lincolnview 52 Antwerp 28
ANTWERP — Lincolnview led 13-12 after the first quarter, then held Antwerp to 16 points in the remaining three quarters combined for a 52-28 win on Tuesday.
Keira Breese scored 11 points in the first half and finished with 13, while Kassidy Hammons scored nine of her 11 points in the third quarter. Destiny Breese hit three treys and finished with nine points. Antwerp (5-10) was led by Briley Bagley, who finished with 13 points, including seven in the first quarter.
Lincolnview (6-8) will host Columbus Grove on Thursday.
Crestview 39 Coldwater 38
COLDWATER — Crestview trailed after the first quarter and at halftime, but the Lady Knights were able to turn the tables in the second half and beat Coldwater 39-38 win over Coldwater Tuesday night.
Coldwter led 12-6 after one quarter and 20-19 at halftime, but Crestview’s Kaci Gregory caught fire in the second quarter with six points, then kept the ball rolling with nine points in the third period. She finished with a game high 19 points, while Lillie Best added eight points. Mia Knapke led Coldwater with 14 points.
Crestview (7-8) will host Allen East on Thursday.
POSTED: 01/14/26 at 7:37 am. FILED UNDER: Sports
VW independent sports
LIMA — Lincolnview enjoyed a sweep over Elida at Westgate Entertainment Center Monday evening.
Led by Pacey Early’s 180-191-371 series, the Lancers defeated the Bulldogs 2403-2355. Owen Dannenfelser was right behind with a 154-208-362 series, followed by Grayden Clay (162-130-292), Carson Cowdrick (154), Aaron Garay (145), Zach Newell (143) and Chandler Murphy (125).
The girls’ team posted a 2293-1810 victory, with Gwen Goins leading all bowlers with a 147-213-360 series, followed by Aubrey Ricker (169-169-338), Hadley Goins (147-158-305), Lilly Holdgreve (139-115-254), Abby Dannenfelser (134) and Dancia Taylor (98).
POSTED: 01/13/26 at 9:40 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports
This week’s installment of Random Thoughts centers around a stellar weekend for Lincolnview, a matchup of No. 1 and undefeated teams, a fun fact, a key WBL boys basketball game and a quick observation about Ohio State.
What a weekend
Friday night’s boys basketball game between Lincolnview and Spencerville went right down to the wire. In fact, in the closing seconds it looked like the game was going to overtime until Lancer guard Zander Coil had the block heard around the Northwest Conference and beyond. The Lancers won 75-73 over the Bearcats and the celebration began immediately after that.
But hold on, there’s another game in 24 hours, on the road against then once-beaten Miller City. The Wildcats have an outstanding team and Miller City is a tough place to play, plus there’s the possible letdown factor. Not with Lincolnview though. The Lancers trailed by four entering the fourth quarter, then outscored the Wildcats 19-5 in the fourth quarter for a 68-58 win.
With all due respect to all other area teams, I don’t think anyone had a better weekend than the Lancers, who now sit at 10-2 (2-0 NWC).
12-0 vs. 10-0
Two undefeated teams will meet in Maria Stein Friday night and it’s a certainty there won’t be an empty seat in the place.
10-0 (3-0 MAC) Marion Local will host 12-0 (3-0) Delphos St. John’s in a key conference game. Both teams are ranked No. 1 in their respective divisions by MaxPreps – Marion Local in Division VI and Delphos St. John’s in Division VII.
I’ve seen both teams in person and I’ll just say they couldn’t possibly be more different, at least in terms of style of play. Something has to give in this one. It’s classic offense vs. defense. In fairness, I will note that while Marion Local plays outstanding defense, the Blue Jays are also top notch defensively. What a game it should be.
Fun fact
The last MAC loss by Delphos St. John’s came nearly three years ago – February 17, 2023, to…Marion Local, at Marion Local, 58-48. Since then, the Blue Jays have won 21 straight conference games.
(more…)POSTED: 01/12/26 at 10:50 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
Parkway outscored Crestview in each of the four quarters and the Panthers defeated the Lady Knights 48-25 on Monday night. Five different players scored for Parkway in the first quarter and the Panthers led 15-5 at the end of the period, then went on to lead 25-9 at halftime. Brittyn Bruns hit a pair of treys in the third quarter and Parkway led 38-21 entering the final period. Bruns and Abby Williamson each scored 11 points for Parkway while Madelyn Stover added nine points. Peyton Hoffman and Haley McCoy each scored seven points for Crestview. Crestview (6-8) will travel to Coldwater tonight and Parkway (11-2) will head to New Bremen on Thursday. Shown above is Crestview’s Kaci Gregory guarding Parkway’s Cami Langenkamp. Wyatt Richardson/VW independent
POSTED: 01/12/26 at 10:49 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
Submitted information
COLUMBUS — The Ohio High School Athletic Association’s girls and boys basketball MaxPreps Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) rankings are now live on the OHSAA web site. The RPI rankings update daily as final scores are entered into the MaxPreps database.
Girls Basketball: https://www.ohsaa.org/MaxPreps-RPI/Gender/Girls/Sport/Basketball
Boys Basketball: https://www.ohsaa.org/MaxPreps-RPI/Gender/Boys/Sport/Basketball
The 2025-26 season is the third in which RPI data is being used to determine seeding for the statewide tournament draws. This year’s girls basketball tournament draws are February 8 (Divisions III-VII) and February 15 (Divisions I-II), while the boys tournament draws are February 15 (Divisions III-VII) and February 22 (Divisions I-II).
The RPI formula was recommended by the Ohio High School Basketball Coaches Association, adopted by the OHSAA and is calculated using scores entered into MaxPreps. The formula is comprised of 40 percent winning percentage, 40 percent opponent’s winning percentage, and 20 percent opponent’s opponent’s winning percentage. The winning team is required to enter the score into MaxPreps, or for out-of-state opponents, the Ohio school must enter the score if it is not entered by the out-of-state school.
The school groupings are determined by how each of the OHSAA’s six District Athletic Boards set up the seeding for their specific district. The Central, East, Northeast and Southeast Districts put all the schools together in each division, while the Southwest District divides its schools into North and South groups, and the Northwest District divides its schools into smaller groups.
The deadlines for reporting girls scores are Friday, February 6 at 11:59 p.m. (Divisions III-VII) and Friday, February 13 at 11:59 p.m. (Divisions I-II). Deadlines for entering boys scores are Friday, February 13 at 11:59 p.m. (Divisions III-VII) and Friday, February 20 at 11:59 p.m. (Divisions I-II). Final RPI data for all divisions will be available on the day following the reporting deadline.
POSTED: 01/12/26 at 10:49 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
VW independent sports
Lincolnview 68 Miller City 58
MILLER CITY — Max Hammons scored 21 points and Chayse Overholt hit five treys and finished with 20 points, as Lincolnview put the wraps on a very successful weekend with a 68-58 non-conference road win over Miller City Saturday night. Gavin Evans added 15 points and Marshall Hammons had eight points and eight rebounds for the Lancers.
Miller City (11-2) led 21-13 after one quarter but the Lancers outscored the Wildcats 19-9 in the second quarter for a 32-30 halftime lead. Miller City had a 23-17 scoring advantage in the third quarter and led 53-49 at the end of the period, but Lincolnview clamped down with a 19-5 fourth quarter.
Lincolnview hit 23-of-42 shots, including 16-of-24 from two point range and the Lancers converted 15-of-19 free throws. The Wildcats were 18-of-38 from the floor, including 10-of-20 from three point range and 12-of-18 from the foul line. Henry Rump led Miller City with 19 points, Jonny Pester had 15 points and Alex Ruck added 12 points.
Lincolnview (10-2) will travel to Columbus Grove on Friday.
Marion Local 45 Van Wert 32
Van Wert trailed Division VI No. 1 Marion Local by just one, 22-21 at halftime, but the Flyers held the Cougars to just 11 second half points in a 45-32 win on Saturday. The loss snapped Van Wert’s six game winning streak.
Van Wert led 12-5 in the first quarter but Marion Local chipped it down to 14-12 at the end of the period. The Cougars were held scoreless for nearly eight minutes from late in the third quarter until late in the fourth quarter.
Keaten Welch led all scorers with 14 points, while Brayden Mescher led Marion Local with 12 points and Brennen Hess added 10 points.
Van Wert (9-3) will host Defiance on Friday, while Marion Local (10-0) will host Division VII No. 1 Delphos St. John’s the same night.
Arlington 51 Crestview 42
ARLINGTON — Crestview’s five game winning streak came to an end with Saturday’s 51-42 non-conference loss to Arlington. It was the sixth straight win for the Red Devils (10-3).
Arlington set the tone in the first quarter and led 17-4 at the end of the period, then 27-12 at halftime and 41-28 after three quarters. Crestview’s Owen Heckler led all scorers with 15 points, while Cash Hammons added 10 points. 6-10 senior Calvin Willow and Ayden Cavinee each had 13 points for Arlington, while Trenton Heacock and Drew Metzger added 11 points each.
Crestview (7-6) will face Allen East on the road on Friday.
POSTED: 01/11/26 at 9:45 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
Xavier Kelly (2) passes the ball during Saturday’s game against Marion Local. Zach Crummey (below) is sandwiched by Flyer defenders and Keaten Welch (5) finds himself looking up against the Flyers. Marion Local won the game 45-32. Bob Barnes/VW independent
POSTED: 01/11/26 at 9:44 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
VW independent sports
Here are this week’s girls and boys high school basketball broadcast schedules for 99.7FM WKSD and WERT 1220AM/104.3FM. All games will air live and unless otherwise noted, pregame coverage will begin at 7 p.m. Games are subject to change.
WKSD
Tuesday, January 13 – Lincolnview at Antwerp (girls, 6:20 p.m. pregame)
Thursday, January 15 – Allen East at Crestview (girls)
Friday, January 16 – Hicksville at Wayne Trace (boys)
Saturday, January 17 – Lincolnview at Antwerp (boys)
WERT
Friday, January 16 – Defiance at Van Wert (boys)
POSTED: 01/11/26 at 9:44 pm. FILED UNDER: Sports
