Girls basketball: Top honors for Whiteman, coaches

Covington High School senior Samantha Whiteman was named the Division IV All-Ohio girls basketball player of the year and Tim Gabbard of Waynesville and Mark Combs of Legacy Christian coaches of the year on Tuesday.

The Ohio Prep Sportswriters Association announced the girls Division III and IV teams. The girls Division I and II All-Ohio teams will be released on Wednesday and Ohio’s Ms. Basketball will be revealed on Thursday.

Joining Whiteman as a first-team pick was Miami East senior Morgan Haney, Rachel Murray, a senior at Waynesville, and Minster sophomore Ivy Wolf.

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Whiteman, a record-setting 5-foot-7 guard, was named the D-IV player of the year. A four-year starter, she averaged 24.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists, leading Covington in those categories the past three seasons. She rewrote numerous Buccaneers single-season and career records and ends her Covington career as the second all-time leading girls scorer in Miami County history behind Kelly (Lyons) Cash of Bethel.

Covington was 20-4 this season and tied Franklin Monroe and Miami East for runner-up in the Cross County Conference (10-2) behind Tri-Village (24-2, 12-0).

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Whiteman, second team All-Ohio as a junior, signed with Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tenn.

Haney, a 5-8 senior guard, was first team D-III. She averaged 23.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists for the Vikings (17-8) and was the CCC player of the year. She also tallied a school-record 41 points against Ansonia and her 512 regular-season points was another program record.

Haney signed to play at Albany (N.Y.).

Murray, a 5-6 guard, averaged a team-best 19.8 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists and was first team D-III. A second-team All-Ohioan as a junior, she also is a rare four-year, first team All-Southwest Buckeye League selection.

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Wolf, a 5-8 sophomore, was D-IV first team. She averaged 15.8 points in the regular season and was the Midwest Athletic Conference player of the year. Minster is the defending D-IV state champ and will play in a D-IV state semifinal on Friday.

Second-team selections were Waynesville senior Marcella Sizer (D-III) and Courtney Prenger, a senior at Minster (D-IV). Making the third team was junior Corina Conley of Franklin Monroe (D-IV).

Gabbard, in his 39th year coaching the Spartans, is the D-III coach of the year. He guided Waynesville to a 21-0 regular season. Waynesville (26-0) will play Doylestown Chippewa (25-1) in a D-III state semifinal at Ohio State University’s Schottenstein Center at Columbus at 3 p.m. Thursday.

Combs is the D-IV coach of the year. Legacy Christian was 20-2 in the regular season, losing only to Waynesville and Alter. Legacy Christian won the Metro Buckeye Conference (12-0).

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The girls All-Ohio teams where chosen based on nine districts throughout Ohio, including the Southwest District. A panel of media reps voted on players nominated by coaches.

The release of the girls All-Ohio teams coincides with the season-ending state final fours on Thursday through Saturday. The boys high school All-Ohio teams will be announced by the OPSWA next week.

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