The Knights reached a district championship game for the first time since winning the 2016-2017 state championship.
“We wanted this so badly, especially for the seniors,” said sophomore Riley Smith, who logged a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. “It’s been a while since we’ve been here. Last year, we had some injuries. Our effort was a lot better this year.”
Freshman Maddie Moody scored 11 points and senior Caraline Kerner added 10 for top-seeded Alter (23-1), ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press Division II statewide poll. The Knights will take a nine-game winning streak into a district championship game against Indian Hill (18-6) on Feb. 25 at Mason.
The Knights’ haven’t lost since losing by one at Akron Hoban, which was ranked No. 1 in the AP Division I statewide poll.
Junior Madalyn Mahoney scored 14 points to lead the Falcons (9-12).
“They’re pretty good,” Fenwick coach Brian Mahoney said, “They’re big and strong and fast. They have two really, really good kids in Smith and Moody. We tried a gimmick defense with them, and it worked for a while. Their offensive rebounding killed us.”
Alter enjoyed a 14-4 advantage in second-chance points while collecting 25 offensive rebounds. The Knights also forced 22 turnovers.
The win was Alter’s third of the season against Fenwick.
“We felt pretty confident coming in, but we knew we had to work like it was any other team,” Smith said.
Alter’s coached reminded the Knights how close the second game was against Fenwick. The Knights won by just nine.
“They had our full attention,” co-coach Christina Hart said. “The kids were very focused in practice this week. We had some really good preparation.”
Hart pointed to Alter’s 42-27 dominance in rebounding as proof of her team’s work ethic.
“You can always judger how hard a team is working by rebounding and how they play defense,” Hart said, giving her team an “A” for the game. “They played hard.”
Smith scored 11 points to lead the Knights to a 34-22 halftime lead. Mahoney scored 10 to help keep the Falcons in the game.
Alter forced 10 Fenwick turnovers on the way to opening up a 12-4 advantage in points off turnovers before halftime.
The Knights took control with a 20-8 third quarter for a 54-30 lead, capped by freshman Maddie Moody’s leaner at the buzzer.
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