VANDALIA – The Mississinawa Valley Lady Blackhawks season came to a close with a 49-43 first-round regional loss to the Cedarville Lady Indians, wrapping up a successful 20-5 season that included a perfect 10-0 Western Ohio Athletic Conference (WOAC) championship and a district title.
“We felt like we could compete with anybody, and we fell short tonight,” said Mississinawa Valley coach Kirk Comer. “It doesn’t take away from the season the girls have had. They are a great group of kids. I couldn’t ask for a better group of kids, and I love them all, whether they played one minute or they didn’t play at all, or they played all 32 minutes — they are all very special to me.”
Mississinawa Valley struggled out of the gate, dropping the opening quarter 13-8 to Cedarville.
The Lady Indians pushed their advantage to 16-10 early in the second quarter before the Lady Hawks answered. Back-to-back Paige Emrick layups and consecutive Lilly Geesaman free throws tied the game at 16-16 with 4:57 remaining in the half.
A Cedarville three-pointer gave the Lady Indians a 19-16 edge, but Mississinawa Valley closed the half on a 5-0 run. Emrick drained a three-pointer, and Cassidy Seubert added a two-point basket to give the Lady Hawks a narrow 21-20 lead at the break. Emrick led MV with seven second-quarter points.
Cedarville stepped up its play in the third quarter, outscoring the Lady Hawks 13-6. Mississinawa Valley managed just one field goal in the period and went 4-for-8 from the free throw line, allowing Cedarville to take a 33-27 lead heading into the final quarter.
The Lady Blackhawks looked like the team that had dominated throughout the 2025-2026 season when they opened the fourth quarter with an 11-0 run. Cora Hoggatt started the rally with a layup, followed by an Emrick drive to the basket that forced a Cedarville timeout.
Tenlee Woodbury drilled a three-pointer in front of the Lady Hawks’ bench immediately out of the timeout. Emrick followed with another layup before Cora Hoggatt capped the run with a six-foot jumper in the paint, giving Mississinawa Valley a 38-33 lead.
Cedarville responded with a Maria Christian three-pointer to snap the drought and ignite a 16-5 run to close out the game and secure the regional victory.
Brooklynn Seubert would be whistled for her fifth foul, sending the Lady Hawks’ post player to the bench with 1:21 remaining and the game tied at 42-24.
“We didn’t do the things you have to do to win, unfortunately, on the big stage and didn’t step up to the challenge,” said Coach Comer.
The game marked the final contest for five Lady Blackhawk seniors: No. 10 Makenna Hoggatt, No. 15 Trinity Reichard, No. 24 Cora Hoggatt, No. 30 Paige Emrick, and No. 31 Brooklyn Seubert.
“They are great kids, they are super kids,” Coach Comer said of his seniors. “I told the seniors I have been blessed just to be able to be around them for a year. They have been very coachable and I couldn’t ask for a better group of girls as seniors to be our leaders.”
Comer, a veteran of more than 30 years of varsity coaching who completed his first season at the helm of the Lady Blackhawks program, reflected proudly on the team’s accomplishments.
“We have a great group of kids,” he said. “I am really proud of the girls for listening and buying into what we’re doing.”
“I have great coaches. They put a ton of time in, and they all have roles, and they are very active in the game.”
“It’s all about the kids, and I really hurt for them now,” Comer concluded. “I wanted more for them, and I’m disappointed for that. I hope that I touched their lives in a small way because I know they sure have touched my life.”
BOX SCORE:
CEDARVILLE 49, MISSISSINAWA VALLEY 43
CEDARVILLE – M. Christian 22, K. Reed 15, Brooke Atkins 8, A. Shepherd 2, Brenna Atkins 2 – TOTALS 8 12-16 7 49
MISSISSINAWA VALLEY – P. Emrick 18, C. Hoggatt 9, B. Seubert 6, L. Geesaman 5, T. Woodbury 3, C. Seubert 2 – TOTALS 14 9-17 2 43
3-POINTERS
Cedarville 7 (M. Christian 4, Brooke Atkins 2, K. Reed 1)
Mississinawa Valley 2 (T. Woodbury 1, P. Emrick 1)
SCORE by QUARTERS
13-07-13-16 49 Cedarville
08-13-06-16 43 Mississinawa Valley
