VERSAILLES – The No. 6 seed Ansonia Lady Tigers opened postseason play in convincing fashion, defeating the Dixie Lady Greyhounds 55-34 in OHSAA Division VI sectional tournament action.
From the opening tip, Ansonia set the tone with sharp shooting and relentless defensive pressure.
“We came out shooting well,” said Ansonia coach Connor Custenborder. “We need that to have a long tournament run. Dixie is a good defensive team, so coming out and shooting well takes some of that pressure off – was big for us.”
Both teams connected on five 3-pointers, and the free-throw shooting was nearly even, with Ansonia converting 12-of-19 attempts while Dixie finished 11-of-16. The difference came inside, where the Lady Tigers dominated the paint with 14 two-point field goals while limiting the Lady Greyhounds to just four.
Ansonia wasted little time building momentum, racing out to a 9-0 lead in the opening three minutes. Olivia Creager and Lydia Hahn scored in the paint, Shyann McKenna drained a 3-pointer, and Hahn added a layup to give the Lady Tigers early control. Hahn’s second layup of the quarter pushed the lead to double digits at 13-3 as Ansonia rolled to a 20-7 advantage after one period.
McKenna paced the Lady Tigers in the opening quarter with seven points, including a 3-pointer. Creager added seven points, Hahn chipped in four, and Autumn Best contributed two.
“Lydia Hahn is shooting the ball pretty well this year,” Coach Custenborder noted. “Her shooting well from three opens so much for us. They have to go out and guard her. It opens up driving lanes for other people. You have to guard all five girls on the court for us.”
Ansonia’s full-court pressure continued to create offense in the second quarter. The Lady Tigers outscored Dixie 15-11 in the period to take a comfortable 35-18 lead into halftime. Charlotte Barge led the way in the second with six points.
“We press almost everyone for the majority of games,” Custenborder said. “It creates so much offense for us.”
Dixie made a brief push coming out of the locker room, edging Ansonia 10-8 in the third quarter, but the Lady Greyhounds still trailed 43-28 heading into the final period.
The Lady Tigers regained control in the fourth, outscoring Dixie 12-6 to seal the 21-point victory. Hahn and London Reichert each connected on their second 3-pointers of the night to help put the game out of reach.
Ansonia also received a strong performance from McKenna, who stepped into the starting lineup in place of injured senior Rose Barga (12.0 ppg).
“She is pretty much our primary ball handler now,” Custenborder said. “Olivia Creager stepped into the role to take some of that pressure off of her, but that is not a role she has been used to the past four years. Most of the year, Rose was handling the pressure for us, but Shy has done a good job of taking care of the basketball for us. Everyone is stepping up, it’s not just been one person. They have all done a great job of stepping up.”
With the win, Ansonia advances to face the No. 5 seed Newton Lady Indians in the second round of Division VI tournament play on Saturday, February 21, 2026, at Covington High School. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m.
BOX SCORE:
ANSONIA 55, DIXIE 34
ANSONIA – Shyann McKenna 14, L. Hahn 11, C. Barga 10, O. Creager 9, L. Reichert 9, A. Best 2 – TOTALS 14 12-19 5 55
DIXIE – B. Himan 16, M. Caldwell 5, K. Hypes 5, K. McConnell 3, E. McQueen 3, T. Miller 2 – TOTALS 4 11-16 5 34
3-POINTERS
Ansonia 5 (L. Hahn 2, L. Reichert 2, S. McKenna 1)
Dixie 5 (B. Himan 3, K. McConnell 1, K. Hypes 1)
SCORE by QUARTERS
20-15-08-12 55 Ansonia
07-11-10-06 34 Dixie
