News

Several WOAC Football Players earn All-Southwest District Football Recognition.

The Ohio Prep Sports Media Association has named the All-Southwest District Football Teams. The Western Ohio Athletic Conference is well represented in DV, DVI and DVII.

In DV Preble Shawnee Senior Quarterback Brody Morton led the way and was named the Offensive Player of the Year.  Morton’s four-year career includes a school record for passing yards with 7,251 which also puts him on the OHSAA State leader board.  Morton threw for 1529 yards, 20 TDs and ran for 1346 yards, 24 TDs for a total of 44 TDs. 


Preble Shawnee senior Brody Morton was recognized as the DV Southwest District Offensive Player of the Year.

DV Southwest District First Team Offense
Brody Morton                   - Backfield         - Preble Shawnee
Caleb Blankenship      - Receivers        - Preble Shawnee
Cooper Shrout                 - Linemen           - Preble Shawnee
Marcus Rayburn            - Linemen           - Arcanum

DV Southwest District First Team Defense
Colton Schroeder         - Punter                - Preble Shawnee

DV Southwest District Second Team Offense
MJ Macy                                - Backfield         - Arcanum

DV Southwest District Second Team Defense
Kolton Quiqney              - Linebacker    - Arcanum
Bishop Cartwright        - Secondary     - Arcanum

DV Southwest District Honorable Mention
Isaiah Frazee                     - Arcanum
Brayden Freeman         - Arcanum
Connor Rogers                - Arcanum

In DVI Tri-Village Senior Quarterback Trey Sagester was named the Offensive Player of the Year.  Sagester has thrown for 2234-yards, 34 TDs and rushed for 265-yards and 5 TDs this year.  In two years as a starter at QB Sagester has thrown for 5500 career yards and 72 TDs.



Tri-Village senior Trey Sagester was recognized as the Southwest District DVI Offensive Player of the Year.

Tri-Village Senior Linebacker Noah Finkbine was also named the Defensive Player of the Year.  Finkbine led the team with 151 tackles, 16 for losses and also contributed offensively with 539 yards rushing, 8 TD’s and 424 yards receiving with 4 TDs.

DVI Southwest District First Team Offense
Trey Sagester                    - Backfield         - Tri-Village
Griffin Richards              - Receiver           - Tri-Village
Dom Black                          - Linemen           - Tri-Village
Luke Vernon                      - Linemen           - National Trail

DVI Southwest District First Team Defense
Hunter Johnsman         - Linemen           - Tri-Village
Noah Finkbine                 - Linebacker    - Tri-Village
Colt Camacho                 - Secondary     - Tri-Village

DVI Southwest District Second Team Offense
Staley Colston                 - Backfield         - Tri-Village
Jonah Brinkley                 - Receiver           - National Trail
Levi Farmer                        - Linemen           - Tri-Village

DVI Southwest District Second Team Defense
Landen Moore                 - Linebacker    - Tri-Village
Grady Ott                             - Linebacker    - National Trail
Talon Bousman              - Secondary     - National Trail
Aiden Martin                      - Secondary     - National Trail

DVI Southwest District Honorable Mention
Cole Swafford                  - Dixie
Jody Wintrow                    - National Trail

DVII Southwest District First Team Offense
Jacob Schmitmeyer   - Backfield         - Ansonia
Oden Hoening                 - Lineman          - Ansonia

DVII Southwest District First Team Defense
Lucas Barlow                   - Linemen           - Twin Valley South
Luke Wright                        - Linemen           - Tri-County North
Frank Filbrun                     - Linebacker    - Tri-County North

DVII Southwest District Second Team Offense
Peyton Fanning               - Backfield         - Tri-County North
Lander Shives                  - Backfield         - Ansonia
Kyle Wehrkamp              - Receiver           - Mississinawa Valley
Ty Houser                             - Linemen           - Mississinawa Valley
Bennett Woodyard      - Linemen           - Tri-County North

DVII Southwest District Second Team Defense
Colton Hiestand            - Linebacker    - Mississinawa Valley
Jake Norris                          - Linemen           - Mississinawa Valley
Cainan Robinson          - Secondary     - Ansonia

DVII Southwest District Honorable Mention
Corbin Flory                       - Tri-County North
Bryce Krickenbarger   - Tri-County North
Aiden Ritchie                    - Tri-County North
Mason Givens                  - Tri-County North
Grayson Woodyard     - Tri-County North

Congratulations to all our WOAC Football Athletes earning All-Southwest District Honors.


Tri-Village senior Noah Finkbine was recognized at the Southwest District DVI Defensive Player of the Year.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Lainey Mercer - Twin Valley South, Haydn Davies - National Trail and Sallie Montgomery - Preble Shawnee participated in the District 15 Volleyball Coaches Association Senior All-Star Game. (Coach Kaylie Case photo)

It was a good year for the WOAC in volleyball and several players were named to the volleyball coaches all district teams.

WOAC Schools in Division 5 & 6 District 15 Volleyball includes Dixie, National Trail, Preble Shawnee, Tri-County North and Twin Valley South.

Dixie jr. Kendyl Hypes was named District 15 Volleyball Player of the Year.
(Champine Photography photo)

Preble Shawnee’s Sallie Montgomery was the D5 Senior Player of the Year. 
(Champine Photography photo)

Twin Valley South’s Lainey Mercer was the D6 Senior Player of the Year.
(Champine Photography photo)

Twin Valley South coach Mary Johnson was named District 15 Coach of the Year.(Champine Photography photo)

List of District 15 Teams

First Team District 15
Kendyl Hypes                      -                Dixie
Sallie Mongomery            -                Preble Shawnee
Paityn Davidson                -                Tri-County North

Second Team District 15
Lainey Mercer                     -                Twin Valley South
Haydn Davies                      -                National Trail
Teegan Miller                       -                Dixie

Playing the District 15 Senior All-Star game were Sallie Montgomery – Preble Shawnee, Lainey Mercer – Twin Valley South, Haydn Davies – National Trail and Macy Price – Preble Shawnee.

WOAC Schools in Division 6 & 7 District 9 Volleyball includes: Ansonia, Arcanum, Bradford, Franklin Monroe, Mississinawa Valley, Newton and Tri-Village.

Arcanum’s Caroline Long was named D6 Volleyball Player of the Year.

Arcanum coach Jacie Holman was the D6 Volleyball Coach of the Year.

First Team D6 District 9
Caroline Long                     -               Arcanum
Kamryn Beisner                  -               Arcanum
Estie Rapp                          -                Newton
Gabby Kirby                        -               Tri-Village
Olivia Schmitmeyer            -               Ansonia

Second Team D6 District 9
Gracy Fry                            -                Arcanum
Grace Psczulkoski             -                Arcanum
Reagan Flora                      -                Franklin Monroe
Mya Denlinger                    -                Newton
Mylee Bierly                       -                Tri-Village
Lydia Hahn                         -                Ansonia

Honorable Mention D6 District 9
Zoe Ayette                          -                Tri-Village

First Team D7 District 9
Cora Hoggatt                     -              Mississinawa Valley

Second Team D7 District 9
McKenna Hoggatt            -                Mississinawa Valley

Honorable Mention D7 District 9
Allyson Waymire              -                 Mississinawa Valley
Danika Neargarder          -                 Mississinawa Valley

The District 9 Senior All-Star game will be played on Wednesday November 12th, 6:30pm at Versailles High School.  Playing in the event will be Olivia Schmitmeyer – Ansonia, Cora Hoggatt – Mississinawa Valley, Makenna Hoggatt – Mississinawa Valley, Allyson Waymire – Mississinawa Valley, Caroline Long – Arcanum, Grace Fry – Arcanum, Kamryn Beisner – Arcanum, Estie Rapp – Newton and Aubrey Stetzel – Newton.

Congratulations to all the WOAC Volleyball players earning post season awards and participating in the All-Star Games.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Soph running back Ethan Mauller fights for yards in playoff game at Indian Lake.

Photos by Don Selanders

LEWISTOWN – Preble Shawnee nearly pulled off a 2nd round upset at Indian Lake in an OHSAA DV football playoff game. The Lakers were able to hold on for a 17-14 win to advance to the regional semifinals.

Indian Lake took an early lead on a 28-yard touchdown pass from Brady Golliday to Brodey Reisinger for a 7-0 start for the home team.

The Arrows who fell to the Lakers last year on their own field in the 2nd round responded on their first drive with Brody Morton capping it on a one-yard keeper to tie the game at 7-7.

Brody Morton scores on a one-yard run. He had 74 yards rushing and 112 yards passing in the game.

Both teams were unable to score the rest of the first half … but the Arrows had a golden opportunity to take the lead. 

Indian Lake’s Noah Shirk was able to pick off a Brody Morton pass in the back of the endzone with time dwindling down to keep the game tied at the break at 7-7.

Indian Lake got a big play from Golliday in the third quarter on a 43-yard pass to set up another 3-yard pass to Reisinger to move ahead 14-7.

The Lakers add a 32-yard field goal in the 4th quarter to improve their lead to 17-7.

Junior receiver Caleb Blankenship hauls in this 19-yard TD pass from Morton to get the Arrows 17-14 but the clock would run out on their comeback attempt.

Preble Shawnee needing a score bad got one as Morton and company orchestrated a drive that culminated with a 19-yard pass to Caleb Blankenship to narrow the gap to 17-14 with just over two-minutes left in the game.

Indian Lake to milk the cloc and hang on for a 17-14 win.

The #2 seeded Lakers in DV Region 20 advances to the regional semifinals and will host #11 Cincinnati Mariemont next week.

Preble Shawnee closes out their 2025 season with a fine 10-2 record and a second place finish in the WOAC at 8-1.

Preble Shawnee fell to the Lakers for the 2nd straight year in the Regional Quarterfinals concluding a good season. 

_______________________________________________________________________________

Tri-Village Offensive line was bright spot in 54-22 playoff win over Portsmouth West.

Story and Photos by Dale Barger

NEW MADISON – The Tri-Village Patriots 'bend but don’t break' defense bolstered by an efficient and effective offense came away with a 54-22 win over Portsmouth West in the second round of the OHSAA DVI football regional quarterfinal playoff game.

The Patriots defense allowed the Senators to march into their own territory three straight possession in the first quarter only to thwart their attempts to get into the endzone, while striking quickly to put their own points on the board

Tri-Village stopped Portsmouth’s opening drive at the 15-yard line and just three plays later Trey Sagester tossed one to Griffin Richards for a 51-yard scoring strike and with an extra point from Owen Ridout they led 7-0.

The Senators in almost the same fashion as the first drive got all the way to the 17-yard line but was held on downs and it took just two runs, both by Colt Camacho with the big one going 64-yards to put the Patriots up 14-0 in the first quarter.

Colt Camacho breaks into the clear on his way to a 64-yard TD run.

Portsmouth West for a third time threatened but the Patriot defense held at the 7-yard line this time.  Sagester and Richards would make good off the turnover on downs by hooking up for a 45-yard score expanding their lead to 21-0 in the early part of the 2nd quarter.

Trey Sagester airs one out with Griffin Richards hauling it in.  The duo would connect four times for TDs in the game.

Portsmouth finally punched a hole in the Patriots defense with 37 seconds left on a 6-yard run then added a two-point conversion and gaining some momentum heading into the break trailing the Patriots 21-8.

Tri-Village received the ball to start the second half bolstered by solid play up front from their offensive line.  Staley Colston hit on two large chunk plays that included a 25-yard TD run to increase their lead to 27-8.

Staley Colston had a couple of nice runs including this one going 25-yards for the TD.

The Patriots defense finally stopped the Senators on their own side of the field forcing a punt for the first time in the game.

Trey Sagester threw a pass into the flat to Griffin Richards, and he followed a couple of good blocks then busted through a hole racing 37-yards to push the lead to 34-8.

Portsmouth came to play as they put together another drive into Tri-Village territory and the PATS struggled to slow them down.  They would score on a 7-yard run giving them just a bit of hope trailing 34-15 with 5:38 to play in 3rd frame.

It took all of just one-minute though for the Patriots to squash that hope and for the fourth time in the game the Sagester – Richards connection added a 39-yard score upping the lead to 40-15.

The Patriots held the Senators for the second time in the third quarter on their side of the field forcing a second punt and it would prove be a backbreaker. 

It was a good punt that sent Richards back who let the ball drop instead of catching it on the fly … the bounce was high enough to allow Richards to run up, catch it like a bolt of lightning he was gone.  71-yards later he had his fifth TD in the game that would start the running clock, and hope was turning into despair for the Senators who now trailed 47-15.

Griffin Richards scored his 5th TD in the game on this 71-yard punt return.

Portsmouth West started the fourth quarter looking to try and answer but Lathen Wehr intercepted the ball and then a few plays later Noah Finkbine burst through the middle, leaped a player on the ground and went 51 yards to cap the Tri-Village scoring at 54-15.

The Senators scored one more time late in the game on a pass play bringing the final score to 54-22.

Noah Finkbine jumps through the middle and goes for a 51-yard TD run.

With the win Tri-Village advances to the OHSAA DVI regional semifinal game that they will host next Friday at 7pm verses Coldwater.

Coldwater earned their way with a 38-0 win at Cincinnati St. Bernard Elmwood Place.

After the game Tri-Village coach Matt Hopkins praised Portsmouth because they came to play.

“That's a really good football team. Their running back is tough, and he ran super hard, and those guys up front on the line were dominant and kicked our butts. I'm going to be really honest we got lucky to get out of here with the win, because that's a good football team,” Hopkins stated.

The Senators make the Patriots work on defense with good blocking up front and a running back who ran hard.

“I didn't think we played particularly well, if we break a couple times on defense early in the game then it’s a different game. It's stuff we talk about all the time, we didn't play really focused or discipline football,” Hopkins noted.

“That's going to be a huge point of emphasis about that stuff this week about, we can't even get close to a Coldwater team if we even think about playing like that against them,” Hopkins exclaimed.

“Portsmouth gave us a tight front, took away our Inside Zone, which is something we wanted to do, again, they were big, physical, and fast up front,” Hopkins added.

Lathen Wehr snagged this interception to halt a drive midfield.

The Senators managed 375 total yards of offense: 197 rushing and 178 yards passing in the game.

“Offensively our guys played really well. If there’s a bright spot, I thought it was our offensive line. Trey Sagester made the right reads our offensive backs hit the hole hard and when they tried to overplay that's when Griff got loose and he’s a tough cover,” Hopkins added.

Tri-Village had 516 total yards of offense: 285 rushing and 231 passing. Trey Sagester 4 TDs. Griffin Richards 8 catches, 4 TDs, 195 yards receiving and a 71-yard punt return for a score.

On the ground, Staley Colston, Colt Camacho and Noah Finkbine each had long TD runs.

“Next week we're going to see a little bit more complex stuff and we're going to have to rise to meet the challenge.” Hopkins said.

“You know, my dad always says an ugly win is always better than a pretty loss, right?”

“It's a win, we get to move forward … but we need better focus, if we don't play really well, it's going to be a clock game, so we're going to have to lock it in this week,” Hopkins concluded.

Tri-Village Cheerleaders take time to pose before the game. They will be on-hand next week as the Patriots take on Coldwaters in week 13th in the Regional Semi-Finals.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Preble Shawnee struck first on a 6-yard run by Ethan Mauller and the Arrows never looked back on their way to a 54-26 playoff win over Arcanum.

All photos and story by Dale Barger

CAMDEN, OH – Preble Shawnee hosted Arcanum a second time this year.  The Arrows defeated Arcanum 49-13 in a week five WOAC league game.  This time the two met as first round opponents in the first round of the OHSAA DV football playoffs.

Arcanum would make it an exciting game for two and a half quarters, but the eventual outcome was the same as their previous one with Preble Shawnee capturing a 54-26 win.

Preble Shawnee on the opening kick-off recovered a muffed ball, then a couple of plays later senior running back Ethan Mauller blasted in from 6-yards, shocking the Trojans who had hoped to get off to a good start in the rematch and trailed 7-0.

Shawnee held Arcanum on downs near midfield on their second possession.  It didn’t take long for the Arrows to capitalize as Brody Morton connected with Caleb Blankenship for a 41-yard strike and Colton Schroeder’s extra point made it 14-0 and it looked like the game might get out of hand quickly.

Arcanum settled down by doing work on their third possession mostly on the legs of MJ Macy.  He would cap off a nine-play drive on a 3-yard plunge closing the gap to 14-6 at 8:59 in the second quarter.

Brody Morton and Caleb Blankenship would connect for four touchdowns in game.

The Morton to Blankenship combination would prove lethal in this game with the dynamic duo connecting on a 20-yard score extending the gap back to 14 to lead  20-6.

Arcanum responded using the same formula off the feet of Macy grinding to move the ball forward … but time was starting to work against them.

Sitting on the 17-yard line, facing 3rd down freshman quarterback Weston Schmidt took to the air throwing a nice ball to freshman receiver Raysean Miles, for what looked like a touchdown.

The reception however was signaled out on the backline of endzone, and the Trojans faced a critical 4th down with 15 seconds left to play in the first half.

Arcanum freshman Raysean Miles had this catch called out, he caught the next pass to score a touchdown to end the first half.  

Schmidt threw another strike to Miles this time in the middle seam where he secured the catch for the TD.  Schmidt then tossed a two-point conversion to Colton Quigney giving Arcanum momentum trailing 20-14 at the break.

Preble Shawnee wasted no time wrestling back momentum receiving the ball to start the second half.  Brody Morton after being bottled up by the Trojans in the first half bolted through the middle on first play for 55 yards and added the two-point conversion doubling their lead 28-14 at 10:45 in 3rd quarter.

After establishing the run game for most of the first half the Trojans gained confidence in their passing by finishing the half with a TD toss. 

They would strike it big on their first possession in second half on 35-yard pass from Schmidt to junior receiver Evan Parks. 

Arcanum's MJ Macy rushed 132 yards & 2 TDs trying to keep Arcanum in the game.

Arcanum eventually scored on the drive off a 2-yard run by Macy narrowing the lead to 28-20 with 4:53 in left in third quarter.

It appeared this game was destined to go down the wire … but all of that would slip away over the next couple of minutes in what would be a nightmare turn of events.

On the first play after the kick-off, the Morton to Blankenship combo connected like lightning in a bottle on a go route covering 68-yards to take the wind from Arcanum now down 35-20.

Arcanum couldn’t afford to go down by too many turned the ball over on the next possession after an interception by Jacob Carter.

On the first play off the turnover, Morton who threw just four pass completions all night hit on the fourth toss all to Blankenship this time a 49-yarder expanding the lead 41-20.

Things couldn’t get worse … or could they? 

Senior Brody Morton scored 6 TDs, 4 passing, a 55 yard run and 49 yard interception return to lead the Arrows to a playoff victory.

Brody Morton would jump a passing route on the first play of Arcanum’s next possession returning it 49-yards for his 6th TD of the game.

What appeared to be a promising 2nd half start by Arcanum crumbled in a span of two minutes trailing 48-20 with 2:31 to play in 3rd quarter.

Schmidt found Miles in the flat on their next drive and he avoided a few tackles taking it in for 25-yard TD … but it would be their last score in the game down 48-26.

Preble Shawnee added one more score from senior running back Bryson Doran who busted through the line of scrimmage and then rumbled 51-yards for the game’s final score and a 54-26 win for the Arrows.

Statistically the game was fairly even in total yards.  Arcanum had 9 possessions and the ball for 29:21 minutes.  Preble Shawnee had 8 possessions for 18:39 minutes.

Arcanum had 376 total yards with Weston Schmidt (2 TDs) throwing 195 yards, 107 to Raysean Miles (2 TDs) and MJ Macy (2 TDs) ran for 132 of their 178 rushing yards.  

Preble Shawnee had 412 total yards with Morton (4 TDs) passing all 178 yards to Caleb Blankenship (4 TDs) and Morton (1 TD) ran 122 yards and Bryson Doran (1 TD) for 100 yards.

The Arrows had zero turnovers and 4 take aways, three in a short stretch of the 3rd quarter that proved to be the big difference in the game.

Arcanum’s season ends at 7-4 overall and third place in the WOAC at 6-3.  They graduate eight seniors … but return top running back, MJ Macy along with exciting and talented young play makers as well and will be considered a top league contender in 2026.

The #7 Preble Shawnee team extends their season another week and travels to #3 Indian Lake for a second-round game on Friday at 7pm.  The Arrows lost to the Lakers last year in their home playoff game and would love to return the favor this year.


Caleb Blankenship had a 178 yards receiving and 4 TD receptions and an interception return for a score for 5 TDs in Preble Shawnee's opening round DV playoff win.

_______________________________________________________________________________