The last time Columbus Bishop Hartley reached the final four in the girls state high school basketball tournament, the current members of the team were not yet born.
Twenty-one years since the Hawks’ last appearance in the final four, they advanced to the semifinals and are slated to play Kettering Archbishop Alter at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 10 in a Division II matchup in the University of Dayton Arena.
“We’re overjoyed,” Hartley coach Donald Dennis said. “We’re a very tight-knit group, and all the girls really like each other. And we got an opportunity to do something pretty special.”
Hartley entered the semifinal with a 20-6 record, and Alter, ranked second in the final Associated Press Division II state poll, was 26-1. The Lady Knights, who have won four state titles, were appearing in the final four for the fifth time in nine years.
The Hawks have won two state titles, the last coming in 2000 and the first in 1978.
“We’ve talked a lot about it was 22 years from 1978 to 2000, and here we are 22 years from 2000, before any of them were alive,” Dennis said.
Two impressive victories last week over higher-ranked teams allowed Hartley, unranked in the final regular-season poll, to win a regional championship for the first time since 2001 and keep its postseason run going.
On Tuesday, March 1, Hartley outlasted sixth-ranked Toledo Central Catholic, which had lost only once entering the game, 47-45 in double overtime. Kiki McElrath scored a game-high 26 points and had four steals, Bella Parker added 12 points and Ella Brandewie contributed 15 rebounds and blocked eight shots.
Then on Friday, March 4, the Hawks took down top-ranked and previously undefeated Shelby 42-31 before a pro-Shelby crowd at Mansfield Senior High School.
Defensive-minded Hartley held Shelby to two points in the first quarter and seven points at halftime, and fought off challenges the rest of the game. Brandewie finished with eight points, 14 rebounds and five blocks, and McElrath scored 14 points.
“I thought we defended really well,” Dennis said. “I think the girls respected them, but I don’t think they were afraid. We’ve played a pretty tough schedule, and so they’re used to tough competition. It took us a little while to settle down, but once we got into the second half we started to execute.”
No matter the outcome in the state tournament, the season has been one to remember for the Hawks, who also dealt with a one-week COVID-19 break in January.
“I knew coming into the season we were a close-knit group, but I couldn’t tell you that I saw this success coming,” Dennis said. “Our mantra has been, we don’t care who scores and, really, just sharing the basketball and being a family and not worrying about who plays. They lean into their faith and their family.”