Top girls players for 2021-22 season

The state of Ohio produces plenty of high-quality high school girls basketball players who will put their talents on display this winter.

As a preview to this season, the high school sports staff of the Gannett Corp.'s more than 60 Ohio newspapers and websites compiled a who's who of the Buckeye State's girls basketball players for the 2021-2022 season.

Here are the best girls basketball players in the state of Ohio:

1. K.K. Bransford, Mount Notre Dame

The reigning Ms. Ohio Basketball and Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year is a Notre Dame signee and the two-time defending player of the year in the Girls Greater Catholic League. The senior has led Mount Notre Dame to two Division I state championships in three seasons (2019, 2021), although the Cougars were in the state Final Four before the 2020 tournament was canceled due to the pandemic. Bransford led the GGCL in points per game (21.4), assists per game (5.1), shooting percentage (51.5) and steals per game (three). She was also third in rebounds (6.4).  Mount Notre Dame takes a 72-game win streak into the 2021-22 season, with its last loss coming on January 14, 2019. Bransford enters her final prep season just 400 points away from 2,000 for her career.

2. Chance Gray, Winton Woods

The University of Oregon signee was a three-time first-team Greater Miami Conference selection at Lakota West, where she eclipsed 1,500 career points and nearly 400 rebounds. The senior helped lead the Firebirds to a 64-13 overall record, two GMC titles and a pair of district finals appearances. She has been named first-team All-Ohio in back-to-back seasons and was third-team All-Ohio as a freshman in 2019. Gray led the GMC in scoring (25 points per game) and assists (3.7) last season. She was also tied for fourth in rebounds (7.4) and fifth in steals (2.5). Gray will suit up for the Winton Woods Warriors of the Eastern Cincinnati Conference for her final prep season after recently transferring.

3. Cotie McMahon, Centerville

The senior has averaged double figures in three consecutive seasons, helping lead the Elks to a 63-15 overall record, a pair of Greater Western Ohio Conference titles, two district championships and a regional final appearance.

McMahon is a three-time first-team GWOC selection and has been first-team All-Ohio in back-to-back seasons. McMahon recently signed to play at Ohio State University.

4. Imarianah Russell, Reynoldsburg

Russell is a 5-foot-11-inch senior guard who has committed to West Virginia. In her first season with Reynoldsburg last fall after spending her first two seasons at Dublin Coffman, Russell averaged 20.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists while helping the Raiders win a district title and finish 16-5.

She surpassed the 1,000-point career mark last season as well. 

5. Mya Perry, Reynoldsburg 

An Ohio State signee and 5-11 senior forward, Perry averaged 15.3 points and shot 50.1 percent from the floor, including 43.9 percent from the three-point range last season. 

Perry was first-team all-OCC-Buckeye Division, second-team all-district and special mention all-state as the Raiders went 16-5 and won a third consecutive district title. 

6. Lanae Riley, Akron Hoban

The 5-foot-11-inch senior was co-district Northeast Inland Player of the Year. Riley guided Hoban to a Division I regional championship and Final Four appearance. She averaged 22 points, nine rebounds and two steals per game and had 51 points and 30 rebounds in two regional tournament wins combined. In the regular season, she had a career-high 47 points in a win over South Range. 

Riley was voted the Division I Underclassmen of the Year by the Women's Tri-County Basketball Coaches Association (Summit, Portage, Medina) and was first-team All-Ohio. She signed with Middle Tennessee State.

7. Kyla Oldacre, Mason, Sr.

The center is a three-time first-team GMC selection, first with Princeton in 2019 and 2020, then with the Mason Comets last season. In 2021, Oldacre was fourth in the GMC in scoring (14.9 points), second in field goal percentage (57.5), second in rebounds (9.1) and first in blocks (3.2).

Oldacre helped lead the Comets to a GMC championship, a district title and a 20-0 record before falling in the Division I regional semifinals.

While at Princeton, Oldacre was twice named the GMC defensive player of the year.

Oldacre is committed to the University of Miami.

8. Jenna Kopyar, Dublin Coffman 

While helping Coffman finish 23-2 and earn a Division I regional runner-up finish last season, this 5-10 junior guard averaged 12.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.8 steals. 

A junior guard, Kopyar was first first-team all-OCC-Central Division, first-team all-district and second-team all-state and has offers from a list of schools that includes Akron, Canisius and Wright State. 

9. Maddie Vejsicky, Newark 

She nearly went down in Ohio lore as her game-winning 3-point attempt rimmed out at the buzzer of Newark’s 57-55 double-overtime loss to Cincinnati Mount Notre Dame in last season’s Division I state final. The 6-foot senior, however, does not miss often as her prolific two seasons with the Wildcats included a school-record 10 3s in the district championship victory against Watkins Memorial. Vejsicky, a Virginia Tech signee, is far more than a one-trick pony, setting up teammates at the offensive end and putting her length to good use at the defensive end, leading Newark’s pressure defense.

10. Faith Stinson, Sheridan

The 6-1 Sheridan senior is a two-time first-team All-Ohioan. She has helped the Generals reach three straight regional tournaments, including the state final four in 2019. Last season, Stinson averaged 19 points, 12 rebounds and 4 blocks per game in being named the Southeast District player of the year.

11. Lauren Scott, Worthington Kilbourne

Scott, a 5-7 senior guard, needs just 28 points to become the program’s all-time leading scorer, sitting behind 2018 graduate Maggie Crozier, who holds the record with 1,213 points.

The Wright State signee averaged 21.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals as a junior on her way to being named OCC-Capital Player of the Year. She also was first-team all-district and third-team all-state.

Scott, the granddaughter of Hall of Fame coach Gary Williams, became the third player in program history to surpass 1,000 points, reaching the mark with a program-record 36-point performance in a 50-38 win over Logan on Jan. 27.  

She also played field hockey and holds the program records with 47 career goals and 18 scored this season. 

12. Gia Casalinova, Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy

The 5-foot-8-inch junior averaged starred on a team that went 22-5 (10-2 PAC-7) and finished Principals Athletic Conference-7 co-champs with Northwest.

CVCA won the school’s first district title. Casalinova averaged 17.9 points and four rebounds per game while shooting 58.1% from the field, 41.8% from downtown and 86.2% at the free throw line.

She’s No. 8 on her school’s scoring list with 878 career points after two years. Casalinova was a third-team All-Ohio selection as a freshman and second-team All-Ohio last season. 

13. Sarah Ochs, Carroll, Sr.

Ochs has been a perennial star for Carroll the last three seasons, helping lead the Patriots to a 77-11 overall record and three consecutive regional championships. The Patriots lost in the Division II state title game in 2019 and the state semifinals last season. They were set to play in the 2020 state Final Four before the pandemic canceled the remaining winter tournaments.

Ochs was second-team All-Ohio last season and first-team all-district after averaging 14.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, two assists and 2.6 steals per game.

Ochs was second-team all-district and honorable mention All-Ohio as a sophomore in 2020.

14. Rylee Leonard, Eastern Brown

The junior has helped lead the Eastern Brown Warriors to back-to-back 24-3 seasons and district championships.

Leonard averaged 20.4 points per game last season and was named first-team All-Ohio. She averaged 16 points per game as a freshman was named special mention All-Ohio.

15. Morgan Hunt, Tri-Village

The junior has helped lead the Patriots to back-to-back Cross County Conference and district championships, going 46-5 overall in that span and undefeated in league play.

Hunt was third-team all-district as a freshman in 2020, then averaged 19.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game last season to earn first-team All-Ohio honors.

She was also named the Southwest District’s Division IV co-player of the year.

16. Emma Dretke, Massillon Jackson

A four-year starter for Jackson, the 6-foot senior averaged 16.8 points per game, earning first-team All-Federal League each of her first three years and all-district each year. Helped Polar Bears win first Federal League title as a sophomore, their first league title in more than 40 years. She signed with Walsh University.

17. Ajia Schreffler, New Philadelphia

The New Philadelphia 5-foot-10 senior forward averaged 15.2 ppg, 9.5 rpg and shot 60 percent from the field as she claimed Division I Second Team All-Ohio honors as a junior.

Schreffler recorded 17 games of double-doubles, including games where she outrebounded the other team. She had a season-high of 22 points twice.

As a sophomore, she came off the bench and averaged 82 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 1.3 spg. She shot 54 percent from the field.

18. Cameron Zinn, McArthur Vinton County

The 5-11 Vinton County senior was a second-team All-Ohioan. Arguably was the Vikings’ most important player last season as the Vikings made a run to the Division II state championship — a run in which she helped the Vikings win their first-ever district and regional titles. She averaged 12.3 points & 10.1 rebounds last season.

19. Leena Patibandla, Massillon Jackson

The 6-foot-1 junior is an elite overall athlete. She was selected Stark County's Girls Athlete of the Year for 2020-21 after being all-county in volleyball (helping team to regional finals last two years), basketball and track and field (state qualifier in discus and high jump last season).

She received college interest ranging from Mid-American Conference to Virginia Tech, where she took an official visit there last month.

She averaged 6.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists last season, earning All-Federal League honors.

20. Breezie Williams, Canton GlenOak

The 5-foot-5-inch senior averaged 12.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and four steals per game and shot 48% inside the arch and 32% outside it. Williams was named first-team All-Federal League, All-Northeast Inland District and second-team All-Ohio. 

She verbally committed to the University of New Hampshire in August 2021. 

21. Catara DeJarnette, Chagrin Falls Kenston

A fun player to watch, the senior is equally adept at taking over a game herself or setting up her teammates. She sees the floor very well and can make exceptional passes.

She averaged 19.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.9 steals and 3.6 assists per game and was named second-team All-Ohio as a junior. 

22. Claudia Pifher, Buckeye Central

The 5-foot-8 senior guard averaged 18.8 points (490 total), 4.9 rebounds, 2.8 steals, 2.4 assists and 0.7 blocks per game while shooting 80.7% from the free-throw line, 43% from 3-point range and 59% from the field. Buckeye Central won its fifth straight district championship last year and Pifher has played a pivotal role in the last three earning All-Ohio honors each year. She set the school’s single-season 3-point record as a freshman with 58 makes and entering this year she has 1,267 points and 124 career 3’s — she is on pace to become the program’s first-ever four-time All-Ohioan. Pifher just committed to Division II Ohio Dominican University.