John Bruce, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
ATHENS – In a season in which they broke a 43-year conference championship drought, the Circleville Tigers used a sterling defensive performance to break another drought on Thursday night.
For the first time since 1997, the Tigers have captured a district championship, thanks to a 51-42 win over Waverly in a Division IV district championship game.
Last season, Circleville went 14-10, but had the belief that better things were on the horizon following a summer in which they put in the work.
That work paid off, despite some early-season bumps along the road.
“It’s an awesome experience. It’s something we’ve all talked about. We dreamed of winning this and it’s an awesome feeling,” Circleville senior Kole Nungester said. “It just feels great. It’s been a long time coming. But when [Circleville] coach [Evan] Callihan came in, we knew that things were going to change around here. And we, as seniors, knew that we had to change the program or it wasn’t going to change.
“Two summers ago, it was one of the most rocky summers of basketball I’ve ever had,” Nungester continued. “There were so many ups and downs, and we knew that we were going to have to push through that and get over those humps. That happened. And looking back, today, it’s so much different. But I’m just so proud of our guys and the work we put in to get to this moment.”
Those hard talks and practices have led to 17 consecutive victories, with the latest coming in impressive fashion.
Nungester started the action with a steal and layup before Waverly’s Kage Alexander splashed in a deep triple to give Waverly an early 3-2 advantage with 5:37 to play in the opening quarter.
That would be Waverly’s only lead of the contest.
Circleville responded with a 6-2 run and didn’t trail again, despite Waverly tying the game twice in the second quarter. However, even while leading for nearly 29 of the night’s 32 minutes of action, it was far from an easy victory.
Circleville led 10-7 after the first frame and then each team took turns lighting up the scoreboard from behind the arc early in the second.
PHOTOS: Images from Circleville’s district championship win over Waverly
Waverly’s Alexander drilled a triple out of a nifty quick-hitter before Circleville’s Riley Jenkins dialed it up from way downtown to retake the lead.
Waverly then tied the contest again as Alexander drove and kicked out to freshman Kai Keesee, who buried a 3 from the corner to draw even at 13-13.
Each team had an empty possession before a drive from Jack Kline grabbed the lead for Circleville, who proceeded to build that lead with a defensive stop, leading to a midrange pullup jumper from Fowler.
Fowler punctuated the run by jumping in the passing lane on defense, deflecting the pass and finishing in traffic with 2:54 to play in the half to give Circleville its largest lead to that point at 19-13.
“He’s been great,” Nungester said of Fowler. “He’s matured a lot over the last year, so he’s a great player to have.”
Waverly’s Sawyer Myers broke up the run by splitting a pair of free throws, with Kline responding by scoring again on a tough drive to the basket. Alexander scored in transition to close out the half after a Gunnar Myers swipe to limit Circleville’s lead to 21-16 at the break.
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
Waverly came out of the break with a bang as Sawyer Myers converted an old-fashioned three-point play, assisted by his brother, at the 6:36 mark of the third. That would be one of three times that Waverly was able to cut the deficit to two. But it was never able to get closer.
Late in the third, Jenkins and Nungester scored on consecutive trips to give Circleville a seven-point advantage, but a huge triple at the buzzer from Waverly’s Davion McBride cut Circleville’s lead to 33-29 after three.
Kline started the fourth with a triple to answer McBride’s, before consecutive points from Landyn Russell and Alexander made it a three-point game with 4:40 to play.
That’s when Circleville turned to the go-to guy in Nungester.
The Southeast District Player of the Year scored the next six points for the Tigers to help keep Waverly at a safe distance. Sawyer Myers knocked down a triple and Alexander added another bucket, but a fastbreak score from Kline put the game on ice with 1:30 to play.
Eventually, Circleville was finally able to dribble out the clock to a thunderous ovation from its crowd to celebrate a first district title in 29 years.
Alexander led all scorers with 21 points for Waverly while Sawyer Myers followed by adding nine points and grabbing seven boards. Russell pulled down a team-high nine rebounds.
“He’s an excellent player,” Nungester said of Alexander. “We knew he was going to get his points and knock down some shots. The tough thing is he can shoot them. He’s good in the paint, too. He got a couple of cheap ones late, but it was a team effort. Not one guy didn’t give it his all. All five guys pushed and guarded him well and we ultimately came out on top.”
The Tigers finish their season at 14-11 and as a district runner-up for the second consecutive season. They will graduate zero seniors, setting up for a huge season in 2026-2027.
Nungester led Circleville with 17 points while Kline scored 16 on 6-for-8 shooting from the field.
Fowler added 10 points, and Jenkins totaled seven points and nine rebounds.
The Tigers will return to Athens at 6 p.m., Wednesday for a Division IV regional semifinal. That night, they’ll meet with Unioto, who beat Washington to advance.
On Feb. 10, Circleville handed the Shermans a 66-59 double overtime loss. Needless to say, Wednesday’s matchup could be another instant classic with a trip to the Elite 8 on the line.
SPONSORS
BO LACEY CONSTRUCTION
PERFECTION ONE COLLISION CENTER
