MINERVA – The Edison girls’ basketball team came to the end of the road.

Edison – the No. 2 seed – squared off against no. 3 seed Tuscarawas Valley in an Ohio Division V Eastern District Co-Final. The Wildcats were looking to advance to the regional tournament for the first time in program history, however, it was not to be as the Trojans proved to be too strong as Tusky Valley came away with a 59-22 victory up at Minerva.

“We got hit pretty good,” Edison (20-3) head coach Mark Smyth said.

The Trojans have now won 15 straight games.

“They are a great team,” Smyth said. “They have the (Brennen) Reichman girl inside. She’s 6-3. We really focused on helping on her. We are a lot smaller, so we sent a lot of double teams. She would get the ball in the post, and if we would double her, she would kick the ball out, and if we didn’t she would score. When she did kick the ball back out, they knocked their shots down.”

Junior Abby Carpenter recorded a team-high six points to lead the way offensively for the girls from Jefferson County.

The two teams scrimmaged this season out at the Edison Fieldhouse.

“Matt (Ward) is a great coach,” Smyth said. “He runs fantastic sets. When we scrimmaged them, their big girl was not there. She is a great difference maker for them. They have a ton of players. They have the (Elli) Wallick girl as their point guard. She is like a coach on the floor. I am not sure if they have other big girls on the team, but they have a lot of good players. They have a big advantage in the matchup against us.”

Edison advanced to the district final by defeating No. 7 seed Barnesville, 54-42, in the semifinals Wednesday night out at Harrison Central. The Wildcats came up one win short of tying the school record for the most wins in a season.

“I am going to look back on this year with a smile,” Smyth said. “We had a great year. I had great kids. I could not ask for a better group of kids to coach and to be around. I love these kids.”

The game was the final one for Edison’s two seniors – Sophia Henderson and Ava Cline.

“Sophia has started just about every game for us since she has been here,” Smyth said. “She is a 1,200-point scorer. She is a good leader. She worked hard. She played an important role in turning this program around. Ava has also been with us for a long time. She was dealt the short end of the stick having to deal with injuries. She has been an important part of this program. She was a leader. She provided an example for the younger kids to follow.”

With the win, Tusky Valley (21-4) advances to the regional semifinal against No. 4 seed West Muskingum at 7 p.m. Wednesday night out at Claymont. West Muskingum advanced to the regional tournament by defeating No. 1 seed Union Local, 30-28, Saturday afternoon out at Cambridge in the other district co-final.

Edison did not have to play in the sectional tournament as the team received a bye going into the district semifinals.

The Wildcats have been infused with a bunch of young talent the past two seasons, and the young girls have paid dividends for Edison on the court.

“Our sophomores won the BMAC won they were in eighth grade, and our freshmen won the BMAC when they were in seventh and eighth grade,” Smyth said. “Mimi (Ault) is a starter for us. She is a sophomore. She started along with Sophia and three juniors – Abby Boka, Abby Carpenter and Lacie Pelley. We had two freshmen really step up for us. One was Aliya Glover. She played well for us. Her first year of basketball was in the seventh grade. She got better as the season went on. She is a great athlete. The other freshmen is Addison Casto. Addison is a heck of player. Addison is different. She has played basketball for a long time. She knows the game. She fit in well at guard when she had to come in if one of the other girls got into foul trouble or something. we are really excited about her future. We expect her to fill in along with our juniors and continue the success we have had.”

Edison made the district co-final this season after losing in the district semifinals last season to West Muskingum. The Trojans went on to defeat the Tornadoes in the district co-final before falling in the regional semifinals to Portsmouth in a game played at Logan High School.

“We would have liked to end the year holding a trophy, but like you said, there is only seven teams in the state of Ohio that gets to do that. In Division V, we ran into the best team or the second best team in the state. Our girls went out and played hard. That is all you can ask. We just ran into a juggernaut. They are a state power, and our girls gave them all they could handle. That is all you can ask for.”

The season was certainly one to remember for the Wildcats, and now Edison will look ahead to next season.

“I appreciate all these kids and all of these families,” Smyth said. “I couldn’t ask for a better group to coach.”