STRYKER SOPHOMORE … Anna Donovan handles the ball in the lane with a North Baltimore defender in toe.
PHOTOS BY RENEA KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
DISTRICT CHAMPS … Stryker’s Allie Ruffer maneuvers in the post during the first half at Archbold High School. VIEW 94 PHOTOS OF THIS CONTEST FOR FREE AT WWW.THEVILLAGEREPORTER.COM
By: Joe Blystone
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
ARCHBOLD (February 28, 2026) – According to many people outside of Williams and Fulton Counties, the Division VII district title game between Stryker and North Baltimore wasn’t going to be close.
They said North Baltimore averaged 61 points a game and had the region’s best player in Lacie Allison, who was averaging 34 points a game.
Well, while North Baltimore was feasting on cupcakes during the season, ringing up lesser foes, Stryker was cutting their teeth against Division V regional qualifier Delta, Wauseon, Archbold, and a number of other strong non-league opponents.
And as far as the best player? Well, last anyone checked, one doesn’t beat seven. Then as far as the rout? Guess we’ll say you were right — but all y’all had the WRONG TEAM!
Yes, Allison DID get 31 points — but only went 8-24 from the field. As far as Stryker?
Khloe Goebel, Grace Froelich, Abby Oberlin, and a group of others blew open the game in the third quarter as the Panthers knocked out North Baltimore, 57-45, to win the Division VII district championship game at Archbold.
“I don’t think this was any surprise to us,” Stryker coach Conner Ruffer said after. “Other people might have thought that we were underdogs, but no one on our side of the floor felt we were underdogs.
“We have a great team. They have a great player, but we have a great team. I had confidence in these guys, they had confidence in each other, and we got the job done.”
Allison hit a pair of three-pointers in her first eight points that put the Tigers up 8-2 in the first three minutes.
What happened in the next eight minutes left the contingent of Tiger fans in shock.
Froelich, Allie Ruffer, and Aubrey Clemens grouped up to turn Allison over four times to spearhead a 21-4 run that gave the Panthers a double-figure lead.
“(Grace) was huge guarding her,” Ruffer explained of the job Froelich did causing chaos on Allison.
“She had a hand in her face, she didn’t let her get where she wanted to go, and then she hits shots. She was a huge spark for us. She gave us the kind of energy that the rest of us just fed off of.”
Oberlin started the salvo with a triple, and Allie Ruffer added a second-chance hoop that brought Stryker even.
The Panthers were far from done. Froelich made a great pump-and-go move for the basket that put Stryker ahead for keeps.
Goebel drained a left-side triple, and the Panthers hit 5-6 from the line to finish a run of 16 straight points to close the first quarter and make it 18-8 heading into the second.
Froelich’s power drive and another Goebel three-ball got the lead to 23-12 with 5:41 to go in the half.
Avery Benedict hit two from outside the arc to bring North Baltimore back in contact at 26-23, but Froelich scored twice in the last 47 seconds to increase the Panthers’ lead to 30-23 at the break.
North Baltimore turned the ball over 11 times in the first half, while Stryker had just five.
Stryker was even more efficient the first five minutes of the third quarter, as the lead ballooned to as much as 16.
Clemens scored in the post, then Reiss Creighton stuck two long balls from the corner around Goebel’s power move to the rim. Oberlin’s pair from the foul line boosted the margin to 45-29 with 2:36 left in the third.
“Our game plan was to take the open shots but make five passes,” Ruffer expressed of the way her team opened the spread in the third quarter.
“We wanted to wear them down at the defensive end and make sure we took a great shot. Not just a good shot, but a great shot.”
The teams traded points until there were under four minutes left in the game, when the Panthers expanded the lead again.
Up 49-36, Oberlin scored off her own miss, then Goebel nailed a pull-up jumper that gave Stryker its biggest advantage of the day at 53-36.
Allison scored the last nine Tiger points, but six came from the line as North Baltimore shot just 13-38 for the day.
Stryker went 16-40, including 7-15 in the second half. The Panthers were good at the foul stripe as well, going 20-28.
North Baltimore (21-4) was 13-16 shooting at the line, with 11 of those made shots by Allison. Froelich and Goebel each had 14 to pace Stryker (21-4) and Oberlin added 10.
N. BALTIMORE (45) – Cotterman 5; L. Allison 31; K. Allison 2; Trout 0; Paynter 1; Smith 0; Benedict 6; Totals: 7-6-13 – 45
STRYKER (57) – Froelich 14; Donovan 3; Oberlin 10; Ruffer 2; R. Creighton 8; A. Clemens 6; M. Clemens 0; Goebel 14; Totals: 11-5-20 – 57
NBHS 8 15 9 13 – 45
SHS 18 12 16 11 – 57
For more local news, see High School Sports Schedule For Thursday, March 26, 2026 (WEATHER PERMITTING).