Girls regional basketball: Wadsworth goal? Run, gun -- and have fun

BARBERTON — The buzzword for the Wadsworth girls basketball team this season has been "fun." Ask about how much fun this season has been and smiles appear that would light up the entire gym. That's not just from one player. It's from every single one. Coach Andrew Booth used the theme before leaving the pregame locker room Saturday afternoon prior to defeating Mentor 64-55 in the Division I, Region 1 championship game. "We have three things on our scouting report that are on the last page. They're the keys to the game," he said. "The last key on the whole sheet was have fun." It wasn't like the Grizzlies (24-2) needed to hear Booth tell them, however, because they'd been doing so all season. "This team is fun. We just love each other so much," said Wadsworth sophomore Julia Maddox, who had eight points and 10 rebounds. "We have so much fun at practice. We have so much fun after practice. We literally love every person on the team. We have so much fun together. It's so fun." The key is that it doesn't matter what grade you're in or when you joined the program. You are going to be included. For a team with four seniors, three juniors, three sophomores and three freshmen, that has never been an issue. "It's been so fun. It's the most memorable season I've ever had," said Natalie Maddox, who scored 10 points. "We're all like each other's best friends. We're like sisters, and I think that's what makes us so good. There's no separation in the classes. We're just a bunch of girls that are together, and it's just so fun." Senior Lauren Decker hasn't stopped smiling, even after taking a hit in the regional semifinals against Massillon Jackson that resulted in a black eye and led to Mentor's student section telling her she looked like she had on bad makeup Saturday. The jabs didn't rattle the Robert Morris (Pa.) volleyball recruit because this has been the most fun she has had playing basketball. "It's literally the best season, the best outcome, everything is perfect for my senior year," said Decker, who had 23 points and eight rebounds. "All my girls, we're all best friends. It's so incredible, just the atmosphere, we all are never afraid to celebrate each other. And it's amazing." The Grizzlies celebrated each other Saturday, with one of those emotional moments coming with 5:27 left and Wadsworth up 50-42. Decker took the ball aggressively to the hoop, scored the basket and was fouled, letting out a scream. Natalie Maddox ran over and sort of two-hand shoved Decker in a loving manner. The rest of the girls on the court were soon there engaging in a group hug. "I think it's a really big part of the game to celebrate your teammates," Natalie Maddox said. "I think it just gets the energy going, and it makes them feel loved and accepted, and that makes them confident. I think we should really celebrate our teammates, so we always do." The Grizzlies aren't done yet and will now make the long trip to the University of Dayton for the state semifinals, where they will play Cincinnati Princeton (22-4) at 6 p.m. Thursday. This is the second state tournament trip for Decker, who was on the volleyball team that reached the 2024 D-II semifinals. She is excited for the trip not only for herself but for the rest of her girls. "It's going to be incredible," Decker said. "I can't wait for everyone else to see how truly special it is to be down there, because it really is such a cool experience." The trip is one Booth had hoped his team would make when he decided to continue coaching after retiring from teaching. He joked earlier in the season that the reason he was in a gym in Wadsworth and not on a sunny golf course somewhere was the chance to coach this team, one he knew would be so much fun to be around every day. "I don't make the right choice very often, but that was certainly one of them," he said. "No matter if we had got to this point or not, it was the right decision, just because of the kind of kids they are and the joy that they bring all of us on the coaching staff and the joy they bring each other. "But for us to be able to, as a group, come back, work with these girls, see them grow as they did throughout the season and then see the fruits that their labor result in a trip to the Final Four, wow." Contact Ryan Isley at sports@medina-gazette.com.