The field for the inaugural Ohio High School Athletic Association girls flag football state championship is set. Eight of Ohio’s 162 teams will compete inside Canton’s Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium on May 16.
After battling through the Cincinnati Bengals regional tournament, Southwest Ohio sends four schools up to Canton: Badin, St. Ursula, Princeton and Mount Notre Dame.
Here’s what you need to know about the teams representing Cincinnati in the first OHSAA state championship.
Badin looks to repeat as state champs
Badin came into the Cincinnati Bengals regional as the fourth seed, but the Rams established early on that they weren’t playing just to make the state tournament. They wanted a trophy.
“At halftime of our first game, a light clicked on,” head coach Mike Sebastian said. “The girls just started to play, and from that point on we were hands down the best team.”
After finding their spark against Walnut Hills, the Rams stunned undefeated Mount Notre Dame, 39-20, and blew out St. Ursula 46-13 in the title game. It was all-around domination, with quarterback Bella Heile connecting with offensive MVP Addi Marshall for long score after long score. Defensive MVP Blake Sakach was a constant threat to opposing passing attacks, securing multiple interceptions over the course of the day.
Marshall turned heads with her route-running ability, even as she dealt with a foot injury suffered in the quarterfinals. After winning the regional, she said she was particularly motivated to win a state championship in Canton.
“This is my first year playing flag football,” Marshall said, “but I went to state in soccer. Unfortunately, we didn’t win, so I’m hoping to pull out a state victory.”
The Rams are in top form as they look to defend their state title. They’ll start their defense against Nordonia in the quarterfinals.
St. Ursula makes dark-horse run to Canton
For most of the regular season, St. Ursula was right on the cusp of greatness. While the Bulldogs handled their lesser competition, they sustained one-possession losses to top area teams like Seton, Princeton and Mount Notre Dame to finish with a 7-5 record and the seventh seed in the regional tournament.
The Bulldogs knew they had another gear to unlock. To reach the state title, they had to get revenge on second-seeded conference foe Seton. Led by senior quarterback Penelope Bolinger, who’s thrown 58 touchdown passes this season, St. Ursula built a halftime lead with multiple Emerson Majors touchdown receptions. As Seton battled back with a chance to take the lead in the closing moments, St. Ursula’s defense sealed the game.
Senior Blair Breitbeil got after the quarterback, recording a couple of sacks to push Seton out of scoring range. With the game on the line, senior DB Liz Thurnau came up with the winning interception in the endzone, sending the team on to Canton.
But the Bulldogs weren’t done yet. They followed a similar script in the regional semifinals against Princeton, building a dominant halftime lead to hold off a high-powered Vikings comeback attempt. St. Ursula, coached by Anthony Mussari, made the most of the sport’s clock rules, slowing the game down and throwing their opponents off-kilter.
As St. Ursula heads to Canton, the Bulldogs’ senior leaders will have to come up big once again as they face a talented Berkshire team. The 11-2 Badgers came just a two-point conversion away from knocking off the north’s top team, Madison, in the Cleveland Browns regional.
Princeton High School flag football makes waves in year one
Princeton’s girls left no doubt that they would make the state tournament, cruising in their quarterfinal matchup with Aiken for a 41-6 win.
In just the first year of the Princeton girls flag football program, the Vikings proved they were ready to hang with the top programs in the state, even before winning in Paycor Stadium, as they beat eventual-champs Badin and runner-up St. Ursula during the regular season.
The Vikings’ offense has an athletic edge against almost every opponent they face, thanks to a dynamic duo from the hardwood. Junior quarterback Kiki Harris has a cannon, throwing bombs deep down the field with ease. It helped to have a target like freshman Yaya Parrish, who put an exclamation mark on the Aiken win with a long touchdown catch.
Coach Bop White said the focus leading up to the state tournament would be on the mental side of the game, which came up in their comeback bid against St. Ursula in the semifinals.
“We’re going to be making sure we’re moving fast and taking care of the ball and working on our body language,” White said. “We’ve come a long way throughout the season. I’m super proud of the girls.”
The Vikings long-range passing attack should be on full display in their state quarterfinal matchup against Midview. If Parrish can continue to outrace and out-position defenders, Harris should have no problem connecting for touchdowns.
Mount Notre Dame rebounding from first loss
Mount Notre Dame went undefeated in the regular season, suffering its first loss of the year to eventual regional champions Badin. With no break after a hard-fought, double-overtime win over Winton Woods in the quarterfinals, the Cougars were dealing with some serious adrenaline issues against Badin.
Mount Notre Dame looked like the top team in the area for much of the season. Led by 2025 national flag football player of the year finalist Evie Schoolfield, the Cougars have a tactical passing attack that takes advantage of Schoolfield’s decision-making and accuracy.
Head coach Desmon Gault said he’s sure that his senior quarterback will help the team bounce back in Canton.
“I have the utmost confidence in our quarterback,” Gault said. “This is her senior year, so don’t count her out yet. She’s going to do what she needs to do.”
Mount Notre Dame’s defense can’t be overlooked either. Thanks in part to senior Grace Bodkin and junior Lydia Sanders, the Cougars shut out opponents four times this year and held talented Girls Greater Catholic League foes St. Ursula and Seton under 14 points. The Cougars will have their hands full in the quarterfinals against top-seeded Madison, which has scored over 33 points in four of its last six outings.
Cincinnati’s Ohio 2026 flag football state tournament schedule
The inaugural OHSAA girls flag football state championship kicks off on Saturday, May 16. The top four teams from the Cincinnati Bengals regional will match up against the top four teams from the Cleveland Browns regional in Canton’s Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. Quarterfinal matches start at noon, with semifinals scheduled for 1 p.m. and the state title game to be played at 2:30 p.m.
Here are the matchups for the first round:
∎ Badin (1 south) vs. Nordonia (4 north)
∎ St. Ursula (2 south) vs. Berkshire (3 north)
∎ Princeton (3 south) vs. Midview (2 north)
∎ Mount Notre Dame (4 south) vs. Madison (1 north)
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Four Cincinnati flag football teams on to Canton for state tournament
Reporting by Chase Souder, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
