Check out the Cincinnati Enquirer's High School Sports Awards winners for 2023
The Cincinnati Enquirer announces the winners of the 2023 High School Sports Awards.
The high school sports staff voted on the winners, using criteria that included regular-season and postseason successes of the individual and their roles on successful teams. All things equal, they considered unique storylines and tried to spread acknowledgment among as many of the city's more than 140 schools as possible. Also, where possible and as time permitted, prominent coaches and association presidents vetted the nominees' list and award winners.
More: The Enquirer names 2023 Cincinnati High School Sports Awards nominees
Players of the Year by sport
Boys cross country ‒ Gianni Allwein, Walnut Hills
Allwein became a first-team All-Eastern Cincinnati Conference selection for the fourth time while earning the Eastern Cincinnati Conference's Runner of the Year award. Heading to the University of Cincinnati, Allwein wrapped up his preps cross-country career with a seventh-place finish in the Division I OHSAA state meet.
Girls cross country ‒ Efa Paschka, Mason
In her freshman campaign for Mason, Paschka was the Greater Miami Conference, district and regional champion before finishing in sixth place as an individual in the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division I state meet, leading the Comets to the team state championship.
Field hockey ‒ Ainsley Kemp, Mount Notre Dame
The goalkeeper for state semifinalists Mount Notre Dame, Kemp was named the Girls Greater Catholic League Player of the Year while leading the top-seeded Cougars to a regional championship.
Football, defense ‒ Malik Hartford, Lakota West
Before becoming an early enrollee at Ohio State University, Hartford was the GMC, district and state Division I Defensive Player of the Year after leading Lakota West to a 13-1 record and a regional finals appearance. Hartford also participated in the All-American Bowl in January.
Football, offense ‒ Jordan Marshall, Moeller
The Moeller Crusader dominated his junior campaign, gathering over 2,300 all-purpose yards (including 1,951 rushing yards) with 34 total touchdowns. Along with Moeller’s regional championship, Marshall earned Division I Co-Offensive Player of the Year and Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year honors.
Boys golf ‒ Timmy Hollenbeck, Mason.
The senior was the Southwest Ohio Golf Coaches Association Player of the Year as well as the GMC Player of the Year. Hollenbeck was an individual champion in the conference and in his sectional while also leading Mason to a state championship runner-up finish.
Girls golf ‒ Kylee Heidemann, Mercy McAuley
No stranger to reaching the OHSAA state tournament, Heidemann had one final postseason push for the 2022 season. After locking down the conference title, she was a sectional champion by six strokes and a fourth-place finish at districts qualified her for state. There, Heidemann shot a 141 to make her the OHSAA Division I individual state champion.
Boys soccer ‒ Bennett Painter, Anderson
After combining for 54 points in his sophomore and junior seasons, Painter put out an All-American performance as a senior in 2022. The future Bowling Green State University athlete led the ECC with 69 points and 28 goals while his 13 assists were third in the conference. Painter was selected as a United Soccer Coaches High School All-American and first team by the Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association.
Girls soccer ‒ Peyton Kohls, Mount Notre Dame
Kohls began her senior season by breaking Rose Lavelle’s school record for goals in a career and ended by picking up her second United Soccer Coaches High School All-American honors. The Xavier University commit was also the GGCL Player of the Year.
Boys water polo ‒ Jack McDaniel, Princeton
With McDaniel in goal, Princeton went 14-7 with a regional title and a fourth-place finish at state. McDaniel took home first-team honors from the Ohio Water Polo Association as well as the Goalie of the Year award.
Girls water polo ‒ Rachell Hemmila, Cincinnati Mavericks
Just a sophomore at Hughes High School, Hemmila led the Mavericks to a state runner-up finish while earning first-team all-state honors and the Goalie of the Year award from the Ohio Water Polo Association.
Girls volleyball ‒ Brooke Bultema, Ursuline Academy and Kamden Schrand, Notre Dame Academy
Now blocking and hitting for the University of Kentucky, Bultema led Ursuline Academy to the OHSAA Division I state championship in 2022. The GGCL Player of the Year and first-team All-Ohio pick, Bultema paced the conference with 385 kills and 105 blocks, giving her over 1,000 kills and 400 blocks in her preps career.
Schrand became a two-time state champion for the Pandas in 2022 after her defense helped Notre Dame to a 34-5 record with just one loss to a Kentucky team. Schrand had 82 digs in the Kentucky High School Athletic Association state tournament, including 35 in the semifinals over Assumption and 22 more in the finals victory over Paul Laurence Dunbar.
Boys archery ‒ Thane Hudelson, Cooper
Shooting for Cooper, Hudelson won 10 tournaments, including the Sixth Region title. Against hundreds of other archers in the state tournament, Hudelson placed 10th overall.
Girls archery ‒ Kilee Spegal, Simon Kenton
The 25th-place finisher in the KHSAA state finals, Spegal had a season-high score of 286 and 12 times finished in the top 10 of tournaments.
Boys basketball ‒ Evan Ipsaro, Covington Catholic
In 32 games, Ipsaro averaged 25.2 points per game and was a Mr. Basketball candidate after being named co-winner of the Ninth Region Player of the Year award. Also averaging a shade under five rebounds per game, the Miami University commit helped the Colonels to a 27-5 record.
Girls basketball ‒ Solè Williams, Princeton
Before going on to college to make her mark at Texas A&M, the McDonald’s All-American and Ohio Gatorade Player of the Year led Princeton to the OHSAA Division I state championship with a 28-2 record. Williams paced the GMC with 20.2 points per game and 3.4 steals per game while her 3.4 assists were third-most.
Boys bowling ‒ Aiden Hunt, Mason
Hunt’s 215.5 average was the best in the GMC while leading the Comets to a conference title. In the postseason, Hunt finished in 11th place in the state with a 660, giving him honorable mention All-Ohio honors.
Girls bowling ‒ Kylie Fisher, Wilmington
Fisher summoned a 198.1 average for the Hurricane and was the Southern Buckeye Conference’s American Division Bowler of the Year before rolling a three-game 633 to finish fifth in the state as a sophomore.
Gymnastics ‒ Viktoria Najem, Kings
Najem won the vault, bars and then all-around district championships before going to state where she scored a sixth-place finish.
Ice hockey ‒ Matthew Langenderfer, St. Xavier.
He helped St. Xavier add seven wins to its record from the previous season while earning a postseason tournament victory. Lengenderfer was a first-team All-White Division pick in the Capital Hockey Conference.
Boys swimming ‒ Gibson Holmes, Indian Hill
The Division II Most Outstanding Swimmer, Holmes finished his career with 10 state swimming titles, including taking home his third-straight 200-yard individual medley and fourth 100-yard butterfly in his final high school swim before heading to Stanford.
Girls swimming ‒ Lainy Kruger, Notre Dame Academy
Kruger won five KHSAA state championships in her career. In the 2023 state meet, Kruger won both the 100-yard breaststroke and 200-yard freestyle in repeat victories. Her All-American performance at state included her third career 100-yard breaststroke title.
Boys wrestling ‒ Landen Evans, Ryle
As a sophomore, Evans went 45-4 and finished atop the podium in the KHSAA state tournament in the 113-pound bracket. Evans was also a winner at the regional and semi-state tournaments.
Girls wrestling ‒ Chloe Dearwester, Harrison
Dearwester again went undefeated and was a state champion for the third time in three seasons. In the OHSAA meet, Dearwester pinned every opponent to win the 105-pound individual title while Harrison won the team state title.
Baseball ‒ Toby Hueber, Moeller
An All-Ohio pick, Hueber was the Greater Catholic League-South Player of the Year after going 10-0 on the mound with a 1.54 ERA in 59 innings pitched while hitting .406 with 43 hits, 40 runs, 32 stolen bases, 27 RBI, 10 doubles and four triples. Huber will continue his career at George Mason.
Boys lacrosse ‒ Khalif Hocker, St. Xavier
Hocker led St. Xavier to a state runner-up finish while leading the team in scoring, garnering first-team all-region and all-state honors.
Girls lacrosse ‒ Carly Thiel, Sycamore.
Thiel scored 121 goals and had 85 ground balls and 211 draw controls while being named conference Player of the Year, Region 4 Midfielder of the Year and first-team all-state.
Softball ‒ Aubrey Smith, Lebanon.
Smith earned ECC Offensive Player of the Year and first-team All-Ohio honors. In the circle, Smith had 23 appearances where she went 17-2 with a save while spinning seven shutouts with 137 strikeouts and a 1.11 ERA. At the plate, Smith went 49-90 for a .544 average with seven homers, 15 doubles and four triples while knocking in 58 runs.
Boys tennis ‒ Carson Dwyer, St. Xavier and Drew Evans, St. Xavier doubles team.
The pair of Bombers won a district championship before advancing to the OHSAA Division I state finals where the senior Evans and the freshman Dwyer won 7-5, 6-2 in the state finals.
Girls tennis ‒ Shyla Aggarwal, Mason.
Aggarwal won her second-straight OHSAA Division I singles state championship and was a finalist in the singles bracket for the third time after also being a state doubles qualifier as a freshman. Aggarwal also led Mason to another team title in the Ohio Tennis Coaches Association tournament.
Boys track and field ‒ Jackson Smith, Walton-Verona
The junior added three more state championships to his name, taking first in the KHSAA 100- and 200-meter races while also running the final leg of the 4x200 relay for the Bearcats, who won the Class 1A title.
Girls Track and Field ‒ Chloe Hein, Bishop Brossart
In the Class 1A meet, Hein won the long jump state championship for the second time and was also a member of the 4x100 relay team that finished first in the state. Hein’s performance in the 200-meter was good for second place while she also took fifth overall in the 100-meter.
Boys volleyball ‒ Bentley Meyer, St. Xavier.
As the Bombers won a solo GCL-South title and were regional finalists, Meyer took home Player of the Year honors in his conference, region and state.
Premium Awards
Boys Athlete of Year ‒ Conner Cravaack, Madeira
Set to continue his football career at the University of Akron, Cravaack was also a standout basketball for the Mustangs, earning first-team All-Cincinnati Hills League honors for both sports as a senior.
Girls Athlete of Year ‒ Samantha Erbach, Waynesville
Having already earned soccer and track state championships in her career, the junior was named a cross country, soccer and track athlete of the year in all three sports by the Enquirer.
Courage Award, player ‒ Dominic Jackson, St. Xavier
After being diagnosed with a rare heart condition as a sophomore, Jackson’s main desire was to get back to sports. After undergoing a successful surgery, but enduring a bout of COVID-19, Jackson rehabbed and worked his way back to be cleared for activity with no restrictions. Returning to running for St. Xavier, Jackson later set personal bests after getting back to full strength and competed in the OHSAA state meet.
Courage Award, coach ‒ Darnell Parker, Loveland
Before Darnell Parker died last July from cancer, he’d taken on his battle with a smile on his face and a basketball team to coach. After his diagnosis in the fall of 2020, Parker continued to lead the Loveland girls basketball team and lead them successfully. The Tigers went 20-5 in the 2020-21 season and Parker again was named the ECC Coach of the Year.
Coach of the Year ‒ Dee Davis, Princeton girls basketball
The former WNBA star and McDonald’s All-American led one of her own in Solè Williams as the Vikings went 28-2, beating Olmstead Falls 69-51 in the OHSAA Division I state finals in her second year as head coach.
Boys Team of Year ‒ Moeller High School baseball
The Moeller Crusaders went 31-3 and added state championship No. 9 to its already packed trophy case. Moeller allowed just 11 runs in its postseason run, including a 2-0 shutout of Walsh Jesuit in the semifinals and a 4-1 win over Olentangy Orange in the finals. MaxPreps placed Moeller at No. 5 in its final national baseball rankings.
Girls Team of Year ‒ Purcell Marian High School basketball
After going 27-1 and winning a Division III state title in 2022, Purcell Marian was bumped up a division. The Cavaliers won the OHSAA Division II state championship in a 57-48 victory over Canal Fulton Northwest to cap off a 27-2 season with 17-straight wins.
Lifetime Achievement Award ‒ Noel Rash, Beechwood.
Rash stepped down as Beechwood’s football coach after 17 years where he won over 200 games and eight state championships, more than half of the 17 won in the entirety of Beechwood’s program history.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 2023 Cincinnati Enquirer's High School Sports Awards winners
