Girls state basketball: Avon Lake's Olivia Tobin plays through pain, finishes game

DAYTON — Olivia Tobin was not about to miss the state championship. Avon Lake's senior guard collided with the scorer's table less than three minutes into the final against Cincinnati Purcell Marian on Friday afternoon. She limped off, unable to put pressure on her right leg, but returned in the second quarter and gutted through the pain. The Shoregals could not dethrone the Cavaliers, who became the fourth team to win at least four straight state championships with a 72-44 victory at the University of Dayton. "I felt a few pops and really thought it was serious," said Tobin, who finished with seven points, four assists and a steal. "Our trainer looked at me, took me back, we went into the X-ray room and said it was negative, everything was fine. They asked me if I wanted to play and I said 100 percent, I wasn't going to sit out." The Cavaliers led 5-0 when Tobin left the game. They built a 25-8 advantage by the time Tobin came back with 6:39 left in the second quarter. Avon Lake (23-6) struggled against the Purcell Marian (23-6) press without one of its best ballhandlers, committing eight first-quarter turnovers, leading to eight points for the Cavaliers. Tobin entered Friday averaging about six points and three rebounds and was the team leader in assists. Her four assists Friday were a team high. "I'm very prone to ankle twists, I've done it a lot in my career," Tobin said. "In this game, I just had to push through it and that's what I did." When Tobin came back, Avon Lake committed just four turnovers the rest of the way. The packed Avon Lake student section gave her a standing ovation, but it didn't stop Purcell Marian from pushing its lead to 32-10 during the next two minutes. Tobin stopped the bleeding with a 3-pointer and pickpocketed Dee Alexander, who just won Ohio Ms. Basketball for the third straight season. Unfortunately, Avon Lake couldn't capitalize on the turnover and the Cavaliers responded with four unanswered points. While the Shoregals had success in limiting other star players on their way to the state final, they had no answer for Alexander, who finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and two blocks in her final high school game. She's committed to the University of Cincinnati. Tobin cut the lead to 36-15 with a runner at the 2:34 mark, but the Cavaliers took a 45-21 halftime lead and never looked back. "I won't lie, it was painful," Tobin said. "Ankle twists don't feel good, especially when you're putting all your pressure on your feet to run. Just coming back to the game, I knew I had to push through it. They gave me ibuprofen. "I think at that point you just have to push through it. I didn't want to sit out, I was never going to sit out. I wanted to be there with my team. It was an adjustment, but I played through it." Contact Chris Sweeney at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on X.