Young Purcell Marian squad cruises past Worthington Christian for the program's first state championship

Led by freshman Dee Alexander and sophomore Jayda Mosley, the Cavaliers look like a Division III dynasty in the making.

Author:
Ryan Isley, SBLive Sports
Publish date:
Mar 12, 2022 1:48 PM EST

By Ryan Isley | Photos by Ben Jackson

DAYTON, Ohio — The Purcell Marian girls basketball youth movement marched into University of Dayton Arena and walked out with the OHSAA Division III state championship trophy Saturday.

Led by freshman Dee Alexander and sophomore Jayda Mosley, the Cavaliers defeated Worthington Christian 62-38 to claim the first state title in program history after losing five seniors and a junior off last year’s team, which made it to the state semifinals.

“For a program, it means everything to us," Purcell Marian coach Jamar Mosley said. “I think I can speak for everyone — this means the world to everybody within the Purcell Marian community.”

When her team needed her most, Alexander showed why she is one of the best freshmen in the country.

When the Warriors started chipping away at what had been a 10-point halftime lead and cut it to 33-28 with 3:21 left in the third quarter, Alexander put the Cavaliers on her back one final time during her freshman season.

She took the ball at free-throw line, extended to her left, crossed over the defender and scored to end a scoring drought for Purcell Marian (28-1) that had seen just two free throws in the first 5:43 of the second half.

Then she got a layup and a put-back basket on back-to-back possessions, and after a score by Worthington Christian, she got two more layups.

When the run was over, the Southwest District Division III player of the year had scored 10 points in 2:17 to stretch the lead to 43-30 after three quarters.

“I just knew I had to step up, and we had to stop the run they had,” Alexander said. “I had to do what I usually do and not let the crowd or anybody get to me, and that’s what I did.”

Alexander finished with 23 points and 15 rebounds, but it wasn’t just on the offensive end where she shined.

She had five steals and two blocks, including one massive block that had the crowd roaring. With 5:12 left in the game, she came flying out of nowhere to block a 3-point attempt.

Jayda Mosley led the Purcell Marian scoring attack early, as she had 11 of her 16 points in the first quarter. That included three 3-pointers for the team's only returning player, who was able to relay her experience from last year's semifinal squad to this year’s group.

“We had to play hard and not let the crowd get to us,” Jayda Mosley said. “We just had to play together.”

The starting lineup for the Cavaliers included three freshmen and a sophomore, as twin sisters Cy’Aira and Ky’Aira Miller join Alexander, Mosley and lone senior Jermyrah Behanan.

The youth doesn’t stop there, as two of the first three players off the bench are freshman Trinity Small and sophomore Jordan Brundage.

Despite having a young nucleus, the Cavaliers were confident before the season started and set their goals as high as they could. They told Coach Mosley on Oct. 26 that they wanted to win a state championship.

While it might have seemed like a lofty goal for some, the coach had seen enough of his team to know if they bought in as a group, they could cut down the nets.

“In the summer with the girls, they just came together and just played so well with one another,” Jamar Mosley said. “Once we got into full mode and practices, I felt like it was a true possibility for us to win a state championship.”

Now with one state title already in their possession and a roster full of young talent, it would only be natural for the Cavaliers to start looking ahead to what could be a state title contender for years to come.

The coach wasn’t ready to think about that just yet on Saturday.

“To be honest with you, I was just worried about this year,” Jamar Mosley said. “We are going to soak this in and as next season approaches, we will start the plan for next season. We don’t want to look too far ahead.”

His players had other thoughts. Jayda Mosley — no relation to the coach — was already thinking about more state titles as the buzzer sounded Saturday.

“It was an amazing feeling,” Mosley said. “But in my head, I was just thinking ‘next year, year.’”