With beloved teammate in stands, Circleville girls basketball sees stellar season end
CHILLICOTHE – From 20 rows above the Southeastern High School court Wednesday night, Addison Edgington had her eyes on where she truly wanted to be.
A mere 33 days following a car crash that caused severe injuries and 16 days after she came home from Nationwide Children’s Hospital, the Circleville girls basketball team’s 6-foot-2 freshman settled into the last row of the upper deck for perhaps the top game in the state.
Edgington’s Tigers took a 24-0 record into Wednesday’s Division II Southeast District final, as did their opponent, Thornville Sheridan.
Edgington was included in the pregame introductions and, after a 50-30 loss, received the loudest round of applause from Circleville fans when her name was announced as a district runner-up.
“It’s big for me,” Edgington said. “I wish I was down there, but it’s a good feeling to watch and still support them, knowing I can come out.”
Edgington, who was ejected from the vehicle in the Jan. 26 crash, sustained injuries including broken vertebrae and a broken jaw. She came home Feb. 12, is taking online classes and undergoing physical therapy.
“I do little exercises myself,” said Edgington, who is scheduled for jaw surgery March 11. “It’s been good. I’m getting stronger.”
Her first game back as a fan was Saturday, when Circleville defeated Athens 50-35 in a district semifinal at Southeastern. She frequently went with her parents to pick up twin sister Emilea from practice and got to see her teammates both then and when they visited her house.
Addison’s mother, Megan, showed more outward emotion Wednesday night, but Addison admitted just because she kept mostly quiet didn’t mean she was calm.
“I break down a lot of the plays (to myself),” she said. “I see (the game) different than (when I’m) playing. I sit there and shout things that we’re doing. It’s just different.”
Seeking its first district championship since 2020, Circleville found itself overmatched at times against a Sheridan team that still has some of its key pieces from a Division II state runner-up squad of two years ago.
Circleville, the No. 2 seed in the Southeast and fourth-ranked team in the final state poll, did not lead after a 5-4 edge late in the first quarter. The third-seeded and third-ranked Generals, coached by Pickerington Central graduate J.D. Walters, got a game-high 23 points from North Florida signee Jamisyn Stinson and eight 3-pointers in all.
Sheridan led by as many as 24 points twice in the third quarter following an 18-5 run out of halftime.
“We had to slow the game down offensively,” Circleville coach Brian Bigam said. “I told the girls if we passed 10 or 15 times in a possession, that’s an advantage for us. We got worn down. We didn’t move as well in our zone, and they shot the ball extremely well.”
The Tigers were 15-0 when Edgington was injured, and she has never been far from her teammates’ thoughts.
Their warmup shirts read “Addison Rae,” “31” (her number) and “rally for Addison.” Several fans wore similar shirts, and Megan Edgington carried a towel with “#TigerStrong” on it.
Throughout Wednesday's game, Addison and her family tried to remain inconspicuous in the stands.
“I don’t want the attention,” Addison said.
She got it regardless.
“It’s refreshing to see her. It puts a smile on my face,” Bigam said. “I’ve coached baseball and basketball for 21 years … but what these girls just did this season is honestly the most remarkable thing I’ve been a part of. We don’t want people to feel sorry for us, but to continue to win, rally around each other and rally around Addison, it’s one of the most impressive things I’ve been a part of as a coach.”
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Circleville girls basketball falls to Sheridan in district final
