Marietta’s Alex Kendall handles the ball during a sectional final against Fairfield Union at Warrior Coliseum. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

Waterford junior Kendall Sury and Marietta senior Alex Kendall earned some of the highest honors a high school basketball player can receive in the state of Ohio.

Sury was named Division IV first team All-Ohio while Kendall was a first-teamer in Division II.

Kendall led Marietta to its best season in two decades, winning 22 games and a sectional title. A 6-foot-8 post player, Kendall averaged 21.6 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game this season.

“Alex has put a ton of work and time in,” said Marietta head coach Austin Gardner. “He’s very deserving of All-Ohio. That’s what happens when you dedicate yourself to the gym and being coachable.”

For a big man, Kendall has all-around skill, possessing impressive shooting and ball-handling abilities. As a senior, he shot 62% from the floor, 44% from the 3-point line and 74% from the foul line.

Waterford’s Kendall Sury (10) looks to pass during the Division IV state championship game against Fort Loramie in Dayton. (Photo by Jordan Holland)

“Being 6-8 and being able to play inside and out,” Gardner said of what separates Kendall from most players. “He handles the ball at the top of the press. He’s a good decision-maker. He listens, and he’s starting to understand the game more and more.”

Gardner took the Marietta head coaching job following Kendall’s sophomore season.

“I saw his potential, but I thought he wasn’t aggressive enough,” Gardner recalled. “I was really hard on him his junior year. He dedicated himself to being the best he could be. He worked on his ball-handling, improved his 3-point shooting, improved his pace of play. He started acting like a college player with how he went through practice and drills. His leadership got better.”

Kendall finished just four points shy of 1,000 for his career. His 538 points scored this season was the second most ever by a Tiger in a single season, behind only current West Liberty head coach Ben Howlett.

“What a special kid in regards to who is as a person,” Gardner said. “He’s got great parents, a great family support system. That’s one thing that’s under-looked in these situations — the family aspect. For him to be going to Findlay on a full ride, his family deserves a ton of credit, too.”

Sury saved her best efforts for the most important part of the season for the Waterford Wildcats on their way to the state finals.

After scoring around 13 points per game during the regular season, Sury averaged 19 points per game in the tournament. She scored 23 in the regional semifinals against Newark Catholic, then tallied 19 points in the regional championship game against Hiland. In that contest, Sury knocked down a huge 3-pointer in the final minute of overtime to help secure the victory.

Sury added 17 points in a state semifinal win over Loudonville before wrapping up her junior season with a game-high 19-point effort in a state final loss to Fort Loramie.

“She’s just so competitive,” said Waterford head coach Jerry Close. “As the games got bigger, she played bigger.”

Sury’s classmate, Avery Wagner, earned second-team All-Ohio honors. Wagner, a 6-4 center, nearly averaged a double-double this season.

“She’s a kid who likes to play defense better than she does offense,” Close said. “She makes such an impact on the defensive end of the floor. Obviously her size, but she covers so well, and her shot-blocking ability makes it easier for us to defend as a team.”

Having been to the Final Four seven times in the last 10 years, Close said the program’s success starts with the players. In that span, Waterford has been led by four sets of dynamic duos — Dani Drayer and Regan Porter; Alli Kern and Megan Ball; Cara Taylor and Mackenzie Suprano; and now, Sury and Wagner, who have unfinished business to take care of next season.

“They’re what makes us go,” Close said.

“We’ve been blessed through the years with great kids all the way through. Each one looks up to the last group, and it’s nice to be able to carry on where the last group left off.

“(This year’s team) was very disappointed at how last year ended (in the district finals). That’s what drove them this year to want to go further. They wanted to get back to state. I think (losing in the state final this year) will drive them for next year, but it doesn’t get easier. They’ve got a lot of work to do to try to get back.”

Across the river, Fort Frye junior Emmie Duskey earned second team All-Ohio honors in Division III.

Duskey helped lead the Cadets to a Sweet 16 appearance this season. Listed at just 5-4, Duskey produced 14.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 3.1 steals per game this season for a Fort Frye squad that finished with 20 wins and the Twin State League championship.

On the boys side, Warren saw two of its players earn Division II all-state status. Senior Trent Taylor was named second team All-Ohio while junior Julian Stadelman earned a spot on the third team.

Taylor and Stadelman were an unstoppable duo for the Warriors, leading the team to its second ever Elite Eight appearance. Taylor, a 6-7 post player, attacked teams inside with his combination of length and athleticism. In the regional semis against Tri-Valley, Taylor dominated with 27 points and 10 rebounds. Earlier in the year, he set the school’s single-game record with 46 points against Fort Frye.

Stadelman, a 6 foot point guard, formed a prolific 1-2 punch with Taylor. Stadelman’s quickness and handles make it tough for defenders to stay in front of him, but if you give him too much space, he can pull up from anywhere on the floor. Stadelman averaged more than 20 points per game this season en route to eclipsing the 1,000-point mark for his career with a year still to go. And on rare nights where his shot wasn’t falling, Stadelman often flirted with double-digit assists.