Anthony Wayne's Bender twins voted as top performances from 2024 Classic in the Country

Anthony Wayne senior Elise Bender won the vote, followed closely by sister Brooke

Congratulations to Anthony Wayne seniors Elise and Brooke Bender, who were voted as the top two performances from the 2024 Classic in the Country. 

In one of the closest votes for any poll we have run at SBLive Ohio, Elise took home 8,263 of the nearly 28,000 votes cast, while Brooke was right behind her with 8,255. For the better part of the week that the poll was open, the sisters were either tied or within one vote of one another.

They earned the nominations with their performances in Anthony Wayne's two wins at Classic in the Country, Sunday over Laurel and Monday over Magnificat.

In the win over Laurel, Elise scored a team-high 34 points and grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds, while Brooke drilled five 3-pointers and scored 22 points as the Generals picked up a 71-70 victory. And then against Magnificat, Elise had a game-high 29 points and Brooke hit four more 3-pointers and scored 14 points in the 63-59 win.

The weekend at Classic in the Country helped Anthony Wayne move from No. 20 in the SBLive Ohio girls basketball Power 25 up to No. 9 last week, where they remained in this week's rankings.

The Bender sisters also were both named to the SBLive Ohio girls basketball all-star team for the 2023-24 season, as each of them won the fan vote at their positions., with Brooke voted as the top wing in the state and Elise voted as the top forward. 

Photo of Elise Bender (No. 12) and Brooke Bender (No. 14) provided by Anthony Wayne girls basketball coach Jami Carter / Jami Carter, Anthony Wayne basketball

Classic in the Country 2024 Day 1: Sheridan, Archbishop Hoban, Lakota West among winners (01/13/2024)

Classic in the Country 2024 Day 2: Ottawa-Glandorf, Solon, Mason among the winners (01/14/2024)

Classic in the Country 2024 Day 3: Fairland, Olentangy, Portsmouth among winners (01/15/2024)

Vote: What was the best performance from the 2024 Classic in the Country?

Here are all of the performances that were nominated from the 2024 Classic in the Country:

Bree Allen, Fairland

The senior had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in a 58-45 win over Gilmour Academy on Monday.

Sienna Allen, Portsmouth

Scored a game-high 21 points in a win on Monday over Laurel. She knocked down four 3-pointers in the contest. She also had a team-high nine rebounds.

McKenna Baney, Waynedale

Led the Golden Bears in points and rebounds with 11 and seven, respectively, in a 41-32 win over Waterford.

Brooke Bender, Anthony Wayne

Knocked down five 3-pointers and scored 22 points in a 71-70 win over Laurel on Sunday. She hit four more 3-pointers on Monday in a win over Magnificat when she finished with 14 points.

Elise Bender, Anthony Wayne

Scored a team-high 34 points and pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds in a 71-70 win over Laurel on Sunday. She also led the Generals in a win over Magnificat on Monday with 29 points.

Mackenzie Blackford, Solon

Scored a game-high 21 points and pulled down nine rebounds in a win over Archbishop Alter.

Leah Bourquin, Tusky Valley

In a 52-39 win over Western Brown, Bourquin scored a game-high 14 points.

Avery Brandewie, Fort Loramie

Led the Redskins with 11 points and seven rebounds in a loss to Sheridan.

Jakalyn Brown, Brush

Tied for the team high with 13 points in a win over Kettering Fairmont on 5-of-7 shooting from the floor. She also had nine rebounds for the Arcs.

Kylee Bruce, Fairland

Scored a team-high 14 points in the win over Gilmour Academy on Monday.

Danielle Cameron, Olmsted Falls

Knocked down five 3-pointers and led the Bulldogs with 22 points in a win over Hiland in the final game of the event on Monday night.

Corniya Clay, Toledo Central Catholic

Shot 8-of-13 from the floor and led the Fighting Irish with 23 points in a loss to Lakota West.

Briar Cline, West Holmes

In a loss to Margaretta, Cline scored a team-high 14 points, including 3-of-7 from 3-point range. She also had 14 points in a win over Strasburg on Monday.

Karsyn Erford, Ottawa-Gladorf

In a 35-25 win over Smithville, she led the Titans in both points and rebounds with 13 and eight.

Kali Fortson, Princeton

Recorded a double-double in the win over Magnificat with 15 points and 12 rebounds.

Mari Gerton, Princeton

In a 53-42 win over Magnificat, she led all scorers with 21 points.

Saniyah Hall, Laurel

In a loss to Anthony Wayne on Sunday, the sophomore scored 43 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and dished out five assists. She had 16 points and 13 rebounds in a loss to Portsmouthon Monday despite fouling out with five minutes left.

Mya Hamilton, Unioto

Led the Lady Shermans with 25 points in a loss to Olentangy.

Helen Holley, Gilmour Academy

In a loss to Fairland, the Michigan State commit recorded a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Katie Fox, Lakota West

Led all scorers with 30 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in a 65-56 win over Toledo Central Catholic. And then in a win over Toledo Notre Dame, she hit 6-of-9 on 3-pointers and led all scorers with 26 points and had seven rebounds.

Sa'Mahn Johnson, Reynoldsburg

In a 55-46 win over Hiland, Johnson hit four 3-pointers and scored a game-high 23 points. She also snagged six rebounds.

Hadley Jones, Western Brown

Scored a team-high 13 points and knocked down three 3-pointers in a loss to Tusky Valley.

Naomi Keib, Smithville

Scored nine points and led the Smithies with nine rebounds in a loss to Ottawa-Glandorf.

Finley Kennedy, Archbishop Hoban

Scored nine points, including two 3-pointers in the third quarter, as Hoban defeated Teays Valley 45-38.

Katie Maryo, Magnificat

In a loss to Princeton, she scored a team-high 13 points and hit three 3-pointers. She scored 10 points in a loss to Anthony Wayne on Monday.

Daniya McDonald, Reynoldsburg

Scored 18 points on 9-of-13 shooting in a 55-46 win over Hiland and also grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.

Leilani McNeill, Warrensville Heights

Led the Tigers with 21 points and five rebounds in a 61-51 win over Kettering Fairmont.

Sydney Mobley, Olentangy

The 6-foot-2 freshman had a double-double with 28 points and 18 rebounds in a 65-63 win over Unioto.

Maddie Moody, Archbishop Alter

Went 3-for-3 from deep and scored a team-high 19 points in a loss to Solon.

Ashley Mullet, Hiland

In a loss to Reynoldsburg on Saturday, Mullet led the Hawks with 19 points and knocked down three 3-pointers. She also led the Hawks with 18 points in a loss to Olmsted Falls.

Emily Nagel, Wadsworth

Led the Grizzlies with eight points and six rebounds in a 30-24 win over Toledo Notre Dame. Five of her eight points came in the final 1:35 of the game.

JayLynn Nicholson, Toledo Notre Dame

Despite her team losing to Wadsworth, she led all players with 14 points and seven rebounds.

Madison Parrish, Mason

Scored a team-high 15 points in a win over Portsmouth on Sunday and led the Comets again on Monday in a win over Belleville (Michigan) with 14 points and eight boards.

Daysha Reid, Portsmouth

Scored 19 points in a win over Laurel on Monday. In a loss to Mason on Sunday, she led the Trojans with eight points.

Ellyse Schaefer, Margaretta

Scored a game-high 16 points in a 35-26 win over West Holmes, including a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter that pushed the lead back out to six after West Holmes cut it to three.

Jamisyn Stinson, Sheridan

Led all scorers with 20 points and drilled six 3-pointers as Sheridan defeated Fort Loramie 54-42. She also led the Generals with six rebounds.

Riley Thomas, Strasburg

In a loss to West Holmes, she had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Kaylah Thornton, Kettering Fairmont

Shot 9-of-13 from the floor and scored a game-high 23 points in a loss to Warrensville Heights. She led the Firebirds with 12 points and six rebounds on Monday in a loss to Brush.

Brooklyn Vaughn, Toledo Central Catholic

Recorded a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds in a loss to Lakota West.

Avery Wagner, Waterford

In a loss to Waynedale, Wagner had 10 points and seven rebounds for the Wildcats.

Sofia Wilson, Magnificat

Scored 12 points and dished out six assists in a loss to Anthony Wayne on Monday. This came after a nine-point, five-assist performance against Princeton.

Aveona Yoder, West Holmes

In a win over Strasburg on Monday, she led all scorers with 19 points.

Kennedy Younkin, Teays Valley

In a loss to Hoban, Younkin tied for the team lead with 14 points and led all players with nine rebounds. 

-- Ryan Isley | ryan@scorebooklive.com | @sbliveoh