Staff photo / Dan Hiner Austintown Fitch’s Kylie Folkwein, center, fights through a pair of North Royalton defenders on her way to the hoop during the second quarter of Wednesday’s Division II district semifinal at Austintown Fitch High School.

AUSTINTOWN — Sometimes basketball is as simple as making shots.

The Austintown Fitch girls basketball team learned that lesson the hard way on Wednesday. The Falcons left points on the board, while North Royalton capitalized from the field and at the free-throw line.

It led to Fitch’s downfall and brought its season to an end, falling to the Bears 59-49 in a Division II, Northeast 3, district semifinal in Austintown.

“Missed a lot of layups today, right? It seemed like every loose ball rolled right to them and they were able to convert on it,” Fitch head coach Dan Horacek said. “The basket just had a lid on it today. Sometimes in basketball that happens.

“I don’t fault our kids’ effort. I thought they played really hard, they gave it everything they had. It’s the game of basketball. Sometimes the ball just doesn’t go in the basket.”

The Falcons (8-15) began the game by scoring the first five points, but the Bears took the lead with a 10-0 run. After the quick start, the Falcons’ offense started to sputter, and North Royalton took a 15-10 lead into the second quarter.

That trend continued as Fitch turnovers and North Royalton’s work on the offensive glass allowed the Bears to extend their lead to 27-19 in the second quarter.

The final two minutes of the third turned into a free-throw contest as both teams entered the bonus. The Falcons scored 17 points in the third, but most came from the line as they went 13-for-20, and North Royalton (8-15) led 43-36 at the end of the third.

Then the Bears outscored the Falcons 7-2 in the first 2:50 of the fourth to push their lead to 50-38. Fitch had a few chances to cut into the lead, but the shots didn’t fall. And with the Falcons playing press, the Bears took advantage with some easy baskets to put the game away.

“It just didn’t go our way at all today,” Horacek said. “Credit to North Royalton, they played their butts off, and I wish them luck against whoever they play in the next round.”

Kylie Folkwein led the Falcons with 15 points. Amiya Harris had 14 points, and Kaliana Ray finished with nine.

North Royalton’s Cali Wise led all scorers with 25 points, and Mackenzie Babb knocked down a game-high five 3-pointers while finishing with 19 points.

The Falcons had a sizable senior group this year. They will graduate five in Amiya Harris, Amira Harris, Katelyn Bower, Jeweliana Farmer and Folkwein.

It’s a group that has special meaning for Horacek. The 2026 seniors developed their bond with their coach as freshmen during Horacek’s first season at Fitch. The seniors are the first group to make it through high school from start to finish with Horacek leading the way.

“They’ve given me everything they have for four years. You can’t say enough good things about them,” Horacek said. “I told them in the locker room, and this is the truth, ever since I was a kid growing up, all I wanted to do was be a teacher here and coach here after I graduated from here, and they made my dreams come true. They did. They made my dreams come true. I’m a lucky guy.”