Keenan girls advance to state title game with commanding win over Oceanside
The Keenan High School girls basketball team punched its ticket to the state championship game in dominating fashion Saturday.
Class 3A Player of the Year Taelor Lee-Sutton scored 18 points and Aaeronna Caughman had 17 as the Raiders defeated Oceanside Collegiate, 62-43, in the Class 3A Lower State championship game at the Florence Center.
The Raiders will play the Walhalla at 2 p.m. Friday at the Colonial Life Center in Columbia. Walhalla defeated St. Joseph’s, 60-53, in the Upper State championship game.
It will be Keenan’s 10th state championship appearance, with the last title coming in 2022 during former standout MiLaysia Fulwiley’s junior season.
The championship will be close to a home game for Keenan, with the Colonial Life Arena being just nine miles from the Raiders’ campus.
“That’s been our motivation. It is right in our backyard and I told them we got to get there,” Keenan coach Reggie McLain said. “So they have been fighting and trying to get there since.”
Keenan (20-6) will enter the title game on a 14-game winning streak, with its last loss coming against Class 5A Division I finalist Blythewood on Dec. 22.
The game was a rematch of last year’s third-round playoff game won by Oceanside, 55-41. Lee-Sutton said that loss was definitely on their minds and that they were a different team than last year, with an added emphasis on defense.
The Raiders’ pressure and athleticism were evident early as they were able to jump out to an early lead they never gave up. Keenan led by as many 24 points in the game.
“Last year, I felt we didn’t play good man (defense), but this year we did,” Lee-Sutton said. “They couldn’t handle the ball very well, and we put pressure on them, got us some steals and easy baskets.”
Offensively, Oceanside made a concerted effort to slow down Lee-Sutton. It worked early, as she was shut out in the first quarter. That’s when Caughman stepped in, scoring 11 points in the first to give the Raiders a 16-8 lead after one.
Lee-Sutton was able to contribute in other ways, especially with her passing, and eventually got her scoring going. She had seven straight points during a stretch in the third quarter as Keenan led 37-19.
“A lot of teams been showing that all year,” McLain said of Oceanside’s defensive strategy. “A couple girls stepped up really tonight. … (Aeronna) can pretty much score at will. We got to keep her on the floor. She got in a little foul trouble. But if we can keep her on the floor, we feel pretty good.”
Khloe Williams added nine points for Keenan and Kristin Brown and Zaria Mines each had nine.
Henley Hawks led Oceanside with 13 points.
This story was originally published February 28, 2026 at 4:19 PM.
