Ramstein's Amari Keyes shoots Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, during the championship game of the DODEA-Europe girls Division I basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
WIESBADEN, Germany – The embers of Ramstein’s 2026 Division I girls basketball title started burning much earlier than the beginning of the just concluded season.
The Royals hadn’t won a title since 2016 prior to Saturday’s 28-21 victory over Stuttgart.
Sometimes, they came close, senior Feliciana Davis said. Other times, like last year, they didn’t even reach the semifinals.
“We really had to get this one,” Davis said.
Davis is one of seven seniors graduating. Others will be moving on to other schools. So, coach Christina Hewitt isn’t sure what next year’s squad will look like yet.
“Pretty much starting over again,” she said.
That is almost what it felt like after last year’s tournament disaster, though, Davis implied.
“We all worked hard over the summer and during practice,” she said. “We didn’t want that to happen again.”
Saturday’s game was not exactly one full of highlight clips. Stuttgart got off to about as rough a start as a Division I team can, scoring only one point in the first quarter and just three by halftime.
“Our defense has done well all season,” Hewitt said. “But they were obviously struggling a bit.”
Still, Ramstein wasn’t exactly lighting the world on fire either, only totaling 14 by intermission.
Ramstein's Breanna Olivas puts up a shot Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, during the championship game of the DODEA-Europe girls Division I basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein's Jaivonne Jones concentrates on a free throw Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, during the championship game of the DODEA-Europe girls Division I basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Stuttgart's Alicia Wiggins drives to the basket Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, during the championshp game of the DODEA-Europe girls Division I basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein's Feliciana Davis shoots against the defense of Stuttgart's Alica Wiggins during the championship game Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, of the DODEA-Europe girls Division I basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Stuttgart's Addison Jennings shoots Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, during the championship game of the DODEA-Europe girls Division I basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)
Stuttgart finally caught a spark early in the third quarter with Alicia Wiggins driving to the hoop for one basket and Serenity Sampson connecting on a three-point goal to bring the score to 14-9 with 6 minutes, 28 seconds to play.
But that was as close as the Panthers got as their limited offensive success seemed to create a similar flame for the Royals, who turned several turnovers into easy baskets to expand the lead again.
Stuttgart coach Nathan Garrett said he knows his team tried its best.
“We put it all out there,” he said. “We just couldn’t shoot, pass or execute. Give Ramstein some credit for that. They deserved the win.”
The Panthers were handicapped by the absence of senior Hannah Holmes, the tournament MVP from a year ago. She’s currently ineligible to play for the Panthers due to a change in her sponsor’s job status.
Garrett said the Panthers split with the Royals when Holmes was still playing. And he gave credit to the rest of the team for even reaching the finals in her absence.
Wiggins finished with a game-high 13 points for Stuttgart. Javionne Jones, named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, had 12 for Ramstein.
