Bama! Close to full tuition with her test score . . .
Was going to suggest the same! App State is literally IN the Blue Ridge Mountains and has a huge outdoor activities vibe. I’ve heard good things about the honors program and they have other options as well - I also think your D would qualify for decent merit with her stats.
Could also try Virginia Tech, which is in a lovely part of Virginia and also has a strong outdoor vibe, but not sure if she’d get much merit from there.
She’d likely get a good package from Tennessee (main campus in Knoxville) and qualify for honors there - gorgeous location!
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8 hours on a plane - they can go to Alaska Anchorage 
The distance thing today should be “less” impactful - because in 8 hours you can pretty much be door to door to most places in the US. As someone said, there’s no mountains in Ohio. If the OP is going to Ohio State, it’s moot - because they’ll be in with merit. Many of the suggestions are small schools - when it appears she’s looking at big ones.
App State is one I missed - and was a great suggestion by those who mentioned - in addition to WVU which has great merit and perhaps reciprocity with PA. Another I just thought of - probably off the 8 hour thing - but Arkansas…great town, in the “hills” of Arkansas.
For a Ohio resident with a GPA of 3.97 UW and a 33 ACT, it seems that OSU would be a safety. If she is interested in data science, OSU is likely one of the best places, too.
There are a number of private colleges with good merit for high stats kids. Not automatic, but it is worthwhile looking at places like Rochester (not in the Midwest or South but otherwise seems to match), Richmond, or W&L. As for publics, U Georgia has some good merit funding, and seems to check your kid’s boxes as well.
Syracuse might fit the bill, close to mountains great school spirit. Not sure about their generosity with Merit though
OP didn’t say anything about flying, so I’m guessing that isn’t the preference. Your situation may make flying a very viable option but for some of us not living near airports ( even these days), flying is a major hassle and expense. I imagine a number of colleges in mountain areas may be far from airports on the other end or may require expensive and logistically difficult add-on flights to smaller airports. Don’t know about OP, but we (for example) live two-hours drive from ANY commercial airport. Add on the hours waiting in the airport, connecting flights, ground transportation on the other end…no thank you. Flying for some of us is much more of a headache than the simplicity of being in one’s own car.
I was being tongue in cheek hence I said Alaska Anchorage.
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There was a time when I might have agreed with you, but then I met various tourists to the US when traveling. There’s a large contingent who like our eastern mountains better than the western ones. Why, I asked? “Because the western mountains look pretty much like mountains anywhere else in the world. The eastern ones are so green and lush and not always lined up quite the same. They’re so different and stunning.” It gave me food for thought to hear it from a different POV.
Now, when travelers ask my opinion on what to see I distinguish between Eastern and Western mountains.
There are the Smokies/Appalachian and Adirondacks - both definitely have “mountain things” going for them from hiking to skiing to vistas. Clemson, Va Tech, and WVU all certainly have school spirit and mountains. Chattanooga is in the mountains too. One of my sons went to school near there. Not sure they’re as high with the school spirit part though.
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green and lush like rolling hills. 
Indeed, they are pretty in their own way.
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Your mountains are just brash youngsters, whereas our mountains are ancient, wise, mysterious, and yes, old as the hills. Plus, we have better fall colors!
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Have you seen the eastern mountains? Because they are totally different than rolling hills. We live in a rolling hills area of PA and I love it. PA has mountains - they’re totally different. PA’s mountains aren’t the greatest for the east coast though TBH. Head to NY, VT, VA, NC, TN, GA, WV…
But it’s possible we’re just different because we love all sorts of variety nature gives us on this planet.
I suppose it can be likened to cars - many different options out there, but still under the heading of car. You like one specific variety. No biggie. But it could help to realize others might have different opinions and that’s ok too.
No doubt there! As long as one is in the deciduous areas, not the evergreen areas!
But I’m not biased overall. I love western mountains too - the Rockies, the Sierra Nevadas, etc. They’re just different.
I think the east has amazing beauty! I just think of alpine environments when I think of “mountains.” Plus, I was really just getting a tongue in cheek burn in. 
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Actually the Adirondacks are among the oldest mountains in the world.
@inthegarden was talking about eastern mountains being ancient, wise, etc. 
Until I met those tourists I always thought the eastern mountains were “inferior” having grown up quite near the Adirondacks so they were “ho hum” whereas the western mountains were spectacular (being different than what I was used to seeing), so I get it.
I’m glad I met those tourists though. I like being able to see the beauty of pretty much everywhere in nature.
It’s not really different than colleges. What’s ho-hum to one student is awesome to another with no real “right” answer for all.
Back to the OP’s search though… does Ohio have mountains? I don’t recall any unless they’re in the far east next to WV/PA? WV certainly does and we get students from our school in PA who enjoy WVU. The Mountaineers have a bit of school spirit too.
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An outlier of the Canadian Shield, if I recall correctly.
But we have some 1.8 billion-year old rocks in the Blue Ridge of western North Carolina, also.
You’re right on target identifying the Adirondacks as an outcrop of the Canadian Shield. Suppressed under massive glaciers for tens of thousands of years, it is actually rebounding and its elevation slightly increases every year.
As a fellow midwest family, my kid too will look at midwest for cost but dreams of “different scenery” when he heads off to college.
Some schools on his list, Roanoke College and Shenandoah.
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Not sure where you are in the Midwest but my kids have all applied to numerous schools Over the years outside the Midwest and received awesome merit. We were never ‘merit chasing’ but there are definitely many schools that offer quite a bit. First look at schools like Montana State, Alabama, Vermont, New Hampshire. Just about any school in the colleges that change lives book offers some merit. Also look at southern schools like Berry, Sewanee - both unbelievably gorgeous and outdoorsy or Eckerd and Tampa in Florida. Finally in the Midwest there are some schools that offer interesting campus outdoors experiences with great education and really good merit like Lawrence, Michigan Tech, Northern Michigan. All the schools I have named we have had experience with and received merit.