ADAMS TWP — When Bella Pelaia was a sixth-grader, Dana Petruska saw her play for the first time.

Pelaia was a point guard for that team.

When Pelaia got to high school, she was still a point guard.

Petruska, who had taken over as the girls coach at Mars, had other plans for the tall, lanky Pelaia.

“I asked her, 'How do you feel about playing the post position?'” Petruska said. “She said, 'Oh, no. I'm a guard.'”

Petruska stressed to Pelaia that she really needed her to play the post.

The next day, Pelaia agreed.

Pelaia stayed after practice, working on her post moves. She did that day after day, year after year while still maintaining her ball-handling ability and shooting touch.

“I think that tells you what kind of kid she is,” Petruska said.

The 5-foot-11 Pelaia turned into one of the most versatile players in the state and averaged 17 points and 10 rebounds per game this winter as a senior.

For her efforts, Pelaia was unanimously named Butler County Girls Basketball Player of the Year as selected by the Butler Eagle sports staff.

“It means a lot and I'm very honored,” Pelaia said. “It feels good to be recognized for putting so much into something.”

Pelaia thanked Petruska for pushing her to play in the post four years ago.

She said it made her the player she is today.

“It definitely was hard for me playing with my back to the hoop after always facing the hoop and driving the paint,” Pelaia said. “It felt really unnatural at first. But I worked at it.

“I'm so grateful for it,” she added. “It made me multi-dimensional. I want to thank Coach P for making me uncomfortable so I could be a better player.”

Pelaia was one of the few veterans on the roster for the Planets this season.

Pelaia was a sophomore on a Mars team that won the PIAA Class 5A championship in 2018. The key players from that team have since moved on.

Still, the Planets went 15-8 this season.

“It was weird for me, especially after winning the championship during my sophomore year,” Pelaia said. “I have high standards as a team. I think for the youth we had on the court, we did really well.”

Of Mars' eight losses, seven came by seven points or less.

The one lopsided loss came in the first round of the WPIAL playoffs, a 52-36 setback to Moon.

Pelaia took it upon herself to be a leader in her final year with the Planets.

“We had a ton of freshmen this year and I remember what it was like coming in as a freshman — we all were freshmen once. I didn't want to be the upperclassman they feared. I wanted to be on the same level and earn their respect and trust. We formed a great bond and a great relationship.”

One of the younger members of the team was Pelaia's sister, Kaitlyn, who is already 5-10 and still growing.

The pair often play one-on-one, even in the family basement with no hoops to speak of.

“She pushes me and I push her,” Bella Pelaia said. “She definitely gives it to me. She enjoys seeing me do well and wants to help me do well. We'll play one-on-one in the basement and just work on our defense and it sometimes gets heated.”

Bella Pelaia also reached a milestone this season when she surpassed 1,000 career points Jan. 2 at Franklin Regional.

“It was really important to me,” she said. “The one thing that made me a little upset was I wanted to do it at home. But I had the whole team around me and Coach Petruska and my family. They were all the ones who made it possible for me to reach that milestone.”

Pelaia is heading to Mount St. Mary's University next season to continue her academic and basketball career.

Pelaia said she learned from the best in former standout teammates Lauren Wasylson and Tai Johnson.

“They both put so much time into their games and I learned about work ethic from them,” Pelaia said. “They taught me fundamental skills. Lauren would call me up from time to time and say, 'Hey, I'm coming over.' We'd work out and work on our game. They were so great.”