Ready To Shine
Star power?
The 2019-20 Butler County high school girls basketball season has it.
Freeport's Sidney Shemanski, Mars' Bella Pelaia and North Catholic's Kylee Lewandowski immediately come to mind.
And they will have plenty of company.
Here is a look at area teams this season:
Coach: Dave Sherman, 10th yearLast Year: 22-5How do the Falcons respond after losing 37 points and 22 rebounds per game and a wealth of intangibles from last year's team?Sherman believes it starts with the right mind-set.“We lost a lot and the girls know it,” he said of guards Olivia Boocks and Cami McNany and forward Kylee Eaton, who all graduated after leading the team to the most successful season in program history.“Other teams think it will lead to us struggling and hopefully, our girls use it as fuel and get some motivation from that.”Guard Rachel Cullen and forward Andrea Meals return as starters, with the former taking over at point guard for Boocks.Meals averaged 6.3 points and seven boards last season.“We'll have to lean on those two to take charge and keep everybody focused,” Sherman said.Junior swing player Mia Sherman, who would have been a viable reserve last year before an injury kept her off the court for almost the entire season, is back and slated to start.Guard Baylee Blauser and forward Meah Ielase will round out the starting lineup.“The cupboard is not bare,” insisted Sherman. “We just have to work on getting better every night, whether it's in practice or a game.”
Coach: Mark Maier, 3rd yearLast Season: 8-14The Golden Tornado return three solid starters in guard-forward Jordan Kauffman, point guard Emma Monteleone and forward Alison Altman.Kauffman, who recently signed a letter of intent with Slippery Rock University, averaged 12 points per game and sank 51 treys.“We're hoping Jordan can add a few more points to that average, but we need to be well-balanced otherwise,” Maier said of his team's scoring. “Defenses will be looking to limit her production.“We need a number of players to average five or six points a game. That will be key for us.”A pair of junior guards — Sarayne Forbes and Macklin Hanley — are bidding for starting spots. Guard Hailey Metzger, guard/forward Makenna Maier and guard Aubree Tack also figure to see a lot of time.“Alison Altman can do a lot of things for us inside, providing defense and rebounding,” Coach Maier said. “Emma runs the break well and will probably score a few points for us that way.”Butler dropped its first playoff game last year. WPIAL powers North Allegheny and Norwin are in the Tornado's section.“Our No. 1 goal is to get back to the playoffs. If you can't get to the playoffs, you can't win a championship,” Maier said.
Coach: Fred Soilis, 5th yearLast Season: 18-5Experience is definitely the Yellowjackets' friend this season.“We've got four starters back and three of them will be fourth-year starters,” Soilis said. “This is an extremely seasoned group.”Senior Sidney Shemanski averaged 14 points per game last year and will likely be the point guard. Fellow fourth-year starters Maddie and Samantha Clark averaged between 10 and 12 points a game last season.Harley Holloway, a senior guard, is Freeport's other returning starter. The fifth starter will likely be junior guard Grace Soilis.“Our athleticism has improved as these players have matured,” Coach Soilis said. “Team development is a positive, leadership is a positive.”The coach is hoping his players communicate more on the court.“Girls don't tend to talk to each other ... There are no phones on the court,” Soilis joked. “Seriously, the more vocal we are, the better we'll be.”Leah Hartman, a forward, and Louisa Fennell, a guard, are among the top players off the bench.“We're in a tough section, especially with North Catholic,” Soilis said. “They just reload every year. We were competitive with them last year. Hopefully, we can get over the hump this year.”
Coach: Steve Andreassi, 3rd yearLast Year: 4-16While the Gremlins struggled last season, a lot of girls picked up playing experience.“We started 12 different players at one time or another,” Andreassi said of last season.One would-be senior returner, guard Lizzie DeRose, is out for the season after tearing her ACL recently. The other seniors are guard Peyton Turner, forwards Emily Huff and Brittney Frieters.Four sophomores — Rossi McMillen, Alyson Fennell, Emma Johns and Brooke Manuel — are competing for starting spots.“We have a lot of varsity experience and we had a good offseason,” Andreassi said. “We're still young. You always want to win more games, but we need to continue to grow as a team.“If we keep working and put a collective effort on the floor, the results will come.”
Coach: Chris Andreassi, 4th yearLast Season: 9-14Compared to this point going into last season, the Knights are well ahead of the game.“We had no starters coming back last year. This year, we have four,” Andreassi said. “We're much more experienced.”Those four returning starters are guard Nevaeh Ewing (11 ppg.), guard Madilyn Boyer (8.5 ppg.), forward Lauren Cihonski (10 ppg.) and point guard Abbey Shearer.The fifth starter will likely come from guards Amanda Huckestein, Sami Archer and Jaylee Lassinger.“Our strength is we can shoot the ball well,” Andreassi said. “We need to rebound well as a team because we are a very guard-oriented team.“The WPIAL rankings came out and North Catholic and Freeport are listed 1-2. They're both in our section. Indiana has a freshman who's already been offered by Ohio State. The competition will be tough.”Regardless, the Knights are hopeful of returning to the WPIAL playoffs for a third consecutive year.“Get there and win a playoff game this year. That's what we want,” Andreassi said.
Coach: Dana Petruska, 5th year (second stint)Last Year: 18-6When it comes to the foundation of any sports team, athleticism is not a bad place to start.The Planets have a good deal of it this season and how far they go will depend on their ability to surround it with leadership.Swing player Bella Pelaia, guard Alek Johnson and center Ava Black return as starters. Kaitlyn Pelaia, who started half of last season, is also back.“We definitely have good athletes and they are coachable,” said Petruska.The team is in search of a point guard with last year's starter, Ellie Coffield, not playing basketball this season.Candidates to take over there include Johnson and Kaitlyn Pelaia and Kylee Fredericks could also contribute.Whoever runs the offense, they will often be feeding the ball to Bella Pelaia, the team's top returning scorer at 14 per game.“She can't try and do everything herself,” said Petruska. “Teams are going to try and key on her and shut her down. She has to recognize that and get her teammates involved.”Junior guard Carly Kern could move into a prominent role.“She took three charges this summer,” said Petruska. “We took one charge as a team all of last year.“Carly is unselfish and is good at anticipating on defense. She has no problem diving for a ball.”
Coach: Dee Arblaster, 5th yearLast Year: 9-14The Warriors want to put last year far behind them.It was an up-and-down season for Moniteau, but Arblaster hopes the returning players learned something from that experience.“We do have a lot back,” Arblaster said. “We're going to rely on our starting five a lot.”The Warriors have three starters back: senior guard Kristin Auvil, who led the team with 14.2 points per game; junior Aslyn Pry, who scored 8.6 points to go with 8.1 boards per contest; and senior Haley Pry.“Haley doesn't put up big numbers, but she does all the other things you need,” Arblaster said.Junior Ivie Scott, who played significant minutes off the bench and senior Kaitee Chesonis, will round out the starting five.Arblaster likes to play up-tempo, but may have to dial that back a bit because of a concern with depth.“We're going to have to pick and choose when we run,” Arblaster said. “I know it sounds funny, but it really comes down to how we take care of the basketball. We have to stay in our system and stay healthy.”
Coach: Molly Rottmann, 22nd yearLast Year: 26-4High expectations are attached to the Trojanettes on an annual basis.With four starters returning from last year's WPIAL Class 4A championship and state runner-up squad, Rottmann knows a lot will once again be on the shoulders of her players.“We have nine seniors and I told them, don't fast forward through the regular season to get to the playoffs,” Rottmann said. “Some of them are going on to play in college, but that's a different game. This is their last season of high school basketball and I want them to enjoy it.”Guards Tess Myers, Kylee Lewandowski, Emma Pospisil and Cassie Foster return as starters and bring a ton of production with them. The quartet combined to average 43 points per game in 2018-19.Myers led the team with 15.8 points and Lewandowski was right behind her at 15.Pospisil averaged nearly four assists at point guard as a junior.“She's been playing (varsity) a lot since her freshman year,” said Rottmann. “She sees the floor well, is very unselfish with the ball and is one of the best on-ball defenders.”The one starter not returning is the graduated Dani Short, who led the team in rebounds last season.“We relied on her heavily for rebounds and replacing that will be one of our biggest challenges,” said Rottmann.Myers and Lewandowski combined to average 11 boards per game and should be strong presences on the glass.Forwards Sarah Berardelli (6-1) and Belle O'Hara (5-11) provide valuable size that will make it very difficult for opponents to win the battle of the boards.Depth will be provided by guards Branygan Bianchin, Lucy Waskiewicz and Dacia Lewandowski.
Coach: Dorothea Epps, 1st yearLast Year: 15-8The amount of success the Raiders meet with this season will depend on players' ability to step into new roles.The most notable void left by graduation is the loss of point guard McKenna Gross, who was named Butler Eagle Girls Basketball Player of the Year last March after scoring 15 points with two assists and three rebounds per game. But as a three-year starter, Gross also brought valuable intangibles to the court.Sophomore Jess Bickart will be playing the point this year.“Last year, she had a different role,” said Epps. “We're working with her to understand her role this year.”Epps emphasized that Bickart can also score and that other players will contribute at bringing the ball up the floor.“Point guard will be by committee for us,” Epps said. “Haley Cramer, Jaden Davinsizer, even Maddy Karchut (6-1 senior forward) isn't bad at handling the ball.”Karchut is another player who will be asked to do more this season. She averaged nine points and six rebounds as a junior.“We need her to score more this season,” said Epps. “We're missing a lot of points with not having McKenna and Gretchen (Koken, graduated). We have to replace them with hustle and game smarts.”Sophomore swing player Olivia West (5-11) should also figure into the starting lineup.“Defensively, we will mix it up with some pressure and zone, but man-to-man will be our identity. We have to rely on our defense to get us ugly points.”Epps isn't focused on long-term goals.“I tell the girls that they have to be cautious about looking too far ahead,” she said. “If we go out and do our job each night, the other things will take care of themselves.”
Coach: Amber Osborn, 4th yearLast Year: 20-6Slippery Rock's “Big Three” has been reduced to two.That's because Maryann Ackerman, who led the Rockets in scoring last season at 13.5 points per game, is lost for the season with a torn ACL.Still, there's plenty of weapons and plenty of optimism in Slippery Rock.“We just have to buckle up and figure it out,” Osborn said. “We had a pretty good offseason.”The Rockets do have Hallie Raabe and Anna Kadlubek back.Raabe — whose nickname is “Red,” is a dynamic player inside and outside of the paint and averaged 11.6 points per game.Kadlubek is a speedy point guard who can get from one end of the court to the other in a flash.“Red had a good base to build off of,” Osborn said. “Red's IQ has gotten a lot better. She sees things that I've been saying now. “Anna — I'm pretty sure her freshman year and last year she thought I yelled at her every time down the court. She's learned now when to slow it down and she knows who to get the ball to.”Kadlubek is also a threat to score; she averaged 9.6 points per game last season.This year, however, may come down to how the rest of the team plays.Sophomore Ella McDermott broke out late last season as a dangerous shooter. Fellow sophomore Bronwyn McCoy is also looking to build on a solid freshman campaign and junior Kelly Benson is poised for a big year.“I would say she's easily our most improved player,” Osborn said. “She got very little varsity time last year.”The Rockets are 59-17 over the last three seasons with a District 10 championship and back-to-back 20-win years.“As long as everyone stays healthy, we have an opportunity to make an indent on the region,” Osborn said.
Coach: Allyson Kepple, 3rd yearLast Year: 8-14Last season, the Damsels' 6-2 start evaporated as the team won just two of its final 16 games and missed the District 9 playoffs.Kepple is hoping for a more sustained effort this year.It will be a challenge with no seniors on the roster and 10 of the 12 players being underclassmen.“The losses hit us hard and it's tough to break out of that funk,” said Kepple. “With us being so young, we're focusing on mental toughness.”Union does have a cornerstone to build around in 5-10 sophomore swing player Dominika Logue, who averaged 13.4 points, 7.3 rebounds and three assists per game as a freshman.“She was our point guard last year, but we will be playing her a lot on the wing this season,” Kepple said. “That will give her more freedom.“Dominika helps out the younger girls and points people in the right direction,” said Kepple. “Those are things you usually see from a junior or senior.”Also returning as starters are guard/forward Hailey Kriebel and forward Maggie Minick, both sophomores.Freshman Kennedy Vogle will run the point while Keira Croyle, Tori Milliron, Cassie Austin and Kiera Zitzman will give the team depth.
