Lady Trojans, B-C’s Bartman headline All-Area girls basketball team
There was one local girls basketball team that reigned above all others this past season.
When putting together the 2014-15 Herald-Standard All-Area Girls Basketball Team, all discussions had to start with the California Lady Trojans.
California’s list of accomplishments included a 22-game winning streak, the WPIAL’s best defense at only 26.6 points allowed per game and victories in the WPIAL and PIAA Class A playoffs. The state playoff win was the program’s first in school history.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Lady Trojans, though.
“We certainly faced our share of adversity throughout the season,” California coach Chris Minerd said. “Kylie Huffman (eight) and Bailey Vig (three) both missed games due to injuries. In fact, Kylie played the entire season less than 100 percent because that’s how much she cares about this team. Bailey had an excellent freshman season.
“During that time, we had several players such as Lyndsey Huhn, Jenna Miller, Brooke Clements and Kat Pankratz step up and carry the team. We had so many contributors that it’s hard to pick an MVP of this team. This team showed that we didn’t rely on one player. In fact, we were very balanced across the board.”
Minerd swirled all his players together to the tune of a sparkling 25-3 season, following up a 19-5 campaign the previous year, and is the choice as the Herald-Standard Coach of the Year.
While the Lady Trojans were coming off a great 2013-14 season, Beth-Center had gone a paltry 3-15 a year ago.
Thanks in large part to Player of the Year Anna Bartman, however, the Lady Bulldogs sported the best turnaround this season, jumping up to 13-6 record, including 9-3 in Section 4-AA where they finished just one game out of first place.
Bartman, a 5-foot-6 senior guard, averaged 20.1 points per game, but she did much more than score. Her ball-handling, passing, defense and leadership help spark B-C’s surprising season.
“Anna has been a great scorer the past few years but I thought this year she became a complete player,” said B-C coach Steve Beyer. “She worked hard in the offseason to improve her defense and got her whole team involved on offense. Many games she led our team in points, assists, steals and even had a few rebounds. She was a big reason for our playoff win as she had her hand in every aspect of the game.”
Bartman’s main competition for the Player of the Year honor came from Belle Vernon 6-2 senior forward Kaitlyn Slagus, a Bucknell recruit who was the area’s leading scorer at 21.9 points per game. Slagus, who helped lift the Lady Leopards to a second-place finish in Section 4-AAA and into the WPIAL playoffs, joins Bartman on the All-Area first team.
Also on the first team are Huffman (10.6 ppg), a 6-2 sophomore forward, and Huhn (12 ppg), a 6-0 senior center, two great all-around players who showed a unique ability in that they were big girls with excellent ball-handling skills. Huffman was the area’s best shot-blocker as well.
Rounding out the first team is Carmichaels’ 5-8 senior guard Caroline Cree, who averaged 20.4 points per game despite usually playing against defenses designed specifically to try to stop her.
Vig leads a second team that also includes Jefferson-Morgan’s Nicole Venick, Frazier’s Cassidy Guiser, Southmoreland’s Olivia Porter and Uniontown’s Khai Harris.
The third team consists of Miller, Jefferson-Morgan’s Ally Bogden, Brownsville’s Maris Seto, Frazier’s Jamie Miccioli and Beth-Center freshman Kinlee Whited.
A pair of special defensive player honors goes to Pankratz, who at times would evenly battle players almost a foot taller than her, and Jefferson-Morgan’s Erin Confortini, who could frustrate opponents with her long arms and aggressiveness.
The coaching was so good in the area this past season that you could’ve picked a starting five team of them, too.
Had it not been for Minerd’s squad, who knows how far Chris Niemiec’s Jefferson-Morgan team might have gone.
Niemiec’s Lady Rockets also had an outstanding season with a sterling 20-4 record and a WPIAL playoff victory. Jefferson-Morgan fell to California three times, twice in Section 3-A play and once in a WPIAL state play-in game.
Other than the Lady Trojans, J-M lost only one other game the entire season, that being to WPIAL finalist Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic in the playoffs.
Yet another impressive coaching job came at the Class AA level where Beyer not only helped Beth-Center improve by 10 wins but also guided the Lady Bulldogs to within one win of first place in Section 4-AA and to their first playoff victory in three decades.
In the same section, first-year Frazier coach Ken Poling led the Lady Commodores to a 13-9 overall record and a second-place tie with Beth-Center. Frazier came within a late loss at Washington to grabbing its first section title since 1974. The Lady Commodores also won a WPIAL playoff game.
In Class AAA, Lisa Fairman guided the Lady Leopards to a 16-7 record and a 9-3 Section 4-AAA mark
As for the rest of the All-Area team, honorable mention players were Alyssa Braddee and Monica Saunders of Albert Gallatin; Alie Seto of Brownsville; Molly Roberts, Emily Novak and Moriah Hathaway of Carmichaels; Abby Davis, Molly Bauer and Madison Wiltrout of Connellsville; Hannah Kline of Frazier; Karly Judy and Grace Nowicki of Geibel Catholic; Kayla Yorko and Morgan Simkovic of Jefferson-Morgan; Ashley Galderisi, Abby McDonald and Sarah Proud of Laurel Highlands; Rachel Muchtan, Madison Bogden, Lauren Sanetrik and Abby Shipley of Mapletown; Ayza Winfrey, Arielle Winfrey and Juanita Harris of Uniontown; Kristen Garber, Celeine Monica and Kellie Taylor of Waynesburg Central; and Marissa Rode and Sarah Courtwright of West Greene.