(FILE PHOTO / THE VILLAGE REPORTER)
BBC PREVIEW … Pettisville’s Olivia Miller (pictured) leads five returning letterwinners for Pettisville in scoring after dropping 13.5 ppg last season to help the Blackbirds to a BBC co-championship.
By: Nate Calvin
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
sports@thevillagereporter.com
MONTPELIER – Last season’s co-champs Pettisville and Montpelier figure to be factors in the league race as both teams a solid nucleus from last year.
Montpelier hopes their difficult non-league schedule will help prepare them for the BBC season. Six letterwinners return for Mike Bumb’s squad led by Kelsie Bumb and Jada Uribes.
Olivia Miller fronts the returners for the Blackbirds after averaging 13.5 ppg last season as the Pettisville roster features good versatility and head coach Jason Waldvogel expects Pettisville to improve on their shooting from a year ago.
Hilltop figures to be a factor as well with six players returning including the reigning BBC Player of the Year in Libbie Baker.
Here are the previews for each team in order of their finish in the BBC last season.
T1. Montpelier (17-7, 6-1 BBC; Lost in Division IV district semifinal to Ayersville, 39-37)
HEAD COACH: Mike Bumb (6th Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Meara McGee
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Kelsie Bumb, Jada Uribes, Aleigha Hillard, Madelyn Hopper, Lyla Mahan; Junior – Zoe Uribes
NEWCOMERS: Aislinn McGee (Fr.)
STRENGTHS: Returning experience, scoring, depth
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We have high expectations for the year. However, our schedule is much more difficult than last season. We hope that our difficult schedule will prepare us for the Buckeye Border Conference race and a tournament run.”
“This is probably the deepest team I have had. Not sure it is the most talented yet but that remains to be seen. We are led by Jada Uribes and Kelsie Bumb, who I believe are two of the top three players in our conference.”
“We also have a good supporting cast with Aleigha Hillard, Madelyn Hopper, Zoe Uribes, and Lyla Mahan. I will start six different players this year at one time or another.”
“We are also really excited about a freshman Aislinn McGee. We want her to grow and get plenty of time at the JV level but think she is someone who will incrementally get into the fold on varsity.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 22 – Ayersville (H); BBC Opener: December 19 – Fayette (H)
T1. Pettisville (14-9, 6-1 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional semifinal to Stryker, 38-30)
HEAD COACH: Jason Waldvogel (29th Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Grace Crawford (7.6 ppg, Hollyn Klopfenstein (2.9 ppg), Amanda Grimm (8.5 ppg), Lily Wiemken (2.8 ppg)
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Olivia Miller (13.5 ppg), Kelsey Bennett (1.7 ppg), Noelle Fox, Madison Remington (2.0 ppg), Grace Remington
NEWCOMERS: Sophomores – Ashlyn Rice, Sophie Beltz
STRENGTHS: “Our numbers are good with a decent amount of varsity experience which should give us some depth. The team is balanced in most aspects of the game with many players that are versatile in the positions they can play. I think we should shoot the basketball better than a year ago.”
WEAKNESSES: “Rebounding is something we look to improve upon and finding a comfort level in the different lineups we will have on the court.”
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We want to compete each night while putting ourselves in a situation come out on top each night.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “We think the league will be fairly balanced with many teams bringing back some key players.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 22 – Stryker (A); BBC Opener: January 3 – Holgate (H)
T3. Hilltop (14-9, 5-2 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional final to Stryker, 35-24)
HEAD COACH: Troy Grime (7th Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: None
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Libbie Baker (18.4 ppg, 9.4 rpg), Eleana VanArsdalen (2.3 ppg, 1.0 rpg); Juniors – Molly Dickinson (4.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg); Kenley Routt (1.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg); Sophomore – Kennedy Bailey (2.7 ppg, 1.7 rpg), Kelsy Connolly (3.4 ppg, 2.1 rpg)
STRENGTHS: Good depth in all positions, team works hard on both end of the floor.
WEAKNESSES: Ball handling, rebounding
SEASON OUTLOOK: “With continued improvement and support from the underclassmen as they gain experience, we are looking forward to a successful and fun season.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “Overall, the league will be very competitive. Co-champs Pettisville and Montpelier return a good nucleus of players. On any given night, you have to play your best.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 22 – Antwerp (A); BBC Opener: January 3 – North Central (A)
T3. Stryker (13-12, 5-2 BBC; Lost in Division IV district semifinal to Convoy Crestview, 72-32)
HEAD COACH: Conner Ruffer (5th Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Emmalee Fulk (9.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg), Laura Leupp (1.9 ppg, 2.6 rpg), Taylore Rethmel (3.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg)
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Juniors – Abby Oberlin (5.1 ppg, 3.4 rpg), Reiss Creighton (2.7 ppg, 1.8 rpg), Grace Froelich (6.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg); Sophomore – Aubrey Clemens (6.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg)
NEWCOMERS: Addalee Fulk (So.), Anna Donovan (Fr.)
STRENGTHS: “Most of the girls have played with each other before and are comfortable with one
another and have a common goal and are all hard workers.”
WEAKNESSES: Depth (currently have two players injured)
SEASON OUTLOOK: “This year I believe we will see a ton of growth from the beginning of the season to the end with girls becoming more confident and stepping up as leaders.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “The BBC is always competitive, and I feel like on any night, any team can end up on top and I believe we have a chance for the title as do a lot of the other teams.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 22 – Pettisville (H); BBC Opener: January 3 – Fayette (A)
5. Edon (7-16, 3-4 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional semifinal to Antwerp, 50-46)
HEAD COACH: Caela Walker (8th Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Jaycea Craven (8.0 ppg)
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Juniors – Genna Ripke (4.0 ppg), Grace Ripke (4.0 ppg), Adison Briner (12.0 ppg); Sophomore – Nevaeh Smith (7.0 ppg)
NEWCOMERS: “We have a great group of freshmen that are eager to learn and compete daily in practice. I’m excited for our entire group this season.”
STRENGTHS: Leadership and experience
WEAKNESSES: Perimeter shooting
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We are looking forward to competitive league and non-league play.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 23 – North Central (A); BBC Opener: December 7 – Holgate (A)
6. Holgate (7-17, 2-5 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional final to Gibsonburg, 56-25)
HEAD COACH: Mitch Fisher (1st Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Miriam Bower, Aubrey Pennington
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Six returning letterwinners
NEWCOMERS: “We are lacking numbers this year. We will rely on every kid to be the best in their role to help us be as successful as possible.”
STRENGTHS: “We have some kids who have played a lot of basketball. This experience will hopefully help us.”
WEAKNESSES: Depth, ball handling
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We just want to play hard and compete. We want to give ourselves a chance to be competitive in every game.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 22 – Kalida (A); BBC Opener: December 7 – Edon (H)
7. Fayette (4-19, 1-6 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional to Convoy Crestview, 82-21)
HEAD COACH: Travis Arkwright (1st Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Nevaeh Powers (5.4 ppg), Demi Storrs (3.5 ppg), Kenadie Ramay (3.0 ppg), Emersyn Sinks (1.4 ppg)
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Seniors – Zoie Brown (4.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg), Erika Fetterman (0.6 ppg, 1.7 rpg); Juniors – Addie Schang (6.8 ppg, 2.7 rpg), Kelsie Storrs (5.5 ppg, 3.9 rpg), Willow Mitchell (0.5 ppg, 0.4 rpg), Mesa Gorsuch (0.4 ppg, 1.1 rpg)
NEWCOMERS: Kennedy Kunkle (Fr.)
STRENGTHS: “The girls have shown a tremendous amount of growth from the summer. They are taking coaching and are putting themselves in a position to succeed.”
“This is a versatile group that can play multiple positions on the floor. We have a team that works well together and likes getting in the gym competing every day.”
WEAKNESSES: “We do not have a lot of size on our team. So, we are going to have to find ways to pull other teams’ bigger players away from the basket on offense and keep the ball out of the paint on defense so our opponent just can’t play bigger than us. We have to use our quickness to dictate how the game will be played.”
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We have to keep learning and getting better every single time we step on the floor. Whether that be playing games or in practice.”
“Each day is a chance to get better and hopefully at the end of the season we have an opportunity to compete and win championships.”
LEAGUE OUTLOOK: “I think our league is solid from top to bottom. Going into the season I believe every team believes they have a chance of winning a league title going into the season.”
“I don’t think anybody would be shocked if our league champion had multiple losses in league play.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 16 – Ayersville (H); BBC Opener: December 19 – Montpelier (A)
8. North Central (1-21, 0-7 BBC; Lost in Division IV sectional semifinals to Convoy Crestview, 80-12)
HEAD COACH: Jaime Brown (2nd Season)
LETTERWINNERS LOST FROM LAST SEASON: Grecia Dominquez (1.8 ppg, 1.6 rpg), Mireya Cruz (2.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg)
RETURNING LETTERWINNERS: Maddeline Zimmerman (5.2 ppg ,2.4 rpg), Anna Burt (1.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg), Tessa Reyome (0.6 ppg, 0.8 rpg), Cailyn Myers-Injured last year, Mallory Groves (2.7 ppg, 3.2 rpg), Addyson Turner (1.5 ppg, 1.8 rpg), Addie Burger (0.7 ppg, 1.8 rpg), Ava Gruber (0.6 ppg, 0.5 rpg), Amara Wright (2.8 ppg, 2.5 rpg)
NEWCOMERS: Emmi Hollstein, Kenzie Hickman, Amalia Lawson, Breann Gendron
STRENGTHS: “We have great numbers and should be able to play a lot more kids.”
WEAKNESSES: inexperience
SEASON OUTLOOK: “We are looking to improve every day, and the BBC is a tough league, and multiple teams are going to be tough every night.”
ABOUT THEIR SCHEDULE: Season Opener: November 23 – Edon (H); BBC Opener: January 3 – Hilltop (H)
