Embedded Files
Division IV State Champs
Division IV State Champs
Following this weekend's success, the girls are still riding the high of their win. Even though the Girls Basketball Program has been to state for 6 of the last 8 years, they haven't won since 2016. This was a huge accomplishment for these girls who got to top their performance last year when they lost in the final four-game.
Defeating Buckeye Central on Friday, the girls moved on to their last competition: New Knoxville. On Saturday the travel to Dayton was a real trek following the snow from Friday night. Most people that came home woke up to almost 5 inches of icy snow. This obstacle of the roads didn't keep the community silenced, though. Fans, friends, and family pushed through to support these girls one last time. With a "sea of green"(as Cara Taylor said), they were ready to go all out Saturday evening.
Starting the game, the girls were nervous but used the momentum of the weekend to take them 9-0 in the first quarter. However, New Knoxville had a run and topped the Lady Wildcats at halftime. Coming back from a pep talk from Coach Jerry Close, the girls had a huge run in the second quarter and managed to keep it until the end of the game, winning 35-26.
I talked to the varsity girls basketball team to get their thoughts, opinions and ask them fun questions about this weekend. I talked to all the girls to get their perspectives. Whether they were starting five or a main supporter on the sidelines, these girls all had a huge role to play.
First let's start with Taylor Starkey, a freshman, who manages the girl's basketball team. Taylor is a huge supporter of this team and when I mentioned her to all the girls, a smile always lights up their faces. I asked all the girls if they could pick a word to describe their experience at state this past weekend and why that word summed it up. Taylor said, "Super-cool-awesome-amazingness, being at state was a once in a lifetime experience. I got to wear a special name tag and it was super-cool cause we actually won. It was awesome-sauce." Kendall Sury, a freshman, told me her word was, "Excitement, whenever the last buzzer went off it was pure adrenaline. I would do anything to relive that moment, all the smiles and happiness of everyone." Freshman Avery Smithberger chose, "Chaotic, after we won Friday, Coach watched film that night and then we watched film that morning on our next team, who we were playing that night. It was just a busy weekend." Freshman Avery Wagner agreed and said, "Crazy, just being a freshman and experiencing it my first season. All the people, lights, and sound. Just crazy."
Sophomore Laykyn Jones is someone that has been a huge part of this program and team for the past two years. Laykyn played very well at state and told me her word would be, "Unbelievable, I wouldn't want to be with anyone else." Sophomore Leah Ryan chose the word, "Miraculous, on and off the court was such a fun and unexpected experience. Off the court, we had a lot of fun in the hotel playing cards, especially spoons and kimp." Sydnee Cline, sophomore, said, "Glad because I'm glad I got the opportunity to be part of this team and travel our victory to state champs."
Varsity players Juniors, Madi Heiner and Kari Carney, are also a big part of the team. Even though there are just two of them, they are mighty. Madi told me her word was, "Honored. The way the team worked together this past weekend to achieve a goal was incredible. I am so honored and proud of each and every one of the girls along with myself for the accomplishments made this past year We had a huge target on our back and we still persevered through all of it." Kari said, "Priceless, because this was an experience that I will never forget." Nothing will be able to top the memories and the moments that were made with my teammates."
Talking to the senior girls was bittersweet. Knowing these are their last interviews with the WAWICA for girls basketball, I felt honored to get to watch them this year and throughout their career in the Waterford Girls Basketball program. Cara Taylor chose the word, "Memorable, not only winning but the support we received." Lillian Franchino agreed and said her word was, "Incredible, seeing how many people came to support and came that far was incredible." Mackenzie Suprano says, "Marvelous. It hasn't sunk in yet but it's the best way to go out on Senior year."
Next, I asked the girls one funny moment from this weekend. Staying in a hotel for a whole weekend with teammates and best friends always makes for an interesting and fun time. The responses I got were my favorite parts of the interviews. Cara said, "Well Todd liked to be a ninja. He would hide in the stairs, in the upper stairwell, and jump down to scare us when we walked through. He would jump down and yell 'NINJA' and I almost peed my pants." Lilly said, "When we got the trophy after winning, all the seniors didn't get a hold of it and almost dropped it." Mac said, "Meredith and her friends came to our hotel and made us a bet that if we won the championship Saturday night, they would get a pawprint and a heart tattooed on their butts. We sealed the deal with a fist bump."
Taylor Starkey told me, "When we went out to eat Lilly ordered a hamburger with just lettuce and got a hamburger with everything but lettuce. They sent it back and brought another one out and it was the same thing except with more ketchup on the side. Then she cried." Kendall told me a funny story about one of the many card games they played over the span of these three days. "During a game of spoons Leah and Avery Wagner were fighting over a spoon to win and Leah dived over the table, tackled Avery, and then when she went to sit back down she completely missed her chair and fell on the ground." Avery Smithberger said, "Well every time we would walk into the conference room(which was basically the girls' living room for the weekend) Doug Huffman would be in there every time, sitting in the corner all by himself. It was so funny." Avery Wagner said, "Definitely when Lilly cried over her burger getting messed up." Madi also told me, "Playing spoons and Leah diving over the table to get the spoon." Kari Carney said, "One funny moment that we had as a team was playing cards in the hotel. We were all so tired we could barely think and we were all just laughing so much."
Sophomore Laykyn Jones' favorite funny moment from behind the scenes was, "Every game Taylor gives her speeches in the locker rooms to pep us up before the games, she spelled out CHAMPS before our game Saturday and does an acronym for each letter of the word. C is for.... and so on." I have heard about these alleged pep talks before and asked Laykyn if they actually pepped her up, to which she responded, "Yes, they pep you up. Every game she does it, we win. The only three games we lost this year... she didn't give her speeches." Some superstition, those Wildcats are for sure going to need her next year. Leah said, "One of my favorite memories is when there was this chair in the locker room that has been slowly sort of breaking throughout the season. Well, one day before our game I sat down and was just talking not paying attention and the next thing I know is I'm on the ground. Everyone was laughing and it was just a lot." Sydnee Cline said, "A funny moment I had with the team this year is playing dodgeball at practice 4 days before our final four- game."
Last, I asked the younger classes how they felt to be coming up on their next year of basketball and how they felt to lose their seniors from the class of 2022. The girls basketball program isn't going anywhere, but they are definitely going to feel the loss of this year's senior class.
The freshmen of this class have created great bonds with this senior class even though some are a whole 4 years younger than them. Kendall told me she was going to miss them very much. Avery Wagner agreed and said, " It's sucks losing them. Mackenzie is a great shooter, Cara is extremely fast and Lilly is so good on defense." I also asked Avery how she feels she did personally this year and coming up on her sophomore year. She responded by saying she thought she did good personally this year and that there are, "lots of freshman coming next year and I think we'll still be pretty good." Avery Smithberger said, "We're going to have to rebuild without the seniors, I'm excited for next year as well as getting to have more opportunity on the team. I'm excited to get to see others have more opportunity as well."
I asked manager Taylor how she felt knowing she still has three more years managing a team who just won state and she said, "Expectations for the team are going to be higher because they are awesome and there will be a lot more pressure on the road ahead, I hope we will push through." I also asked her if and how she was going to up her game, as the manager, now that the girls are state champs. She started laughing with Kendall and said, "Screw the lids on the water bottles better. I also got a system down at the last game and I am going to put it to use more next year. I'm not scared to run with them so I'll be doing more of that." She also wanted me to add, "#whatsonthemenuts," explaining that this inside joke is due to a misprint on Leah's t-shirt for state. The side of the shirts are supposed to say #whatsonthemenu, but Leah's shows...
Sophomore Leah told me, "Losing the seniors is going to be really tough. They are such great leaders and people, it will just feel weird without them. I will really miss them and cry every night." Going into my junior year is odd, I feel like I should still be a freshman, it doesn't feel real. But I'm excited and ready for what next year brings." Laykyn Jones felt similar saying, "It feels very scary because this team has made a very tight bond and I have too, with the seniors. We've started together for two years, we know how each other plays and it's going to be very different without them here." Her thoughts on the team next year are that they will, "be fairly decent with all of the classes and the freshman coming up. Coach tells me all the time that I will have to step it up and take Cara's place as a leader."
Kari Carney said, "I am very upset to be losing our seniors, they have had a huge impact on my life in sports growing up and I hope to never lose the bond that I have grown with them this season. It is very hard to believe next year will be my senior year. I can not wait to experience all of the lasts as well as all of the new beginnings and to be a leader for the younger classes. Junior Madi told me, "I'm so sad to be losing these seniors. There were so many good memories made in these last three years and it's going to be different without them next year." Speaking on next season Madi said, "Coming up on my senior year I'm excited. We have an even bigger target on our back and as a team, we will have to fight so much harder to get back to state next year. Each of us has a very important role going into next season, the only way to make it back to state is to understand your role and play within your abilities."
Now, for the seniors, they have no next season to predict as they will be moving on to new things. However, they are still going to experience the loss of teammates, and not just three. These girls will be losing their entire team as well as the sport(except for Mackenzie who will be continuing her basketball career in college at Ohio Northern). I asked them how the support of their community changed their experience at state. Mackenzie said, "Tremendously, without the crowd and excitement of the student section we wouldn't have been able to achieve everything we did." Cara elaborated saying, "Last year in the crowd there were fans, but everything was spread out and smaller due to Covid. This year, however, when you looked up into the crowd you saw a sea of green. The crowd, student section supporting even when we were down changed everything. They cheered and brought us back up." Mackenzie also talked about the sound in the gym saying, "It was so loud. I would be 2 feet away from Cara trying to have a conversation with her and we couldn't hear each other." Lilly agreed saying, "Well when I missed a layup the student section screamed foul and it made me feel better about myself."
Page updated
Report abuse