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"Youth Movement on The Court"
There's a youth movement going on as the 2012 Brant County senior girls basketball season is about to kick off.
While every season sees some sort of turnover because of graduation, all six teams either have an influx of former juniors, or a Grade 9 about to take the huge step into senior high school basketball.
As a result, it should make for some interesting storylines when the season kicks off Thursday.
And, right away, two of those Grade 9s may face each other when Kendra VanLeeuwen and the defending champion St. John's Green Eagles take on Rikayla Baldin and the Assumption College Lions at 7 p.m. at ACS.
The Paris Panthers, who will be led by first-year senior point guard Beth Stulen, hosts an inexperienced, but athletic Pauline Johnson Collegiate Thunderbirds at 5:30 p.m.
In the other game of opening day, it will be another battle of youth, when the North Park Collegiate Trojans visit the Brantford Collegiate Institute Mustangs at 7 p.m.
The junior games begin prior to the senior games.
Here's a brief preview of the senior teams:
Assumption Lions
There's a lot of excitement at Assumption College this season.
Coaches Rick Baldin and Rick Heron are hoping to be competitive at the highest level, especially with four of five starters returning.
"The goal for this year is to win the BCSSAA championship," Baldin said.
The Lions will be anchored by Jerika Baldin, Abby Heron, Emily Gill and Sara Harris, as well as Alex Van Dyk, Haley Rathwell and Grade 9 standout Rikayla Baldin.
"We should be a well-rounded team and have some solid players that add depth to a strong squad."
While the Lions will have a ton of experience, Jerika Baldin and Abby Heron gained even more over the off-season, playing elite basketball, which included tournaments in the United States.
New faces from junior include Nicole Shea, Niamo Samuels and Alexa Aquino.
Brantford CI Mustangs
The Brantford Collegiate Mustangs may be young, but they're set to compete.
The Mustangs will boast a lineup with two Grade 10s and six Grade 11s. Despite that, it doesn't have coach Ron Jamula worried.
"We are looking to grow throughout the year and be a real factor come playoff time," Jamula said. "We're going to be playing an up tempo game with solid defence.
"Our expectations are to reach top four and challenge for AAA CWOSSA," he said. "We have been stressing fundamentals and want to play an aggressive style both offensively and defensively."
North Park Trojans
For the North Park Collegiate Trojans and coach Andrea Hawkins, it'll be a wait and see approach to what
the season brings.
Last season the Trojans featured the likes of Reo Roland and Laura Chapple, who led the team to a brilliant second-place BCSSAA finish and its second-straight CWOSSA AAA championship.
With both gone and Chapple playing for the Brock Badgers women's basketball team, the Trojans will have a different look this season.
"We'll be a very different team from last year," Hawkins said. "Last year we were big and experienced. This
year we are small and athletic."
Despite the losses, Hawkins will rely on players such as Ali DeLorenzi, Jessica Grant, and Abbey Sayles to lead the way, while players like newcomer Abbey Johnston will be called upon to pick up the slack.
Pauline Johnson CVI Thunderbirds
With a slew of departing Grade 12s, Pauline Johnson Collegiate Thunderbirds head coach Neal Stamer is looking at a rebuilding year.
"We'll have a young team," Stamer said.
Stepping to the forefront are a number of returnees, including Erica Hewson and Katie Lunn.
The Thunderbirds may turn some heads because of the athleticism of players such as Madeline Dailey, Mackenzie Pulham, Ainslee Waller and Brianne Lavallee. Stamer said he hopes that athleticism translates to the court.
"We're not blessed with the level of basketball experience that populate some other teams in the city," Stamer said. "But we have some tremendous all-around athletes."
Paris Panthers
Development is the word to describe the Paris District High School Panthers senior girls basketball season.
With only three returning players - Kenzie Coomb, Alex Fletcher and Skylar McKay, the Panthers will do everything they can to stay competitive.
"We are inexperienced," coach Danielle Hawkins said.
Helping fill the void are five players who played junior last season.
"We will be led by one of these (junior) players, point guard, Beth Stulen," Hawkins said.
"In addition, we have two girls new to the sport. As a squad, we will are looking to improve. We will focus on fundamentals and defence."
St. John's Green Eagles
After winning a silver medal at OFSAA last season, St. John's College Green Eagles coach Matt Lynch is cautiously optimistic about the new season.
"I think the league is going to be very competitive," Lynch said. "There should be many great games this year. We expect the girls to compete every night, whether in practice or a game. We look forward to another exciting season of basketball."
And an early indication of how good the Green Eagles can be, came last weekend when they were runners-up at the Purple and White Tournament at Western University in London.
The Green Eagles will have plenty of experience with four players, including Megan Piette, Bridget Monkman, Lauren Dubois, Rebecca Dabor to provide leadership.
Add to the mix Brianna Bavota, Megan Thompson, Jamie Foster, Monica Polgar, and Jessika Dignan from last year's CWOSSA junior championship team, as well as Grade 9 Kendra VanLeeuwen, who played for the Ontario developmental team this summer, the Green Eagles look stacked with talent.
"The girls have been working very hard in practice to prepare for the season," Lynch said. "There is great chemistry. They are a great group of girls and we are getting great leadership out of our Grade 12s."
