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5 things to follow in the upcoming girls basketball season

Girls basketball preview: League-by-league breakdown

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Staff report Updated 5:22 PM Thursday, November 26, 2009

1. The Dayton area often reads like a Who’s Who Among High School Basketball. This chapter is no different. Chaminade Julienne’s Samarie Walker is bound for Connecticut. Fairmont’s Cassie Sant is a prized recruit for Dayton. Ja’Monica Orton is headed to Mississippi. Wright State landed talent in Xenia’s Jessica Alexander and Brookville’s Courtney Boyd. Who’s next?

2. As if Division II wasn’t tough enough with defending AP state poll champ Tippecanoe and state semifinalist Alter. Hello, Chaminade Julienne. The Eagles drop a division into an already loaded D-II that also includes Carroll and Kenton Ridge.

3. Ed Zink is entering his 35th season coaching Beavercreek and has a 635-165 record. That leaves him 22 wins behind state career leader Karen Wittrock, who went 657-198 at Rocky River Lutheran West before retiring after the 2007-08 season. Possibly a long shot, Zink’s team could get him to that mark with a strong season.

4. What can three Division I signees do to finish their high school careers? That’s the question at Vandalia Butler, where Kacie Cassell (Akron), Brianna Innocent (Western Michigan) and Lianna Innocent (Morehead State) will all continue their careers in college following their senior seasons. Last year, the Aviators went 20-4.

5. Alter is poised to follow CJ as the area’s most consistent team in the state tournament. The Knights were D-II semifinalists last season after winning the title in 2008. Four starters return from last season’s team, making Alter a daunting team throughout the area and state this season.

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