“We’re definitely rebuilding – that’s no secret – when you lose the best player to ever walk in the gym, and all those other players as well,” Shackelford said.
Ma’kaylia Lute is the Warriors’ only senior and is joined in the starting lineup by junior Katelyn Reilly and sophomore Morgyn Rose. They scored a combined 46 varsity points last season. The other starters are freshmen Imani Frazier and Amiel Jones.
“They’re all in situations they’ve never been in before,” Shackelford said. “The biggest thing for us is just being patient, keeping them encouraged, keeping them with high confidence, just keeping them believing them in what you’re doing.”
The Greater Western Ohio Conference has been loaded with Division I talent in recent years. But the departures have been extreme across the league. Wayne graduated Hall, Alyssa Hargrove-Hall (Stetson), Lovie Malone (Valparaiso), Jacquel Bronaugh (IUPUI), Saharra Murphy (Division II Alderson-Broaddus) and Cydne Campbell (NAIA Lourdes).
Elsewhere, Centerville lost Cotie McMahon as a January enrollee at Ohio State and Amy Velasco to Bowling Green. Springboro’s Jordan Hobbs is at Michigan and Peyton Nation is at Division II Belmont Abbey in North Carolina.
“I think we can be competitive this year because, if we’re being honest, the overall GWOC and the overall landscape of the basketball in the area isn’t as high level as it’s been in the past,” Shackelford said. “So there’s a lot of teams in the same boat as us talent wise. The difference is they might have more experience than us, which goes a long way.”
The future, however, could be a return to recent Wayne levels. Shackelford said there is high-level talent from the freshman class down to the sixth grade.
Shackelford brings a varied background to the Wayne job. He played on Jefferson’s state championship team in 1998 and played at West Virginia Tech and Urbana. He began coaching on the women’s staff at Wilberforce right out of college for a few years. He has since worked in youth and in AAU, coaching Velasco, former Fairmont standout Maddie Westbeld, now at Notre Dame, and Wayne grad Nyla Hampton, now at Bowling Green.
Shackelford said his new job has been a goal since he joined Trice’s staff five years ago.
“I was always asking for extra assignments and asked a lot of questions because I definitely knew, with his ability and his coaching knowledge, he’d have an opportunity to move on whenever he wanted,” Shackelford said.
Players To Watch
Haley Crozier, Springboro: As a junior, she was second-team all-GWOC at 8.9 points per game (36.1% on 3-pointers) while deferring to Hobbs and Nation. She scored 22 in the Panthers’ opener.
Kendal George, Centerville: The junior was second-team all-GWOC, averaging 8.1 points and shooting 36.6% from 3-point range as the Elks’ third option behind McMahon and Velasco.
Claire Henson, Valley View: A first-team all-SWBL player as a junior, she averaged 12.6 points and 6.0 rebounds.
Mallory Hullinger, Fairmont: The senior guard averaged 12.8 points last season and was second team all-GWOC.
Anna Long, Miamisburg: Long is the only returning first-team all-GWOC player. As a junior she averaged 13.9 points and 4.1 assists.
Sarah Ochs, Carroll: The senior averaged 14.7 points last season and was a strong defender in helping lead the Patriots to their second straight Division II final four.
Jordan Pettigrew, Ponitz: The 5-5 senior averaged 23.6 points and 5.0 assists last season.
Raeven Raye Redmond, Trotwood-Madison: She will take on a bigger scoring load this year after averaging 13 points and 5 rebounds as a sophomore.
Maci Rhoades, Beavercreek: The senior was second team all-GWOC and led the Beavers last year with 9.8 points a game and with 2.4 steals.
Angie Smith, Yellow Springs: Already a 32-point game this season, the senior average 22.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists last season.
Riley Smith, Alter: The 6-2 sophomore averaged 9.4 points and 5.1 rebounds last year. She has scored 22 and 17 to start the season.
Allie Stockton, Sidney: As a sophomore she was first-team all-MVL and averaged 16.3 points and 6.2 rebounds.
Macie Taylor, Troy: A first-team all-MVL selection last year, Taylor averaged 16.8 points and 6.4 rebounds.
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