The varsity girls basketball team faces difficulties as they’ve had three different coaches over the past three years.

The team’s newest coach is Ryan Looman, who’s aware of the challenges that come with being a first year coach but is prepared to overcome those obstacles.  Looman is more than experienced as a coach as he’s coached football and basketball at Conneaut High School, Saint John High School, and NDCL. In addition, he got his toes wet last year as the varsity boys assistant coach.

Looman said, “The challenges start in the off season with just getting to know all the girls and the different skills that they have. As a coaching staff we are overcoming this by trying to be around as much as possible and having as many workouts as we can.” Open gyms began in the spring and continued all the way up until tryouts in late October.

A sophomore on the team this year, Julia DeBaltzo, also notices the challenges that come with a new coach. “You get used to a certain system so it can be hard to adapt. We are transitioning right now but the team seems to be coming along just fine,” she said.

Senior Megan Valenti said that at open gyms noticed individuals improving and the team gelling which she credits to the new coaching staff. She said, “Looman has brought back a team culture and has really stressed the importance of togetherness. Last year our team lacked a sense of camaraderie and we are all more than excited to get that back.”

However, a new coaching staff isn’t the only problem the Wildcats have to face.

Looman said that size is just one of the other obstacles the team will have to overcome. “We aren’t necessarily incredibly tall, but we are pretty fast,” he said.

In order to compensate for the lack of height, Looman has stressed the importance of beating the other team down the floor.  In order to achieve this Looman puts the girls through speed, agility, and strength workouts at every open gym.

Valenti said, “It’s all about adjustment. Our tallest player is only 5’9’’ so that’s an obstacle we will have to overcome.” Valenti said that she believes that the guards will step up in order to make up for points that may be lost under the basket.

Another challenge arises as the team is comprised heavily of underclassmen. Looman said that the bulk of the team is probably going to be sophomores this year.

Being a freshman on the team last year, DeBaltzo is aware of how demanding it can be to play with an older group of girls. She said, “Having younger players can be a challenge because all of the upperclassmen have a lot more experience. It can be difficult and definitely takes some time to get used to.”

Though having some inexperienced players can be tough at times, Looman views it as a strong point.

Looman said, “The team itself has a good mix of experience but also youth. This is a strength because you know the younger players can grow and preform together.”

The team has a lot coming their way, but it is obvious that they have the ideal coach on their side to equip them.

Looman is clearly confident in his teams abilities as he said, “The team itself has a pretty high basketball IQ. Using our speed and IQ moving forward is something that we can use as a core strength of the team.”