PIAA girls basketball season preview 2024-25: What to know, top storylines about every Butler County team
It’s a year of new for Butler County girls basketball teams.
A few new coaches. A new start for the regular season (Friday, two weeks earlier than it’s been in years). Some new sections or opponents for WPIAL teams.
But there is still plenty fans will be familiar with. Mark Maier and Amelia McMichael (West Chester) are back, trying to lead Butler to a fifth playoff berth in eight years. And Steve Andreassi and a talented Karns City team are looking to three-peat in District 9.
Here’s what to expect from Butler County teams this season, including key players and important storylines:
Coach: Mark Maier (8th year, 69-85)
Key players: Amelia McMichael, sr., G/F; Sydney Patterson, sr., PG; Avery Maier, sr., G/F; Cameryn Booher, sr., G; Malina McElroy, so., G; Casey Clouse, sr., G/F
What to know: McMichael, a West Chester commit, is the headliner of a senior-heavy team that has higher expectations in the WPIAL after going 7-15 last season. McMichael, a “physical, really good shooter,” her coach said, averaged 16 points and eight rebounds per game, making 37 3-pointers.
Patterson, who will play soccer at Edinboro, averaged 10 points, four boards and four assists. Avery Maier drained 24 treys last year, averaging five points and five rebounds; her father, the coach, believes she’ll commit to a Division III school in the coming weeks.
Butler returns eight of its top nine players from a year ago. Coach Mark Maier, who has led the Golden Tornado to the playoffs four times, believes teams “win with seniors, maturity and toughness more than talent.”
Coach: Jason Kerr (11th year)
Key players: Tessa Keller, jr., F; Nia Disanti, jr., PG; Jasa Gaillot, jr., G; Lilly Holloway, so., G; Macy Stivenson, so., G
What to know: The Yellowjackets are going to be a junior-led team this year as they aim to get back to the WPIAL playoffs after two years missing out.
Kerr believes he has the team to do it. Disanti at point guard will help run an athletic offense that lacks height but has speed. She and classmates Gaillot and Keller are starters, while Holloway and Stivenson battle for starting jobs, too.
A handful of freshmen guards should battle for playing time and perhaps start: CeCe Schlegel, Maggie Conger and Sophia Glass. If they can provide meaningful minutes in support of the veterans on the roster, Freeport believes it can be among the four best teams in its section.
Coach: Steve Andreassi (26th year)
Key players: Chloe Fritch, sr., G; Shae Pistorius, sr., G; Savanna Prescott, sr., F; Brooklynn Taylor, sr., G; Hannah Dailey, jr., G; Naomi Venesky, jr., G/F
What to know: The Gremlins believe they’re in good shape to three-peat as District 9 Class 3A champions. Fritch is back and healthy after suffering a torn ACL in January — she was averaging around 12 points per game before that, Andreassi said — to man one of the guard spots for a team with “a good core with lots of depth,” Andreassi said.
“She has worked her tail off to get back to this point.”
One thing Andreassi wants to see improve is offensive production — Karns City allowed 31 points a game last year but also averaged in the 30s on offense. He wants to see that average climb closer to 50.
Coach: Shane McGraw (2nd year, 15-12)
Key players: Karlee Buterbaugh, sr., G/F; Neah Ewing, jr., PG; Aubrey Spencer, so., G/F; Jada Burgard, jr., G
What to know: The Knights believe they’re positioned well to extend their streak of WPIAL playoff appearances to eight — they’ve also made three straight PIAA tournaments.
Buterbaugh is the headliner for a team returning three starters. The senior, who committed to Marshall to throw javelin, averaged 10 points and six rebounds per game and provides some size at the wing standing at 6 feet. Ewing, a 5-8 point guard, is also getting some college interest, McGraw said, after averaging 8.5 points, two assists and three rebounds.
Knoch will continue to rely on its defense but believes it has some more shot-makers.
“There’s just great camaraderie with the group, we always stress great defense,” McGraw said.
Coach: Zach Stitt (2nd year, 11-12)
Key players: Cecilia Christy, jr., G/F; Vita Vargo, sr., PG; Alexis Cashdollar, jr., G/F; Carmella McDole, sr., G; Jianna Delisio, sr., G; Grace Zatezalo sr., G; Mya Moore, jr., F
What to know: Christy has a chance to lead two Planets teams to the state tournament in consecutive seasons, if they can reach Stitt’s expectations. Christy, a standout middle hitter for Mars’ volleyball team that made the PIAA championship for the first time, is one of four returning starters on the hardwood.
The first-team All-WPIAL pick a year ago, who averaged double-digit points, has some help around her. Delisio is getting Division III college interest, as is McDole, and Vita Vargo, another top returning score who also has D-II Pitt-Johnstown looking at her.
Stitt wants that surrounding cast around Vargo and Christy to step up more. If they do, the Planets can make a playoff run. “I expect them to take a little bit more of a jump,” he said.
Coach: Dee Arblaster (20th year)
Key players: Sophia Fleeger, sr., G; Emily Matz, so., F; Sayge Brunst, so., G
What to know: There are a lot of unknowns for the Warriors this season after seven seniors graduated in the spring, including the program’s all-time leading scorer, Catherine Kelly. Fleeger is the only returning starter, and she’s sliding over from forward to guard this season. Matz and Brunst saw some varsity minutes last year as freshmen.
After that, it’s an inexperienced team. Arblaster hopes some players surprise her during the season.
“Seeing them play, seeing them mature as players,” Arblaster said. “I’m excited to see (what they show me).”
Coach: Molly Rottman (29th year)
Key players: Sarah Loughry, sr., PG; Brady Wehner, so., SG; Lauren Reitz, so., F; Anna Lazzara, so., G/F;
What to know: The Trojanettes suffered some of the biggest losses among local teams heading into the season, losing four seniors to graduation. None was more impactful than Alayna Rocco, who is now playing at Harvard.
But North Catholic has no intentions of its lengthy streak of WPIAL section titles ending, even if newcomers to the section like Oakland Catholic present new challenges.
Loughry — who has D-II offers from Slippery Rock and Malone, Rottman said — leads a trio of juniors who will be leaned on heavily. But the team will take time to jell. Rottman is excited about that, but it will not be easy early on with a tough schedule as the new starters and role players acclimate to each other.
“I think that we’re just gonna be a lot different in December than in late January,” Rottman said.
Coach: Dorothea Epps (17th year, 5th year at Seneca Valley)
Key players: Gracie Cato, sr., G; Natalie Hambly, jr., G; Brooke Dufford, jr., G/F; Lilly Sperry, sr., F; Legacy Joseph-Short, sr., G/F; Reece McFadden, fr., G/F
What to know: The Raiders, 12-11 (4-6 section) last season, face their biggest questions in the front court after losing three players to graduation.
But Hambly (15.6 ppg) and Cato (6.8 ppg) form a “great back-court tandem,” Epps said. The pair are both receiving college interest — Hambly from D-II and III schools, Cato from D-III programs like Allegheny and Westminster — and that’ll be crucial for a team that now has to play with a new identity around those guards and get rebounds in different ways. Epps is excited to see Dufford, Sparry and others step up to take on some of the open rebounding and post-game duties.
“Even though we’re guard-heavy, I feel like we have a mental toughness” that will carry us, Epps said.
Coach: Jeff Steele (1st year)
Key players: CJ Sabo, sr., G/F; Belle Miller, sr., F; Madison Romanovich, jr., G; Ryleigh Cornelius, jr., F; Brielle Jordan, so., G; Sophia Vinroe, so., G; Izzy Vukson, sr., G; Emma Burr, so., G
What to know: Steele hopes to continue the upward trajectory this senior class has been on, from two wins to seven the previous two years.
Everything starts with Sabo (11.4 points per game) and Romanovich (12.2 ppg), the top two returning scorers. Sabo is “tenacious, competitive,” her coach said, and is drawing D-II and III interest from California (Pa.), Thiel and Allegheny. Her brother is a receiver at Slippery Rock University and her dad played for SRU. Romanovich is a strong ball-handler who will find ways to get the ball to Sabo, Miller and others.
“We’re just gonna try to win one at a time, but I would hope we’re in the mix for a playoff spot,” said Steele, who took over the program in October after coaching for 30 years in different roles with the youth program and boys JV teams. “Our region is tough.”
Coach: Kelli Kifer (1st year)
Key players: Kya Wetzel, sr., G; Ella Myers, sr., G; Maddie Dehart, jr., F; Emma Raschiatore, jr., G
What to know: The Falcon Knights are in their second year since the two schools’ teams merged, and Kifer, now in her first year in charge of varsity after coaching the middle school program, is already seeing more cohesiveness.
That’ll be important as UAC attempts to reach its goals of a .500 season and finishing in the top four in their region. Also important: the players dedicated themselves in the offense to improving their conditioning.
“They’re comfortable with each other now,” Kifer said. “You’re starting to see that with how they play on the court.”
Expect Maddy Dehart to drive a lot of the offense. Kifer likes her ability to score inside as she continues to develop her outside game. And Wetzel provides a “calming” presence at guard, her coach said.
