Last February, Todd Law and the Oak Hill Golden Eagles reached the pinnacle.
Behind an extraordinary starting five in Brittany McCorkle, Jenessa Hasty, Kaela Robey, Taylor Westgate, and Adrianna Trexler, together with two important bench pieces in Andrea and Marissa Wilk, the Golden Eagles won 25 games a season ago, culminating in their first state championship in school history.
But now, the focus switches to the 2019-2020 season – one that will be full of transition, inexperience, and a lot of new faces.
Oak Hill lost four of their five starters, along with the Wilk twins, to graduation, leaving just Westgate and Abby Shaw remaining from last year’s state championship team.
However, regardless of the losses they have suffered, Law and the Golden Eagles have put in the work over the offseason honing their skills, improving their conditioning, and most importantly, geling with one another.
“I think starting back last summer, the process for us and our program doesn’t change,” Law said. “It’s consistent no matter what group we have. Our kids spend a lot of time in the gym. I’m a little old school. We don’t play a lot of games in the summer. We played in just two shootouts. We really want to have our kids in the gym working on their skill sets and trying to improve the areas that they need to. That was the main focus in the offseason.
“Now that we’ve started, the focus with this group…has been trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together as far as the team, and just getting this team used to playing together now. That’s where we’ve been so far.”
The Golden Eagles have worked on a variety of drills – some fundamental, some more position based – and Law has liked the progress he has seen.
Though there will be some bumps in the road, especially with a group of girls that lack a plethora of varsity experience, Law is looking forward to seeing how they grow throughout the campaign.
“Last summer was a learning curve, and for us as far as a coaching staff, we were just kind of trying to see how these kids would react in different situations,” Law said. “As far as fundamentals, that has all been the same, working on a lot of shooting, ball handling, and just trying to do the things that we have to do to improve the skill sets.
“The thing with an inexperienced team that’s enjoyable is you are literally seeing improvement in different players, and then collectively in your team, every night. That’s going to go on throughout the entire season. We are going to have those nights where we are going to be a little frustrated, but we are going to see improvement each day. I think if our kids continue to buy into that process, then we have a great chance to help them reach their potential.”
Westgate, one of the most gifted post players in the history of Grant County, has worked on expanding her game throughout the offseason. Not only has she continued to improve in the post, but has also become more active on the perimeter.
Already tough to guard, Westgate, a Taylor commit, is looking to become unguardable in her senior season.
“Taylor has worked really hard,” Law said. “We’ve really worked a lot this offseason with her. She has been a back-to-the-basket post player her whole career, so what we’ve done this summer is really focus with her on developing her perimeter game – trying to add that to her arsenal in what she can do. Obviously, we are not going to take her out of the post, but we want her to have the ability to step out, knock down shots, and attack from the outside. She’s a very talented young lady, and for her size, she has great feet and a very good motor. We are going to try to use her in some different ways this year.”
Shaw provided a spark off the bench last season and was one of the team’s best three point shooters. This year, she will have a much crucial role, and Law believes that she is ready for the challenge.
“She is going to step into a much greater role with more expectations,” Law said. “The biggest thing I’m looking for from Abby is just consistency. We are going to need her to be consistent for us, and she is definitely able to do that. She’s a lot stronger, and I think that is going to benefit her as well. I think she is excited about new role.”
Kate Hornocker, who showed potential in spot minutes a season ago, impressed Law and the coaching staff in her limited time. This year, Hornocker looks to be a weapon underneath the basket.
“Kate has a lot of upside and a lot of potential to give us some help in the post,” Law said. “Again, she allows us to use Taylor more on the perimeter. Kate does a nice job of playing in the post, so I think she will play a big role for us there.”
Several other JV players from a season ago, including Carlee Biddle, Audrey Leak, Holly Gillespie, and Nikki Alston are looking to carve out roles in the varsity rotation, while Coleena Selleck looks to take control of the point guard spot vacated by McCorkle.
“We’ve got several kids vying for playing time right now,” Law said. “You’ve got kids like Carlee Biddle, Audrey Leak, Holly Gillespie, and Nikki Alston. Coleena Selleck is going to come off the JV and be our point guard, and we are expecting a lot from her. Coleena has the ability to really set our defense from the point position, and she’s got good quickness. I think she can be a big factor for us on both ends.
“We have seven, eight, or nine kids that we are looking at right now that really have that potential to step in and play a role for us.”
Oak Hill begins their title defense on Wednesday, November 6 at home against the Norwell Knights.
“With every team I’ve had here, we’ve set three main goals – we want to win a Grant Four championship, we want to win a conference championship, and we want to win a sectional championship,” Law said. “Those never change. I want them to play with incredible effort, and I want them to play with great attitudes. If we do those two things…we will be able to improve as a team and reach our potential. The win and the losses and the championships will take care of themselves.”