Charleston – While successful in several sports, the Ashley Hall girls basketball program has struggled in recent years to field competitive teams.
As an all-girls school with a wide range of academic and extra-curricular activities and challenges, the student population often has very little basketball experience. But coach Jodie Runner continues to teach the game to whoever wants to learn. Wins are hard to come by but Runner says this year’s team has been more competitive than recent years.
Runner, a former star player at West Virginia and former college coach, realizes the hand that she is dealt. The Panthers won’t be state title contenders, especially with state powers Northwood Academy and First Baptist in the same conference. But, learning the game, learning to compete, and having a good time while doing so is Renner’s ultimate goal.
Ashley Hall has posted four victories in their first 14 outings this season with Runner have a roster that includes only three seniors and a bevy of underclassmen.
“We have a very hard working group of returners and a talented new group of freshmen,” Runner reports. “Unfortunately, we lost one of our starting seniors to an injury in December. We've had a lot of close games with non-region teams and hope to build off of those.
“Though we have ended up smaller in numbers this year, this team has the heart of champions and they never give up in the games, or on each other. I'm very happy with our progress and where we're headed.”
Runner says with so many freshmen and sophomores, she has pulled down several varsity players to play in junior varsity games. That has given the younger performers more playing time and more experience. The junior varsity team won two of their first three games this season.
Junior Gates McCants sets the pace for the varsity as the starting point guard and the team’s leading scorer.
“She’s a competitor at heart who gets after it on both ends of the court,” Runner says.
Supporting at the guard position are junior Iris Stiegman, freshman Molly Mettler, and sophomore Annie Morrison.
Primary workers in the post include junior Faye Bailey, senior Elizabeth Perkins and senior Lavinia Maybank. Runner says the usual starting five include McCants, Stiegman, Mettler, Bailey and Perkins.
The only other senior on the team is Mattie Laney, a guard.
Rounding out the roster are sophomore Ashley Jackson, and freshmen Liza Hood. Mary Collins, Sally Rowson, Shila Sniderman and Catherine Jenkins. Those five freshman, while seeing time in varsity games, are the players that also have played in junior varsity games.
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