By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Holmes girls’ basketball coach Tony Perkins expects his team to have a highly successful season in 2015-16 and his local coaching cohorts feel the same way.
Holmes was voted No. 1 in a pre-season poll of Northern Kentucky girls’ high school basketball coaches because the Bulldogs have most of the players back from on last year’s 9th Region runner-up team that posted a 30-3 record.
“We have a lot of quickness coming back and the girls have worked hard to become better basketball players,” coach Perkins said. “We should be more mature and make better decisions after having two years together.”
The returning players on the Holmes roster include forwards Amori Gulley and Tyrah Englemon and guards Jynea Harris, Jaynice Stovall and Laila Johnson. They were the primary reasons the Bulldogs limited their opponents to 39 points per game last season while their team averaged 65.9.
Perkins uses an eight-player rotation to apply full-court defensive pressure that forces opponents to commit turnovers and often allows his team to score easy baskets in transition.
That style of play worked so well for the Bulldogs last season that they beat every team on their schedule except one. All three of their losses were to district rival Holy Cross, the team that won the 2015 Kentucky girls’ state championship.
Holmes had three of its lowest scoring games of the season in the losses to Holy Cross and the coach addressed that during the off-season. “We will need to shoot the ball well in order to compete with the best teams,” Perkins said.
Here’s a look at the other Northern Kentucky girls’ basketball teams voted among the top 12 in a pre-season poll of local coaches. The season begins Monday with a full schedule of games:
HIGHLANDS
With four of the top six players returning from last year’s 30-4 team that lost in the 9th Region semifinals, coach Jaime Richey expects the Bluebirds to be a top contender once again.
The team has a proven inside-outside scoring combination in senior post player McKenzie Leigh and senior guard Brianna Adler, who both had double-figure scoring averages last season. Adler shot 50 percent from behind the 3-point range to account for most of her points.
Highlands also has a pair of experienced guards in senior Haley Coffee and freshman Zoie Barth, who averaged 8.4 points per game last year as an eighth-grader.
“Our hope is to be a very balanced and efficient on both ends of the floor,” coach Richey said. “Each player understands their main job is to make sure they are making their teammates better.”
SIMON KENTON
The Pioneers have one of the area’s top college prospects in sophomore guard Ally Niece. She averaged 16.3 points and 4.5 rebounds and shot 48 percent from the field on last year’s 8th Region championship team.
Coach Jeff Stowers also has junior point guard Kendyl Gillium and junior center Madi Meier back in the lineup. Meier came close to averaging a double-double last season with averages of 10.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.
Sophomore forward Megan Buckner will likely fill one of the two vacancies in the starting lineup. She played in 28 games last season as the first substitute off the bench.
“We will be very experienced with a lot of our girls having played varsity minutes,” coach Stowers said. “We look to improve our defense and maximize our offense by limiting turnovers and converting in transition.”
RYLE
Katie Madden-Haitz, the new head coach of the Raiders, knows what it takes to build a successful program. She was an assistant coach on three Boone County regional championship teams.
Her first team at Ryle has seven seniors on the roster, including the top four scorers on last year’s 33rd District championship team — Mallory Schwartz (11.2), Carly Lange (10.8), Madison Jones (8.6) and Aimee Jump (7.0).
“Having seven seniors provides our team with leadership and knowledge of the game,” Haitz said. “We should be able to create a lot of havoc for our opponent’s defense due to our ability to have scoring threats in both the post and perimeter.”
The new coach put together a challenging schedule for the Raiders. They will play 11 teams that won district titles last season and six of them went on to claim regional championships.
CONNER
The Cougars have a proven floor leader in senior guard Taylor Gambrel, who averaged 8.4 points and 2.8 assists per game last season. The other starting guard will be senior Hunter Hendricks, who sat out last season with an injury after averaging 12.3 points as a sophomore.
Coach Aaron Stamm has several other players with varsity experience, including senior center Shelby Frye, junior forward Brianna Roberts and freshman guards Courtney Hurst and Savannah Jordan.
“The ability to shoot the basketball is a strength for the team as well as varsity depth in the backcourt and wing positions,” Stamm said.
CAMPBELL COUNTY
The top four scorers on last season’s 23-11 team are back in the lineup for the Camels, who are ranked among the leading contenders in the 10th Region once again.
Sophomore Taylor Clos averaged 14.8 points per game to lead a balanced scoring attack that also included senior Taylor Jolly (14.1), senior Kylie Kramer (11.3) and sophomore Mackenzie Schwarber (9.7).
All four of those players shot 45 percent or better from the field and Schwarber led the team in rebounding with 6.3 per game.
NOTRE DAME
The Pandas will use an up-tempo style of play to offset the loss of the top three scorers on last year’s team.
“With an up-tempo attack on both sides of the ball, we hope to score early and often,” said coach Wyatt Foust. “This is a group that plays hard and plays together and we believe special things are to come.”
Notre Dame’s top returning scorer is junior guard Jenna Martin with an 8.9 average. The coach expects sophomore point guard Sophie Hagen, junior post player Allison Gribben and sophomore guard Abbey Tierney to be impact players this season.
HOLY CROSS
Four of the top six players on last year’s state championship team graduated, but coach Kes Murphy expects the Indians to have another good season with guards Dajah McClendon and Alehia Tucker leading the way.
McClendon is a crafty point guard who led last year’s team in assists and steals while averaging 7.3 points and 2.7 rebounds. Tucker is a shooting guard who averaged 6.9 points as a first-year starter.
The leading candidates for the other starting positions are senior forward Morgan Gabbard, junior forward Courtney Turner and junior guard Zyah Beal.
SCOTT
The Eagles have three double-figure scorers returning from last year’s team that made it the 10th Region semifinals. The trio includes sophomore Lexie Stapleton (12.5 ppg), sophomore Anna Clephane (13.7) and senior Holly Kallmeyer (10.4).
“We don’t have the 3-point shooters we have had the past couple of seasons, but we do have multiple players who can score from all over the floor,” said coach Rhonda Klette. “We will look to score a lot from our defense and really let out and run this season.”
NEWPORT CENTRAL CATHOLIC
The top returning starter on the NewCath roster is senior guard Ansley Davenport, who had team-high averages of 13.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
NewCath coach George Stoll lists juniors Meg Martin and Olivia Schalk and sophomore Lexy Breen as the team’s most promising underclassmen. Martin was the team’s second leading rebounder last season.
BOONE COUNTY
Senior guard Sydney Foster was the lone returning starter on the Boone County roster when Jessica Wendeln was hired to replace long-time coach Nell Fookes, who won nine 9th Region titles during her career.
But the team’s outlook improved when senior Kaela Saner was added to the roster. Saner transferred from Robertson County where she averaged 21.4 points and 8.3 rebounds last season.
BISHOP BROSSART
The Mustangs will have a solid senior lineup with Emily Schultz, Abby King, Sydney Shannon and Olivia Nienaber all returning. Schultz averaged 18 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks per game last season.
“Emily Schultz and Sydney Shannon have the potential to be one of the best front court tandems in Northern Kentucky,” said coach Josh Feldman. “Both young ladies can score around the basket and away from the rim as well.”