Recapturing the Central Buckeye League Crown: The girls’ team hopes last season’s adversity will pay off this year.
The Worthington Christian girls basketball team enters this season looking to regain something it misplaced last year.
After winning three consecutive league titles with a combined 32-1 record, the Warriors finished 12-12 overall and placed third in the Central Buckeye League with a 9-5 record last year.
“We have got to bring the championship back home,” coach Aaron Davis said.
Last year was a season of adversity for Worthington Christian, which, at one point, had just nine players between its varsity and junior varsity due to injuries. Among the injured was graduate Jamie Custer, a point guard selected as first-team all-CBL and third-team all-district despite playing only nine games.
The Warriors’ 2023-24 season can be divided into two epochs – BCI (Before Custer’s Injury) and ACI (After Custer’s Injury).
Worthington Christian came out of the gate with a 4-5 record. Then, in a 52-30 loss to Berlin Hiland on Dec. 30, 2023, Custer, who had been leading the team in points (14 per game) and assists (3.4) and was second in steals (3.1), dislocated a kneecap. And like that, her season was over.
“That was a difficult time for our team,” Davis said. “After that, we had a couple of really bad losses while trying to find a new identity without Jamie.”
After the injury, the Warriors lost five out of their next seven games, averaging 31.14 points a game. Davis said the season’s turning point came when Worthington Christian gritted out a 27-19 win over rival Bexley on Jan. 29.
“We had that moment when the team realized, ‘OK, Jamie’s not coming back, but we must continue. Let’s go out and compete,’” Davis said. “That game was a pivotal moment for us. We could claw out a win and then get back to .500.”
The Warriors then closed the season by winning five out of its last seven games before losing to Centerburg 42-38 in the second round of the Division IV tournament.
Worthington Christian begins the season without graduates Custer or Natalie Woodfin. The latter averaged 7.5 points and 4.0 rebounds and earned second-team all-CBL honors a year ago.
However, Davis believes the players returning from last year inherited a trait of “toughness” that could carry them far this season.
“Our core value can be connected to James 1:2-3—Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance,” Davis said.
“We really had to use that last year. It wasn’t easy to have joy when your best player was done for the season. How do we count that as joy?
“But we’re able to look back and see how many other girls had to step up. If we can make it through that, there’s not much we can’t face. We’re not afraid of hard things.”
The Warriors will be led by seniors Brooke Winfree, a 6-foot center, and Mandy Custer, a 5-7 shooting guard/forward. Winfree, the team’s top rebounder (5.4) and scored 7.5 points a game, was honorable mention all-league. Mandy Custer averaged 4.5 points and 3.7 rebounds.
Davis is expecting big things from sophomore Palynn Wray, who took over at point guard after Jamie Custer’s injury and averaged 8.7 points, 2.2 assists, and 2.1 steals per game.
“If Central Ohio was not aware of Palynn Wray, they will be after this year,” Davis said. “Palynn has amazing control over the ball and good offensive instincts. She has every offensive tool you would want in a point guard.
“Brooke anchors our defense and runs the floor well. Mandy has embraced the role of leader on this team.”
Davis is counting on breakout seasons from junior forward Izzy Rogers and forward/center Audrey Wilson. Wilson played 21 games as a freshman but didn’t play last year to focus on volleyball.
“Izzy is our enforcer. She does the dirty work of screening, rebounding, and moving bodies in the paint,” Davis said. “We are looking for Audrey to be another offensive weapon in the post. She has yet to show what she’s capable of, so we are excited to see that this season.
Davis said opponents should also be mindful of senior Ellen Mousa at guard and sophomores Ali Davis at forward and Mylah Hegenderfer at guard.
The Warriors will face a new challenge in the CBL. Buckeye Valley captured the league championship with a 14-0 record to finish ahead of Ready (11-3) and Worthington Christian (9-5). The Barons lost Carlie Osborne, the league’s player of the year, second-team selections Emily Huston and Hazely Wagner, and honorable mention Mollie Meier to graduation but return senior Ella Hazelrigg (who was first team). The Silver Knights are expected to return senior Lia Wahl (a first-team all-league selection), Terriauna Daniels (a second-team pick), and sophomore Avery Pierre (an honorable mention).
The league, however, will have a different feel this year with the addition of Division I team Franklin Heights (which moved in from the Ohio Capital Conference) and some new faces in the league’s coaching ranks.
“I think Bexley, Whitehall, Grandview, and Ready all have new coaches,” Davis said. “It’s hard to guess what those coaches are going to do and what to expect.”
Not surprisingly, Davis said staying healthy is one of the team’s top priorities.
“Teams who put a premium on sleep, eating right, and taking care of their bodies will have the biggest advantage,” Davis said.
“This team is probably the closest team I’ve had during my tenure at WC. They work hard for each other and have committed to sacrificing for each other. I pray that no matter what happens this season, life-long bonds, friendships, and memories are created that nobody can ever take from us.”