Printer Friendly Version - Seasoned Guilford Girls’ Hoops Ready to Build Off 14-Win Year

Senior co-captain guard Meredith Shank and Guilford girls’ basketball return plenty of experienced players following a campaign that saw the Indians win 14 games and advance in both the SCC and Class L tournaments.

The Guilford girls’ basketball team surprised some SCC adversaries last winter by earning 14 wins and two postseason bids with only one senior on the roster. Now, the conference is on notice this time around and so the Indians are ready to prove their success was no fluke behind their plethora of experienced athletes.

Bob Welsh returns for his sixth year at the helm and will aided on the bench by varsity assistant/JV coach Laura Meyer, plus freshman coach Sarah Scialici. The Indians are coming off a 2014-’15 run that saw them reach the quarterfinals and second round of the SCC and Class L State Tournament draws, respectively, thanks in large part to several underclass athletes who grabbed a great deal of time in the varsity spotlight through 24 contests. Not wanting to rest on their laurels, though, Coach Welsh and Guilford know that it will require all hands on deck in order to repeat, if not top, last season’s feats.

“They are a great group of kids that are now experienced and so they certainly know my expectations,” said Welsh, whose team finished 12-8 for the regular season. “We had a three-way scrimmage [on Dec. 5] with East Haven and Old Saybrook. East Haven played great, beat us up, and I wasn’t too happy, but they refocused and had a great practice. They responded well there, which is indicative to what I expect from them this year in bouncing back.”

Leading the Indians on the floor will be a pair of senior sibling captains in guards Sam and Meredith Shank, both of whom also captained the volleyball team to SCC and Class L quarterfinal berths this past fall. Meredith averaged nine points per game for the 2014-’15 campaign, which was tied for tops on team. Welsh said that each Shank sister brings a different ingredient in terms of their leadership, although the pair shares the same hard-nosed hustle on the floor.

“They’ve played four years for me now and they are really great leaders on and off the court. I watched them during the volleyball season and saw how hard they worked, as well,” Welsh said. “Sam is a serious, no-nonsense player that will dive for the loose ball and set the tone in practice and games. Meredith is more vocal leader that has a lot of talent and real good basketball ability.”

Looking further down the depth chart, Welsh explained his team is pretty “guard-heavy” with several backcourt operators in senior Isabelle Risse, along with juniors Izzy Nerney (team-best 23 three-pointers last season), Kayley McLaughlin, and Andrea Basilicato. Up front for the club’s forwards, the Indians welcome back junior Camryn Craig, who tallied a double-double of 11 points and 11 boards in a SCC playoff victory over Cheshire; plus sophomores in Molly Linell, who started the final seven games last year; and Amanda King, who averaged nine points a night as a rookie.

“We lost only one senior in what was a really good year for us, so we are returning with plenty of varsity experience,” said Welsh. “Molly Linell came off the bench and really helped down the stretch last year and Amanda King has a lot of weapons as she can also shoot from the outside.”

Aside from his main goals of seeing league and state postseason action once again, Coach Welsh also wants to see his group be a host rather than guest in those brackets. In order to accomplish that task, the Indians will have to traverse through some choppy and competitive waters both in and out of the SCC talent pool.

“Our test will be playing in a power-packed SCC. We have 16 league games and four non-league ones, which are also no cupcakes in Stonington, Waterford, Montville, and Granby Memorial. Yet I have confidence we will make the tournament, so I want the girls to be tournament-ready,” said Welsh. “We want to get back to both tournaments, but we’d also love to host a game for each, which might require 13-14 regular-season wins. We have a formidable schedule and we will be competitive. We have Lauralton Hall, [defending SCC champ] Mercy, [league runner-up] Hand is always solid, Law returns three SCC All-Hammonasset Division players, Hillhouse is always tough year in and year out. We have nine-10 tough games right there, plus our out-of-league ones. We will have to play our hardest every night and just buckle up.”

Junior Izzy Nerney is one of several guards coming back to the Guilford girls’ basketball squad, which is now a veteran-laden group after seeing plenty of success a year ago.