South Fayette preparing to defend domain
Lions looking to four-peat
Juliette Leroux (left) and Alexa Ankrum (right) admire the gold medals they were awarded after winning last year’s WPIAL girls basketball title. The pair hope to lead South Fayette to another championship this winter.
South Fayette enters the 2024-25 girls basketball season having won three straight WPIAL championships. Is a four-peat in store this winter?
According to coach Bryan Bennett, who has been at the helm for all three titles, it will be a challenge. Arch rival Chartiers Valley, which won four of the five previous titles before SF’s run, has dropped down from Class 6A and back into the section, while 6A powers Peters Township and Bethel Park, along with Baldwin have also reclassified to 5A.
“The hardest thing about being the defending champion is facing every team’s best effort,” Bennett said. “Our kids have a target on their backs and cannot take a night off.
“If we have a chance to repeat,” he continued, “we will need to improve each day. We need to stay hungry and strive to become the best version of this team. We have to avoid complacency.”
The Lions have been anything but complacent during their successful run. Despite heavy graduation losses such as: Maddie Webber, a sophomore at Villanova; Ava Leroux, a red-shirt freshman at Elon University; Lainey Yater, a freshman at Saginaw Valley State, and Erica Hall, a freshman at Mercyhurst; South Fayette has prevailed.
The Lions managed a 19-9 record last winter. After beating Armstrong, 70-63, in the WPIAL Class 5A final, South Fayette reached the second round of the PIAA playoffs before ending its season.
“The kids know what is required of them to play at a championship level,” Bennett said. “They need to ensure they take advantage of every practice and game and make sure we continue to improve each day. The returning starters need to embrace new leadership roles and motivate the rest of the team to excel.”
Haylie Lamonde, Juliette Leroux and Alexa Ankrum are the returning starters.
A two-sport standout, excelling also in volleyball, Leroux demonstrated leadership in the WPIAL final last winter. She led the Lions with 18 points to go along with eight rebounds and three steals. During the regular season, the junior managed 13 points per game. The 6-foot guard/forward also averaged six rebounds and two assists.
An accurate three-point shooter, Lamonde averaged 11.2 points per game. A junior, she also provided 3.5 rebounds and two assists an outing.
The Lions expect a number of newcomers to make an impact in the lineup. Among them are: Luci Lamendola, Ella Vierra, Kendall Welhorsky, Alisa Dufort, Olivia Devlin, Emmersyn Barish, Alaina Clingan and Liz Porter.
Additionally, Bennett will rely upon reserves such as Cierra Rexrode, Ryan Oldaker, Caroline Satler, Lailah Wright, Kylie Rumberger and Kate Black.
“Our strength this season is our depth,” he said. “We have a lot of talented kids who put in a ton of time this off season to improve.”
In addition to the Colts, Bennett expects Mars, Moon, West Allegheny, Montour and New Castle to provide stiff competition for the Lady Lions in the section.
“We need to improve our consistency of play,” he said as South Fayette prepares for its home opener at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4 against Pine-Richland. The Lions travel to Mt. Lebanon for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff Dec. 9 before opening Section 3 play at Mars on Dec. 12.