Caston girls basketball preview: ‘We still got a lot of growing to do:’ Healthier Lady Comets seek to improve on 7-win season

Val T.
Nov 6
6 min read

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

The Caston girls basketball team scuffled to a 7-16 record last year.

It might have been expected after the Lady Comets’ Class of 2024 group performed at a historically great era – a 75-21 record in four seasons, back-to-back 20-win seasons, its first sectional title in 39 years and its first regional title ever.

Caston was trying to break in new players, and they were getting broken along the way: Post player Natalie Warner’s season got off to a late start due to a knee injury, forward Allison Craig tried to play through a dislocated shoulder before finally having season-ending surgery, and guard Ellie Zartman’s freshman season was injury-plagued.

The injuries kept coming during travel ball season when guard Gigi Berry suffered torn knee ligaments during the spring.

Josh Douglass, who is entering his sixth season at Caston and his 16th as a high school head coach, said the injuries, while regrettable, helped the team develop depth.

“We had injuries this summer that kept girls out from playing,” Douglass said. “We’ve got other girls that maybe didn’t get a lot of floor time experience last year to step up and be in different roles and get more experience during the summer.”

With Isabel Scales, Addison Zimpleman, Macee Hinderlider, Annie Harsh and Alexa Finke having graduated, Caston’s offensive scoring average dipped from 49 two years ago to 34 last year, and they were totally stifled in a 34-13 loss to Pioneer in the sectional quarterfinals.

Douglass was asked if the team stayed true to its culture despite the struggles on the court.

“Yes, we stayed true,” Douglass said. “We were just young. We’re still young. I mean, when you look at the amount of freshmen we played and sophomores we played, when you only graduated one senior (Olivia Thomas) and then you followed it up with two juniors, we were ultra young. And when you only return one player with significant minutes the year before, it’s just a lot of growth, a lot of learning. It’s hard at any level for a freshman to come in and play varsity basketball, let alone four or five of them have to come in and play varsity basketball.”

Part of the culture is being able to hawk opposing ballhandlers and not letting them get into their offense.

“That is the goal,” coach Douglass said. “Our goal is to put a lot of pressure on the ball, push the ball up and down the court and get these girls in and out.”

The one player who played significant minutes two years ago is junior guard Madi Douglass, an All-RTC4 first-team selection after averaging 15.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game last year.

“She’s stronger, she’s quicker than what she was last year,” coach Douglass said of Madi Douglass. “She’s getting more confident every year. She struggled to shoot the ball from the outside last year. I think a lot of that was rushed. She’s shooting the ball better now in practice from the outside. Another year underneath her belt and trusting her teammates. She’s learning this summer. She’s trusting her teammates more too.”

Douglass likely slots into the shooting guard spot beside sophomore point guard Grace Colvin. Colvin averaged 7.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2 assists last year and led the team with 22 3-pointers.

“Honestly as a freshman, she made some really nice passes and things like that, but getting another year of experience this summer, she’s stepping into that player I know she can be. Aggressive. Throwing the pass before the player’s there. She sees the floor extremely well. I’m expecting really big things from her this year.”

Warner averaged 3.3 points last year and a team-high 6 rebounds per game. She is a 6-0 post player whose season was highlighted by a 10-point game in a home win over Triton. She also averaged more than one block per game.

“Natalie’s anticipation of the ball and where it was on defense at the end of the year and rebounding came on really well, and we’re seeing it carry over into practice here,” coach Douglass said. “So the growth there, she is taking that next step. She’s got a really nice 15-foot jump shot when she takes it. It’s just finding consistency of hitting those bunnies that will take her to that next level. But in practice, on defense and rebounding, she’s very aggressive and is reading the ball very well.”

Craig dislocated the shoulder again after her surgery in the school weight room. Coach Douglass called it a “minor setback” and a “freak little thing” and said there is a “5 percent chance” the shoulder will pop out again. A 5-9 forward, she will join Warner in the frontcourt, but she also has perimeter shooting ability.

“She’s another one I expect big things from this year just being the fact to relax and be able to play and not having to worry about her shoulder popping out on her,” coach Douglass said.

The other sophomore in the frontcourt is 5-10 forward Adyson Steininger.

“The sky is the limit for that girl,” coach Douglass said of Steininger. “When she believes in herself and has that belief, she’s got a pretty jump shot. She’s just got to keep gaining confidence in herself that she can do it. She put a lot of time this summer on her game. She is a lot more confident in herself, and she has the green light to shoot the ball. We just need to keep her rebounding and being aggressive on that side and aggressive with the ball in her hand going to the basket.”

Berry had surgery in June which will delay the start to her sophomore season, though she has been fully cleared to begin practice.

Senior Camila Hernandez-Rios and sophomores Hadlie Coffing and Zartman are all guards known for their defensive abilities. Coffing is also capable of knocking down the open perimeter shot, according to coach Douglass.

“I think Ellie Zartman is another one that’s going to be able to come in and put pressure on the ball, run the court and so those types of things,” coach Douglass said. “Ellie had a big summer. Ellie had MCL surgery after basketball last year. She played all season last year and fought through it. So she was recovering this summer. She got cleared right there before June ball started, so we kind of worked her in slowly. But I thought she had a fantastic summer. Because she was healthy, I saw some of the things from her that I loved about her – her athleticism, being able to play defense, get after it. She does all those little things that you love to see in a basketball game.”

Forward Lexie Field is unusually strong for a freshman and “has a knack for basketball,” coach Douglass added.

Caston will begin with its traditional fast start – seven games before Thanksgiving, including games against West Central, Rochester, Peru, North White and Winamac in a 10-day span.

Coach Douglass said he’s looking at long-term growth more than the sprint out of the blocks.

“Obviously, we’re playing to win, right?” Douglass said. “But if we don’t, it’s not the end of the world. It’s a long season, and we still got a lot of growing to do. We’re going to be very well experienced, and I think that will help us, but most of those games will be on the road too.”

Brandon Kinser is a full-time member of the coaching staff and will join JV coach Alanie Hipsher and Samantha Schanlaub on the bench. Blake Harness moves from girls basketball assistant to boys freshman coach. Brent Thomas is no longer a volunteer coach.

Caston girls basketball schedule

Caston dropped South Bend St. Joe and added Western.

Nov. 6 – at West Central, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 8 – vs. Rochester, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 11 – vs. Peru, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 14 – at North White, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 15 – at Winamac, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 18 – at Argos, 7:30 p.m.

Nov. 24 – vs. Oregon-Davis, 6:30 p.m.

Dec. 3-6 – Cass County Invitational

Dec. 11 – vs. North Judson, 8 p.m.

Dec. 16 – at Pioneer, 7:30 p.m.