The Central Bucks South girls’ basketball feature below was sponsored courtesy of Gregory Schnee, Goosehead Insurance. (Photos provided by CB South girls’ basketball)
“No excuses”
The dust had not settled on Central Bucks South’s heartbreaking season-ending loss to archrival Central Bucks East when a theme began emerging. While that loss marked an end, it also marked the beginning of the next chapter for a Titans’ team that will return its entire starting lineup next season.
If the players needed offseason motivation, that loss gave it to them.
“It gives me motivation not only for my AAU season but for all of next season because we have such a bright future as a team, and throughout the last few games, we bonded so well as a team,” junior tri-captain Taylor Hinkle said. “I think it’s starting to show all the hard work we’ve been putting in at practice. It’s going to motivate all of us.”
For Hinkle and her teammates, the season had been an emotional roller coaster. A state mandated shutdown for the COVID-19 pandemic pushed back the start of the season not once but twice. With an abbreviated season came the unsettling knowledge that it could be halted without warning.
Throw in the fact that the Titans spent the season’s final weeks living on the bubble – would they be in or out when the 20-team District One 6A Tournament field was announced (they were 19), and the raw emotions after their loss to the Patriots were understandable.
The Titans didn’t just make a token appearance in districts. They rolled to an opening round win of West Chester Henderson and came oh so close to upsetting the third-seeded Patriots before falling 37-32.
“Obviously, we still have another year, but I think it was really emotional because we’ve been working really hard this whole season, and we came a long way from last year,” Hinkle said. “Every game, no matter who we played, we put all our effort on the court. We’ve just worked so hard.”
“The game was super close the whole time,” junior tri-captain Mackenzie Erb said. “I think that’s what hurt the worst because we thought we could win the whole game, we really wanted to win and that makes it really hard.”
“Obviously, it was disappointing that we didn’t pull out a win,” D’Orazio said. “But I think we have such a bright future as a team, and we have so much ahead of us. We still have to work. We just have to keep our chins up because there’s so much for us in the future.”
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For the juniors who have been the nucleus of the squad, theirs is a story that began three years ago when their then freshman class entered a program that was coming off both a state and district runner-up finish but had graduated the nucleus of that team. Hinkle and Erb stepped into the starting line while D’Orazio was a swing player.
“Obviously, any freshman is really nervous coming in their freshman year,” Hinkle said. “There was a lot more at stake because we knew they were in the state championship the year before, so we knew we had to fill in because they lost six or seven seniors. They were big shoes to fill, and it was obviously nerveracking.”
“It was a lot because we were a pretty big part of that team,” Erb said. “But it was fun.”
Making the transition easier was senior point guard Alexa Brodie, a key piece of the Titans’ state title run.
“She was great, she was super accepting,” Erb said. “She always made sure we were okay with everything, we were comfortable and knew what we were doing. She was just a really good leader for us because we were so young.”
“Alexa played a huge role, taking all of us under her wing,” D’Orazio said. “Making us feel as if we had been there as many years as she had.”
The Titans were 2-5 after seven games to open the season, a stretch that was capped with a 41-18 loss to Souderton. They ended the season 12-11 and earned a District One 6A playoff berth. They fell in the opening round to Pennsbury, and the following winter, with Brodie playing point guard at Colgate University, the sophomores were left to lead a young and inexperienced squad.
“Honestly, it was like a brand new start, a fresh start,” said Hinkle, who along with D’Orazio was named a captain. “We were very, very young. It was totally different, so we knew we had to step up and just change the program.”
The Titans were 1-6 out of the gate and finished the season with an 8-13 record (3-9 SOL).
“There was definitely a time last year when it was pretty hard,” Erb said. “When you lose a couple games in a row, it can be pretty negative, but certain things would happen and we would get a spurt of positivity, and that would be good for certain games.”
“I think we could have had a better mindset going into games,” D’Orazio said. “We definitely had our ups and down. It was a learning year for all of us, but I wouldn’t say it was a bad thing.
“I think we all needed to grow and needed to make mistakes and learn from it, so coming into this year we were prepared and we knew exactly what we wanted. I think we needed to have a little more confidence in ourselves, but obviously as the year went on and coming into this year, I think we developed as a team and got a lot more confident.”
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Before they could even turn their thoughts to this year, the team – like the rest of the world – was confronted with another obstacle: the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Obviously, it was abrupt for everyone,” Hinkle said. “No one knew it was going to be like that. During the offseason, we had so much time during the shutdown, and we did so many team bonding drills, so many on-line activities. We obviously had time, so we all had to stay positive and keep our heads up.”
The Titans had team calls two or three times a week just to check in, and they had online competitions just for fun.
“We would get grouped with some of the freshmen or someone we didn’t know and we would do fun activities, little challenges and stuff,” D’Orazio said. “They weren’t all basketball-related, just fun stuff that could get us to know each other even though we weren’t face to face.”
Eight months later, with tryouts about to begin in November, the pandemic was still raging.
“There was definitely a lot of concern that we would either not have a season or we would get shut down two weeks in, which actually did happen,” Erb said.
After two state shutdowns, the season finally began on Jan. 12. The Titans opened their season with an overtime loss to Souderton but notched an upset of archrival Central Bucks West in their second game.
“It was great – we were all so eager, and obviously, West is our biggest rival,” Hinkle said. “We haven’t beaten them since we’ve been here at South. They’re a great team, and I think that led to our success throughout the rest of the season, and it gave us a jumpstart.”
Although the Titans were 9-9 in the shortened season and advanced to the second round of districts, it was hardly business as usual.
“The worst part is we weren’t able to do team activities and hang out, the fun stuff during the season,” Erb said. “But we’re also still close and we still manage with what we have, and I think that’s important.”
“I think it’s just the little moments,” D’Orazio said. “Like getting to spend time with each other because obviously we’re never going to take it for granted again because we don’t know how much time we’re going to get.
“It’s just important to be positive and keep our heads up. We have to always keep looking ahead because we have more in store for us.”
“Last year at the end of the season, we didn’t think this was going to happen,” Hinkle said. “Don’t take anything for granted because you never know what could happen next. Obviously, we have to focus on the bright side because we were so grateful to have a season.”
Coach Beth Mattern had high praise for a squad that included seniors Caroline McSorley, Maddy White and Sam Waltrich, juniors D’Orazio, Erb, Hinkle, Samantha Schiesser and Maddie Tantum, sophomores Kristen Conway and Allison Sauers as well as freshmen Yoyo Samayoa and Brooke Edwards. The Titans return all five starters: Samayoa, Sauers, Tantum, Erb and Hinkle.
“I think what makes this group special is they’re resilient, and they’re committed,” the Titans’ coach said. “The seniors – although maybe the last several years they haven’t had the most success on the court – they got to experience what it was like to go to Temple (for the district championship game) and to Hershey. They got that experience, and a couple of them have medals to show for it.”
“This group of juniors came in at a time when it was emotionally draining, and they just fell right into step with Alexa (Brodie) and supported her in everything and learned as much as they could from her. I don’t think they would trade that experience for anything. As much as wins are amazing, there was something special about that year and just the way they are as individuals. I want good things to happen for them on the court because I feel they deserve it. They work hard, they invest in it. We’re getting there.”
While ‘No Excuses’ might be an unspoken theme for their final season, there’s a whole lot more to it than just winning basketball games.
“I think we have so much potential as a team,” D’Orazio said. “This year we got to see that little light in games like when we beat West. I think there’s so much for us.
“Obviously, a lot of us are going to be back, and that’s really exciting. This is one of the best environments, the best teams. Everyone – everything about it – I don’t know why you wouldn’t want to play.”
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