Following the most successful five-year stretch in program history, Loveland High School Girls’ Basketball will look to start over with new leadership on the sidelines and fresh faces on the court.
2022-23 saw interim head coaches Keith Braswell and Brad Early lead a talented roster to a 17-8 record and a third-place finish in the competitive Eastern Cincinnati Conference. Despite this strong success, Athletics Director Rich Bryant aimed to solidify the program’s future after many of the most accomplished players in school history have graduated in recent years.
To do this, Bryant poached the highly touted Chad Adolph away from Monroe High School to be the next head coach of Loveland Girls’ Basketball. Adolph comes to Loveland with a strong reputation at both the high school level and in the ranks of AAU, and he has used his strong connections to construct a well-respected coaching staff and remodel the roster.
The 2024 roster is headlined by senior captain Grace Dressell (12), sharpshooting sophomores Katy Wilber (10) and Anna Proano-Raps (10), and true freshman transfer Ryann Unruh (9).
Wilber stood out a season ago as a freshman, averaging nearly six points a contest on 37% shooting from beyond the arc. Dressell added five points and three rebounds per game in 22-23, and Proano-Raps and Unruh turned heads with their improvement over the off-season.
A three-year varsity letter winner, Dressell has played with some great leaders, namely Olivia Raby ‘23 and Josie Early ‘23. As she moves into a leadership role of her own this season, Dressell expressed her excitement for the upcoming season, saying, “I’m looking forward to learning from our new coaching staff, as well as being a leader for our team.”
She continued to explain how the positive mindset instilled by the new staff has impacted the team, proclaiming, “Our coaches care about us as people first. They have proved to us that they believe in us and that causes our team to believe in ourselves.”
Dressell also touted the talent that she has surrounding her, dispelling the notion that this is a “rebuilding year” for the Tigers. “We have a young team but it’s so fun to be a part of when we play as a team. We have a new and effective style of play this year with our new coaching staff and it is setting up to be a super exciting season.”
One of the more notable games on the slate this year is the December 8th home matchup against Turpin, in what will be a girls-boys “Black-Out” doubleheader. Other important games include hosting rivals Kings and Milford on December 18th and January 15th, respectively.
The girls have opened their season 0-2, with tough road losses at the hands of Ross and West Clermont, two of the most consistent programs year in and year out in the 513. The conference home slate will open up next Monday, December 4th, at 6:00 against Little Miami. Come out to Schmidt Gymnasium and make some noise to support your girls’ basketball team!