2024-25 Lynchburg-Clay Lady Mustangs Basketball Preview

The Lynchburg-Clay Lady Mustangs are ready to take the basketball court for the 2024-25 season, and this year they will have some new players taking over vacated starting roles.

The Lady Mustangs last season had a rare trio of players achieving 1,000-plus career points, and with those three players — Addison West, Jade Massey and Macy Etienne — graduating, along with being four-year varsity players, Lynchburg-Clay will have a new look at the varsity level.

Those three players totaled 1,043 points combined last season, with West averaging 16.4 ppg, Massey 14.6 and Etienne at 12.5 ppg.

Also last season, the Lady Mustangs finished with an overall record of 18-6 with a Southern Hills Athletic Conference mark of 11-2, second place in the SHAC Division I standings, as North Adams won the conference with a 12-1 record. In ’23-24, LCHS averaged 59.6 points per game in SHAC games (13 games) and allowed 37.0 ppg. Overall, the Lady Mustangs averaged 57.3 ppg and allowed 42.7 ppg (24 games).

This season, LCHS has one senior, that being Allie Waits, while the juniors are Ava McLaughlin and Joslyn Rockey.

The sophomores for LCHS are Savannah Bell, Madison McMullen and Addy Carraher. New to the program are freshmen Lily Ferguson, Bella Burns, Lizzie Hall, Milli Bennett and Jocelyn Brown.

Returning players from last season’s roster are Waits, McLaughlin, Rockey, Carraher, Bell and McMullen.

Waits last season totaled 49 points, 48 rebounds, 13 assists and 24 steals. McMullen finished last season with 139 points, 110 rebounds, 30 assists, 43 steals and seven blocks. Rockey returns from a season where she totaled 43 points, 48 rebounds, 14 assists, 27 steals and five blocks.

“I am excited for our returning players to step in with new roles this year. All of our returners have seen varsity minutes in the past. I am excited to see them step up to more responsibilities on both the offensive and defensive sides of the floor,” LCHS head coach Whitney Lewis said. “Their experience and success at the varsity level will help with that. I am also excited to see our younger players play at this level. Their development over this summer and this preseason will be fun to watch as they continue to grow.”

Lewis is entering her 14th season as the head coach of the Lady Mustangs, and for this current team, the offseason was described as going “really well” with the players taking advantage of new facilities at Lynchburg-Clay. Also this offseason, Lewis tabbed LCHS graduate Lexi Waits as her assistant coach and JV coach for the 2024-25 season.

“Our offseason has gone really well. This past spring, our Athletic Boosters purchased a weight room program for all of our athletes. This summer, all of Lynchburg-Clay’s athletes took advantage of this and showed up in the weight room to get stronger,” Lewis said. “I can see that paying off for us this preseason as the girls appear to be stronger throughout as we have practiced and scrimmaged the past few weeks. We look to continue to build off of this and get stronger and better each and every day we are in the gym.”

Even with the Lady Mustangs starting their preseason a little late due to the success of fall sports, Lewis said her team has “gelled quickly.

“I really enjoy how this team has seemed to gel together so quickly. Our fall sports season always has a successful year. For us, that means we see our players start trickling in from different seasons of volleyball and soccer,” Lewis said. “After only five practices together with everyone, we performed really well at our first scrimmage. These girls have connected, and they look to one another for guidance and how to get better. They are just as excited as us to get started with the season.”

As with every preseason, there are always improvements coaches want to see with their team, and Lewis is no different.

“We are always looking to improve in all aspects as the season starts and as the season goes on. I look for these ladies to continue to build on the experience they have and grow confident in their abilities and the opportunities we have to be successful this year,” Lewis said. “Our goal is to always control the controllables: attitude, effort and teammates.

“We can always control our reactions to what happens on the floor, our effort on the floor and our ability to be really good teammates. I look for us to hold steady and constant throughout the year with that. If we are able to control what we can control, we will continually improve in all aspects of the game.”

The Lady Mustangs are always in contention in the SHAC, and this season the conference will still be competitive.

“I believe our league always produces some of the best basketball in the state. Our league is consistently competitive in the tournament each year,” “Lewis said. “I think our league is up for grabs this year with each team battling for that top spot. I think we will have to bring our best game to the floor each night to be competitive, and I think that anyone can win on any given night.”

Lynchburg-Clay’s non-conference schedule includes games vs. Blanchester, at Green, vs. Paint Valley, at Hillsboro, at Clinton-Massie, vs. Minford, vs. Williamsburg, at McClain and at Georgetown.

“We always try to set up our non-conference schedule to help us get better to be competitive in our own league and a tournament run,” Lewis said. “This year is no different. Our non-league team always consists of our county rival schools in McClain and Hillsboro, and we have added others to the mix this year that will help us as we get further into the season.”

Lynchburg-Clay begins the 2024-25 regular season on Monday, Nov. 25 at home vs. Peebles in SHAC action.

“This group has shown they are ready, willing and eager to get better every day. Our practices have a lot of energy, and our players ask questions on how to improve their game individually and how to make sure they are in the best positions to make their teammates successful,” Lewis said. “This group works hard and is coachable on every level. I can’t wait to see how they grow throughout the season.”

Publisher's note: A free press is critical to having well-informed voters and citizens. While some news organizations opt for paid websites or costly paywalls, The Highland County Press has maintained a free newspaper and website for the last 25 years for our community. If you would like to contribute to this service, it would be greatly appreciated. Donations may be made to: The Highland County Press, P.O. Box 849, Hillsboro, Ohio 45133. Please include "for website" on the memo line.