Preseason Coaches Poll
1. Liberty Charter
2. Rimrock
3. Riverstone
4. Notus
5. Greenleaf Friends
6. Idaho City
7. Wilder
T-8. North Star Charter
T-8. Victory Charter
10. Gem State
Players to Watch
Ainsley Johnson, Liberty Charter
Kyla Clouthier, Riverstone
Victoria Ortega, Notus
Cierra Peugh, Notus
Shae Olsen, Greenleaf Friends
Kimberly Arias, Wilder
Ruth Heffington, Idaho City
Eva Young, North Star Charter
Written by: Brandon Baney
A year ago, Rimrock and Liberty Charter met three separate times: once in the regular season, once at districts and once at the 1AD1 state tournament. The Raiders won all three matchups, including a 39-34 triumph in the consolation final at state.
However, graduation losses hit Rimrock hard. Both Sintia Varela and Sami Jewett graduated, which has left the door open just enough for Liberty Charter to be selected as the preseason favorites in the coaches poll.
Liberty Charter coach Brad McCain welcomes back a trio of talented guards in Ainsley Johnson, Berlyn Logue and Casey Collom. The Patriots’ post game, however, is a work in progress following the graduation of Madison Hodnett. Hodnett averaged 20 points, 15 rebounds, and 4 blocks per game a year ago, and is now playing for Corbin University.
A bigger loss, according to McCain, is Grace Gerdes. “She was my point guard for 3 years,” McCain says. “It’s hard to replace that type of experience and the calmness that it brings.”
Although the order may differ, most league coaches agree: Liberty Charter and Rimrock are the teams to beat this year. Beyond that is anyone’s guess. Riverstone International School earned the number three slot in the preseason poll, and welcomes in new head coach Mike Cole.
Cole has identified seniors Kyla Clouthier and Deborah Tadesse as Otters to keep an eye on this year. “Maud Slots is an extremely athletic and strong player that will provide a strong presence in the post,” Cole added. “And incoming freshman Izzie Miller is expected to get significant playing time in her first season at the high school level.”
Riverstone ran into trouble last year against teams that had stronger depth. Cole says, “Last year with Covid we struggled with depth of bench. We’re looking forward to having a full team this year. We rarely went into the game with our full team intact (a year ago), but we consistently brought great energy, and I am excited to see that trend continue.”
Notus returns a pair of All-Conference guards this year in Victoria Ortega and Ciera Peugh. Also entering the fray is sophomore guard Sierra Telford. The Pirates went 6-4 in the league and 11-6 overall last year, and are hoping to take the next step forward.
Greenleaf Friends is in a similar situation. The Grizzlies sported an identical 6-4 conference record, and a 10-8 overall mark. Shae Olsen is a returning All-Conference performer, and freshman Chloe Sams has potential as well.
Idaho City is another team looking to make a push into the upper echelon of the conference standings. The Wildcats were 9-8 overall a year ago, and will be led by Ruth Heffington.
At Wilder, head coach Juan Arias feels good about his team’s chances this year. “A lot of teams lost great players,” Arias says. “I feel that this year there will be an opportunity for teams to take advantage of that.” Junior shooting guard Kimberly Arias was an All-Conference selection a year ago, and will be joined by senior Yuliza Mejia and junior Marissa Puga in the backcourt. They’ll also welcome back Mariana Ramirez. “She was out due to injury last year, but she will be our defensive specialist and starting point guard,” coach Arias says.
North Star Charter went just 2-11 a year ago, but head coach Tiffany Doskeland is optimistic about the Huskies’ chances in 2021-22. Senior guards Eva Young, Abby Ballhagen and Ari Burke will lead the way. “Last year my team showed team supportiveness and spirit no matter the result of the game,” Doskeland says. “But as a team at times we had some issues with on-the-court communication.”
Victory Charter and Gem State were picked to finish towards the bottom of the conference standings, and not much is known about each squad. Gem State should be bolstered by the addition of a few players from Centennial Baptist. Centennial Baptist did not have enough varsity players for their own program, so they will combine with Gem State instead.