- Ada boys' preview on Tuesday -

Photos and preview by Cort Reynolds
ADA - The youthful Ada girls basketball program looks to continues climbing upward under second-year head coach Morgan Bass.

Seven letter winners and four starters are back with no seniors on the roster. A key freshman also joins the team to help Ada accelerate its rebuild and improve on last season's 1-21 overall record (0-8 in Northwest Conference). 

Despite their record, the girls battled hard all season and gained vital experience and character.

"We are still very young and building," cautioned Bass, the all-time Ada girls program scoring leader and a former Ohio Northern standout guard. "I think we are definitely better this season. We had a good summer and a good pre-season."

Feisty 5-8 junior Miranda Wills and tall sophomore guard Kirsten Poling are the top returning scorers. 

The aggressive, hustling Wills is moving from guard to a more natural post position, which will take advantage of her strength and willingness to mix it up inside.

She is a good competitor who tallied a career-high 21 points in the lone Bulldog win last year over Perry. Wills will lead the NWC in floorburns, times on the floor and jump balls created. She is a strong player and defender who creates contact to get to the foul line regularly. 

Her versatility and leadership will be key for the young Bulldogs. "Miranda just hustles," said Bass.

Megan Light, a 5-11 junior, returns as the other starting post and is the team's tallest player. Light showed flashes of promise last year and could be a major factor on the interior with increased assertiveness.

"Megan has shown some progress, but she just needs to be more aggressive," noted Bass. 

The long-armed, heady Poling enjoyed a solid freshman campaign last year as one of the club's primary ballhandlers. She passes well, makes solid decisions with the ball and has a knack for steals. She is good at penetrating seams as well.

The 5-9 guard also has promise as a shooter and scorer. Like Wills she gets to the free throw line frequently and possesses a high-arching shot.

"Kirsten is very solid and a good ballhandler," said Bass. "She has good speed, and I look for her to be more aggressive offensively."

Speedy 5-2 sophomore Timber Blankenship is expected to start this season after playing key minutes last season off the bench. The fiery guard is very quick and competitive, and is a streaky shooter.

"Timber is a very high energy player and is a good defender," said Bass.

The fifth starter will be promising freshman point guard Courtney Sumner. A good and quick athlete, she will assume the primary ballhandling duties, allowing Wills and Poling to settle into more natural positions elsewhere.

"Courtney is one of our better shooters," said Bass. "She sees the floor pretty well and is a good competitor. She plays with a chip on her shoulder, which I like."

Sumner should be one of the team's top scorers and playmakers. All she lacks is experience at the varsity level. Her arrival should make it far more difficult for opponents to press Ada. 

"Sumner and Poling will run the point; adding Courtney to the mix allows others to move to their true positions," said Bass. "We all need to be more fundamentally sound in distributing the ball and making good decisions."

Junior southpaw wing Alexis Waugh started last season but will probably be the first player off the bench this season. At a solidly built 5-7, she drives well, can hit the short to mid-range shot, and will battle under the boards as well.

Junior guard Kylie Acheson gained some valuable expeience last season and will provide a perimeter shooting threat off the bench. 

Junior Kiersten Cortez, a 5-4 guard, rounds out the full-time eight-player varsity roster. Sophomore Brook Phillips, a 5-8 forward, earned a letter last year and will swing between the varsity and reserve squads.

With low roster numbers at Ada and other area schools, the Lady Bulldogs will again play two-quarter junior varsity games all year under coach Mason Acheson.

"Making free throws and layups will be key for us," said Bass. "Our foul shooting has improved. We are a better shooting team than last year, but outside shooting is still a work in progress.

"This is a good group of girls," she continued. "They work hard and are very coachable. As long as we don't face anyone huge, I think our defense should be pretty solid. We have pretty decent athleticism.

"On offense we just need to focus on hitting foul shots and easy shots inside."

Bass noted that the team goal is to win at least four or five games, as well as one league game or more.

As for the NWC race, Bass says "the conference looks tough. Bluffton and Grove look good, while Lincolnview and Delphos Jefferson should be improved. Allen East lost something like nine seniors, so they should be down." 

The Mustangs do return Tori Newland though, one of the best players in the NWC.

Columbus Grove and Bluffton tied for the league title last season at 7-1. Spencerville and Crestview were knotted in third place at 6-2. AE was 4-4, followed by Paulding (3-5), Delphos Jeff (2-6), Lincolnview (1-7) and Ada.

Ada tipped off its campaign at home vs. local non-league combatant Cory-Rawson Nov. 26. The league opener is December 12 at home against traditional rival Bluffton.

The Lady Bulldogs will also compete in the third annual Border Battle tournament Dec. 26/28 at Harrod. Ada, Waynesfield, USV and tourney host Allen East are the four area rivals who will compete for the crown.

AE has won both girls Border tourney crowns thus far, beating Ada in the 2017 finals and USV last year.

"We are just hoping to compete better this season," Bass summed up. "Allen East, Waynesfield, Hardin Northern, USV and Perry (whom Ada plays twice) are some of the games I think we can win."

With the addition of Sumner and maturation of several key returnees, Ada could surprise some people this season and win more than that. At the very lest the Bulldog girls should be much more competitive.