Shaun Reddick returns to lead Burrell girls basketball program

By: Michael Love
Wednesday, July 14, 2021 | 3:18 PM

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Shaun Reddick is no stranger to coaching basketball at Burrell in his nearly 25 years on the bench overall.

The teacher in the Burrell School District has mentored players on the hard court at the middle school, freshman and junior varsity levels and served one season as the Bucs girls varsity head coach in 2001-02.

Twenty years after that single-year varsity stint, Reddick is back in that capacity.

Hired in May to replace Joel Ceraso, who stepped down after three seasons at the helm of the Bucs, Reddick said he’s looking forward to seeing his players continue to improve over the rest of the summer and into the fall as they prepare for the upcoming season.

“I am excited,” said Reddick, who has served as the coach of the boys and girls tennis teams the past several seasons.

“Whenever you take over a team, you try to get the system in place and see what the kids can do. There is a lot of talent on this team. It just comes down to them being able to work well together, and we are seeing that.”

Reddick has been putting his system in place since the start of summer workouts early last month with the help of assistant coaches Drew Jonczak, a former head coach at Highlands, as well as 2001 Burrell graduate Andrew Twidwell.

“I always look forward to working with the kids,” said Reddick, who is back on the basketball bench after a most recent five-year break.

“Being a teacher, that’s why I am here. I didn’t know if I was going to coach basketball again. But a lot of these kids are my students, and I’ve talked with them about it all the time. They are just great kids.”

Burrell lost just one senior from last year — reserve Annie Weimer — and returns a number of starters, including senior Allison Fisher, a 2021 Valley News Dispatch second-team all-star.

Fisher averaged 12.4 points and 4.2 rebounds in 20 games.

The Bucs went 10-11 overall last year and were 4-5 in Section 1-4A. Burrell entered the open WPIAL playoffs and suffered a second-round loss to Beaver, which won the WPIAL title and was undefeated until a loss in the PIAA quarterfinals.

“Coach Reddick has given us a lot of chances to prove ourselves,” said Addy Lewandowski, a 6-foot rising junior center/forward.

“We were ready to work right away at the start of the summer. We know coach Reddick really well, and it was a smooth transition.”

Rising senior Olivia Watts continues her recovery process and is working to be fully cleared after ACL surgery in January.

“I am so excited to get back fully and help my team get ready for the season,” Watts said.

Reddick said he’s seen positive work in a couple of games at the Aquinas Academy summer league, which also features teams such as Hampton and Avonworth.

“The girls have worked hard and have taken direction well, and it’s translated into some good things in these games,” Reddick said.

“You can tell they are hungry and want to win. We still have a lot of work to do, but that’s what the summer is for. The idea is to get into the gym every day and leave a better team than we were the day before. If you get better in the gym, the wins take care of themselves.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Burrell