Gateway girls basketball players adjusting to new roles

By: Michael Love
Sunday, November 28, 2021 | 11:01 AM

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The Gateway girls basketball team didn’t start out the way it had hoped last year amidst the atmosphere of overall uncertainty in the wake of the covid pandemic.

The Gators were 0-6 before defeating Section 4-5A foe Greensburg Salem. They righted the ship and went 7-4 over the final 11 games of the regular season before a tough loss at Mars in the first round of the WPIAL open tournament.

“The biggest thing from last year was our growth as individuals and as a team overall,” Gateway coach Curtis Williams said.

“We were a fairly young and inexperienced group which got better as the year went on. Last year also was the first year switching to a man-to-man defense, so we had some struggles at times with communication and assignments. When we won the (WPIAL) championship (in 2018) we were a heavy zone team.”

Williams said that while this year’s team still is trying to find its identity through the first week or two of practices and a number of players are learning new roles and new responsibilities, things are starting to take shape.

“We definitely are a work in progress,” Williams said. “But the girls are working hard and have the right attitude.”

Lost to graduation was the contributions of all-section performer Dynasty Shegog, who led the team last year in scoring at 13.8 points per game and in rebounds at 9.3 a contest.

She now is a freshman on the women’s team at Cal (Pa.).

Williams said the team also has been dealing with adversity with injuries to key players.

Grace Weiskircher, a 5-foot-10 starting forward last year as a junior, is lost for the season because of a torn ACL.

Becca Ryan, a post player and the sixth player in the rotation as a freshman last year, was expected to increase her role this season, but she suffered an ACL injury during the soccer season and also won’t be able to play.

“It’s been a real adjustment,” Williams said. “We’re back to being young in a lot of different spots. It almost feels like a mirror image of last year. We are a little further ahead than we were at this time last year, but it still seems like déjà vu.”

Williams said he is strengthened with the knowledge he has experience leading the way in the return of senior Lexi Margolis and junior Marina Grado.

Margolis led the returnees in scoring last year at 9.8 points a game and dished out a team-best 2.4 assists. Grado averaged 7.6 points and was the team leader in steals at 3.6 a game.

“Lexi is ready to lead the program,” Williams said. “She has taken a big step. She really matured as a leader last year, and I see a big difference in her approach to preparation, practice and encouraging her teammates, yet challenging them as well. She is almost a new player.

“Marina has also taken a huge step in her leadership and also in her confidence and her knowledge of the game. She understands what we expect of her. She’s becoming more vocal instead of just leading by example with her play. You can see her communication abilities in becoming a true point guard.”

Also expecting to form the core of the varsity rotation, Williams said, are returning players in senior guard Kira Pavlik, junior guard/forward Amiya White, junior guard Jayla Oliver, and sophomore guard Anayla Jordan.

“We have a lot of guards, but where we are deficient right now is in the post,” Williams said.

“In our section, that is killer because everyone in the section has strong post players. We’ve got our work cut out for us in that area. We’re trying to adapt and work on our style of play.”

Gateway returns to Section 4 and again will do battle with Franklin Regional, Latrobe, Greensburg Salem, McKeesport, Penn Hills and Woodland Hills.

Woodland Hills and Latrobe were WPIAL semifinalists last year, and McKeesport made the quarterfinals.

The Gators were scheduled to scrimmage Elizabeth Forward on Wednesday, and they are set for a scrimmage against Mt. Lebanon on Dec. 7 ahead of the season opener against Armstrong on Dec. 13.

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.

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