FHS girls should be good, but NLL figures to be tough

Findlay High girls basketball coach Brian Rosendale was in a quandary, and he shared his concern with FHS Athletic Director Nate Weihrauch. "I told Nate this might be one of our best teams," Rosendale said. "But we might have one of our worst records." Rosendale welcomes back six varsity veterans from a team that went 15-9. It was Findlay's second straight 15-win season and fourth straight winning season overall, the school's best four-year stretch in 20 years. A transition from the defunct Three Rivers Athletic Conference to the Northern Lakes League poses a major challenge, though, no matter how deep and talented a roster Rosendale can put on the floor. "The NLL is loaded," Rosendale said of a conference that, traditionally, has been very strong in girls basketball. "Anthony Wayne (a state semifinalist in 2022) has everybody back. Perrysburg is always strong. Springfield and Fremont Ross were regional teams last year … There are some very good programs out there." Rosendale isn't selling his Trojans short, though, not with the experience he has returning. "We have six experienced seniors back," Rosendale said. "I've never had that many that played a lot. And they're all capable of starting, that's how balanced they are." Graduation did cost the Trojans two players – guards Reegan Hayward (7.6 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2 apg, 1.7 spg) and Ava Cooper (1.5 ppg, 1.3 rpg). Three all-TRAC players are back in the fold, though, including first-team all-league guard Katelyn Stechschulte, second-team pick Madelyn Stechschulte and Aleksyss Arredondo, who received honorable mention all-TRAC recognition. Katelyn Stechschulte, a 5-10 senior, averaged 10.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game. Madilyn Stechschulte also averaged 10.2 points, along with 5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2 steals. "Madilyn is more of a driver. She gets to the basket a lot," Rosendale said. "Katelyn used her quickness and her shooting ability. It's a nice 1-2 punch." Arredondo, a 5-8 senior and one of Findlay's better 3-point shooters, averaged 8.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals. Olivia Mangas returns out front after averaging 4.4 points, 4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.7 steals. "She knows the game so well. She's like a coach on the floor," Rosendale said of Mangas, who will be a four-year varsity letter winner. "We play her at the point, but she could easily play the 1, 2, 3 or 4 positions." Findlay returns a proven post player in Sophia Myers, a 6-1 senior who averaged 6 points and 6.1 rebounds. "Sophia is going to be key for us because she can control the middle," Rosendale said. "She can change the game for us because of her ability inside." Also back is 5-10 senior letter winner Zoe McCormick, a two-sport athlete at Findlay High. "Being a goalie (in soccer), Zoe sees things so well, especially on the defensive end," Rosendale said. "She's also a pretty good outside shot. Sometimes we want her to shoot more." Addi Shinn, a 5-11 junior, will see time in the post, with 5-7 junior Ali Cox and 5-6 sophomore Ryan Boes on the perimeter. Findlay's returning experience has already proven beneficial in Rosendale's game plan. "We've been able to do a lot more things, put a lot more things in the play book," he said, "It's a good group, a very intelligent group, and they pick things up quickly. When we first saw them playing basketball back in fourth, fifth grade, we could see it was a group we wanted to keep together." Judging by Findlay's record the past two years – 30-19 – and the chance for a fifth straight winning season, keeping that group together has paid off. "The seniors have been a big part of that," Rosendale said. "Their goal has always been to just win and keep on winning."