City of Basketball Love

By Andrew Robinson (@ADRobinson3)
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(Ed. Note: This story is part of CoBL’s “Prepping for Preps” series, which will take a look at many of the top high school programs in the region as part of our 2023-24 season preview coverage. The complete list of schools previewed thus far can be found here.)

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Lansdale Catholic isn’t thinking about the start of the journey, but where it ends.

Last year, the Crusaders tried to avoid thinking about where the 2021-22 season ended and it helped them to a historic season that included the program’s first PCL and PIAA titles. It would be pretty difficult to replicate that type of campaign this winter, so that’s why a new-look LC squad is trying not to think about the now.

A mix of new and returning pieces make LC intriguing, it’s a matter of where the Crusaders go with them.

“There’s no surprises here. We haven’t spent a lot of time together. We’ve got some new pieces, we’ve got pieces with enhanced and increased roles that more will be expected of them,” Crusaders coach Eric Gidney said. “It’s almost an honor and privilege to come in and know teams want to beat us and want to put us on the mantle because of what we accomplished last year, but for us, we’re not worried about what we accomplished last year, we’re worried about what we want to accomplish this year.”

Lansdale Catholic has three starters back, all of them very good players, but conversation will naturally drift to who isn’t there. There’s no masking the fact that Gabby Casey is now doing her thing on Hawk Hill and Jaida Helm is no longer on the team, a knee injury unfortunately derailing the start of her college career.

The players and coaches in the gym for LC all know it, but it won’t truly become real until the first game and there’s no No. 15 to give the ball to in need of a bucket or no No. 2 to swoop in for a critical rebound. 

“I definitely feel like there’s more pressure and people have more expectations of us,” junior guard Sanyiah Littlejohn said. “They want to see what we do without our two key players.”

There’s no one person that’s going to replicate what Casey did in a senior season that saw her break the team and school scoring records, be named PCL MVP, all-state player of the year and Gatorade PA Player of the Year. The same goes for Helm, who did a lot of the gritty work on both ends in her lone season with the Crusaders.

Senior guard Olivia Boccella knows better than anyone the type of gravity and attention Casey and Helm drew and consequently took off her, Littlejohn or junior Nadia Yemola.

“All of us have new roles this year. Last year, with Gabby and Jaida, we could lean on them more but now we have to take control,” Boccella said. “It’s different, it’s new, but we’ll get the hang of it.”

Boccella, who committed to Catholic University late in the fall, said the biggest thing the Crusaders lacked was reps. With the players busy with their respective club teams all summer and some, like Boccella, playing fall sports, LC didn’t have a lot of gym time as a group.

The senior, who hit arguably the shot of the season last year to win the PCL title, established herself as one of the top shooters in the area over the last two seasons. This fall, she’s shown off much more of her off-the-bounce game, giving opposing teams more to think about.

“We haven’t played as a team, really only the three of us have played together,” Boccella said. “We’re going to start grinding in the gym again.”

LC does have one big addition in junior Grace McDonough. The Souderton transfer, who plays on the same Runnin’ Rebels AAU team as Yemola, gives the Crusaders something they haven’t had in recent years with a true post presence.

The 6-foot-2 McDonough brings a lot of options on both ends of the floor. While it’s new for some of them, her teammates were game to look for her in LC’s fall games but again, it goes back to a matter of time and continuity. 

“We’re starting to get the new players really involved in the offense, learning the basics first so we can build off that and become stronger as a team,” Yemola said. “It’s great having someone in the post we can feed it into, and she’s always looking to kick it out. She’s a true post player.”

McDonough isn’t the only Crusader bringing some size to the mix. Isabella Allen and Janelle Carr are both listed at 6-foot-1, giving LC some more of a presence inside while 6-foot freshman Allie Esposito plays more like a guard but has the height to provide a different look.

“It gives us a lot of versatility and it would be a shame for me as a coach to not utilize that,” Gidney.

Littlejohn, a first team All-PCL selection last year, figures to be a catalyst for a lot of what the Crusaders hope to do. The shifty junior is a skilled defensive player but she also showed a capability to break down defenders and score at times last year. She’s got a good passing eye too, which will help with a post player ready to get touches and shooters looking to fire.

It seemed like any time the ball found Yemola last season, something good came of it. The junior, who has an offer from Kutztown, has a solid offensive package she knows will be relied on more this winter.

“These early games are showing us, we don’t have that one dominant player so it’s going to be more important for all of us to contribute,” Yemola said.

LC is looking for sophomore Aubrey Mobley to have a larger role as well, the 5-foot-7 guard coming off a nice summer with her Philly Belles team and having gotten spot minutes last year. Gidney also cited Kyara Benjamin, a quick sophomore guard, as another player who may step in.

Gidney joked that after last year, he’s not going to be anyone’s first pick for using a deep rotation after LC’s first five frequently played all 32 minutes. However, he wants to find more minutes and more opportunities for the bench this season.

The journey is about to start for Lansdale Catholic. The Crusaders are only concerned with when and where it ends.

“Nobody expects us to be as good as last year,” Boccella said. “The chance to prove people wrong, that’s exciting.”