The two teams that advanced the farthest in postseason play lead our 2011-2012 girls’ basketball all-star squad.
Unadilla Valley and Norwich claimed exactly half of our 10 all-star spots with Unadilla Valley sporting an area-best three all-stars, while Norwich had two players garner select spots.
Unadilla Valley posted its first winning record in some seven years, and had three of the area’s top six scorers, all of whom are underclassmen. Jordan Anderson, Amanda Off, and Taylor Davis combined to average over 40 points per game this season as UV won 15 games in reaching the Section IV Class C semifinals. Just a season ago, the Storm averaged slightly over 42 points per game – as a team.
Norwich, meanwhile, had a mix of veterans along with youngsters in reaching its second straight Section IV championship game. Bryn Loomis, a returning all-star, justly earned all-Section IV honors, and when matching up against the best players and the best teams, she proved time and again she is among the elite players. Loomis’ teammate, Jenni Borfitz, makes her first all-star appearance, and is among a group of young players that should keep the Tornado competitive for many years to come.
Three of the remaining five all-star spots went to returning players. Bainbridge-Guilford seniors, Randi Conway and Shania Vandermark along with Greene junior Kaitlin Gorton make up the veteran trio, while our two first-time all-stars are Sherburne-Earlville senior Briana Vibbard, and Oxford senior Jacquelyn Heggie.
As always, all-star selections were made based on our season-long observations of local teams in concert with recommendations from area basketball coaches. Players are listed in alphabetical order by team.
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Shania Vandermark, sr. Bainbridge-Guilford, 5-foot-9
A four-year player for the Bobcats, the last three as a starter, Vandermark scored 573 points over her final two seasons, and averaged a double-double this past year with 13.8 points and 11.1 rebounds to go with a team-high four steals per contest. She had five 20-point games scoring a high of 29 against Unadilla Valley in the season-opener. Vandermark also posted the best rebounding game of our coverage area pulling down 23 rebounds in a three-point home win over UV in early February. “She was absolutely very athletic and very strong,” said B-G coach Bob Conway. “A big key to her game was rebounding. Kids just couldn’t keep her off the boards.”
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Randi Conway, sr., Bainbridge-Guilford, 5-foot-6
The third of the Conway sisters to play for the Bobcats, Conway repeats as a County all-star finishing with a solid 11.5 points per game average to go with a nifty six assists. As Conway went, so went the Bobcats in most instances as she manned the starting point guard position for most of the last four seasons. “She has definitely improved her overall game the past four years,” said coach Bob Conway. “She has always been a good passer, and her scoring improved the past two years.” Randi Conway was in double figures scoring 15 times to lead B-G this season, and scored a season-high 19 points in a victory over Class B Windsor.
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B-G honorable mention: Abbey Smith, so.
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Kaitlin Gorton, jr. Greene, 5-foot-6
The leading scorer and point guard for the Trojans, Gorton was the most prolific three-point shooter in the area with 36 three-pointers, a total that was 10 better than the next-best local shooter. She also hit a respectable 35 percent from behind the arc to go with 6.1 rebounds and 5.2 assists. One the best indicators of a point guard’s effectiveness is her assist-to-turnover ratio. Gorton had at least 2.3 assists to every turnover. "Kaitlin has proven herself to be an outstanding outside shooter,” said Greene head coach Dave Gorton. “We should be able to get her more opportunities next year as we move her from the point." Gorton scored at least 20 points on four occasions topping out at 28 points against Hancock. She had six three balls in the game, and actually matched the Wildcats’ overall point total.
Greene honorable mention: Jessica Brooks, sr.; Rebecca Smith, jr.
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Norwich
Bryn Loomis, sr., Norwich, 5-foot-7
Considered one of the best players in all of Section IV, Loomis was recently honored by the BCANY of Section IV as one of the section’s best players. Already a standout defender, Loomis picked up her offensive game, and was second in Chenango County scoring at 14.5 points per game. “She has an incredible knack for making the big play and making the big shot,” said Norwich third-year coach Josh Bennettt. “Her ability to create shots for herself and her teammates off the dribble was the key to our offense.” In 20 games, Loomis was in double figures 18 times. She had her best night against Unadilla Valley in which three of the area’s top four scorers were on the floor (UV’s Jordan Anderson and Amanda Off were the other two). Loomis established herself as the County’s premier player scoring a career-high 27 points. In addition to her scoring, Loomis led Norwich with 4.3 steals per game to go with 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocked shots a contest.
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