Burrell girls again have postseason aspirations amidst challenging section slate

By: Greg Macafee
Tuesday, November 18, 2025 | 5:48 PM

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Coach Shaun Reddick and the Burrell girls basketball program are looking to accomplish more.

After a season in which the Bucs went 13-10 and punched their ticket to the WPIAL Class 4A playoffs with just one senior, Reddick and the Bucs are far from satisfied.

“We still have some kids who understand what that takes,” Reddick said. “We believe that we need to not just get to the playoffs but start winning some playoff games. We’re not going to be satisfied with a ‘Congratulations, you made the playoffs.’

“We’re in a tough section, admittedly. Any time you have North Catholic and Oakland Catholic in your section, you have a strong section. So it’s our job to jump up and beat one of them at some point.”

To do that, Reddick will need to find a way to replace Julianna Fisher, who was a third-team All-Valley News Dispatch selection last season. She was the Bucs’ leading scorer and rebounder, along with being their presence in the paint.

She’ll be tough to replace, but Reddick is counting on senior forward Casey Brancato to fill that role.

“She’s a tall girl, but she’s more of a guard style of player, rather than a forward,” Reddick said. “So she’s going to have to do some heavy lifting inside for us. I think she’s up for the challenge.”

Besides Brancato, Burrell also returns seniors Mikayla Coury and Adriana Vogel, who are in position to play big roles this season.

The Bucs already have been hit with the injury bug, as junior guard McKenna Miller was injured during soccer season, Reddick said. He added he wasn’t sure how long Miller would be out but characterized it as a pretty big blow.

“She was my point guard for two years and didn’t come out of the game,” Reddick said. “As long as she’s down, we’re going to be hurting.”

Fortunately for the Bucs, there’s a large incoming class of freshmen, headlined by triplets Chase, Kendall and Peyton Coury, along with Channing Miller.

Since Reddick took over at the varsity level, he said he’s invested a lot of time into Burrell’s lower levels and is starting to see that work pay off. The Bucs won’t be big in numbers this season, but Reddick expects that work to pay off significantly over the next few seasons.

“That’s kind of been the goal all along. I took over four years ago and now the elementary program, with the time and effort we put in down there, is starting to pay off,” Reddick said. “With the addition of those four freshmen, I’m also going to have four more freshmen coming in. They aren’t quite varsity-ready yet, but they are all good players and may get a minute here or there in a pinch.”

Bringing all the pieces together will be crucial for the Bucs. After losing Fisher, Reddick and his team are looking to produce more consistently on offense. They scored 42.8 points per game last season and will look for a little more than that this time around.

However, Burrell has excelled defensively since Reddick took over. The Bucs allowed only 32.7 points per game last year and often have relied on their defense to create their offense.

“We like to get up and down the floor, and we do feel that defense is something that we’ve hung our hat on since I got here,” Reddick said. “We consistently hold opponents down, but you still have to outscore them at some point.”

Burrell girls at a glance

Coach: Shaun Reddick

Last year’s record: 13-10 (8-6 Section 1-4A)

Returning starters: Casey Brancato (Sr., G/F), Mikayla Coury (Sr., G)

Others to watch: Adriana Vogel (Sr., G)

Top newcomers: Chase Coury (Fr., G), Kendall Coury (Fr., G), Peyton Coury (Fr., G), Channing Miller (Fr., G)

SCHEDULE

Date, Opponent, Time

12.1, South Allegheny, 7:30 p.m.

12.4, at California, 7 p.m.

12.8, Mt. Pleasant, 7:30 p.m.

12.11, Highlands*, 7:30 p.m.

12.12, at Connellsville, 7:30 p.m.

12.15, at Knoch*, 7:30 p.m.

12.18, Derry*, 7:30 p.m.

12.22, at North Catholic*, 7:30 p.m.

12.29, DuBois Central Catholic^, 4:30 p.m.

12.30, TBD^, TBD

1.5, Freeport*, 7:30 p.m.

1.8, at Valley*, 5:30 p.m.

1.12, Oakland Catholic*, 7:30 p.m.

1.15, at Highlands*, 7:30 p.m.

1.19, Knoch*, 7:30 p.m.

1.22, at Derry*, 7:15 p.m.

1.23, Plum, 7:30 p.m.

1.26, North Catholic*, 7:30 p.m.

1.29, at Freeport*, 7:30 p.m.

2.2, Valley*, 7:30 p.m.

2.5, at Oakland Catholic*, 7:30 p.m.

*Section game

^Indiana holiday tournament

Greg Macafee is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Greg by email at gmacafee@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Tags: Burrell