Communication key as Penn Hills girls basketball seeks return trip to playoffs

By: Josh Rizzo
Sunday, November 17, 2024 | 11:01 AM

The Penn Hills girls basketball team will be challenged to continue a winning tradition when its season starts this December.

The Indians reached the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs for the second straight season last year, winning a preliminary round game before being knocked out by Oakland Catholic.

Penn Hills, which finished 12-12 last season, will return three starters but has a few big holes to fill. The Indians lost 1,000-point scorer Hannah Pugliese and Egypt Coleman to graduation. Both players are playing at the Division II level with Pugliese at Slippery Rock and Coleman at Point Park.

“Our biggest challenge this year will be the ability to communicate and execute,” said ninth-year coach Robert Cash. “When you have a mixture of younger kids and older kids, it’s important to communicate with each other, know what their jobs are, and that communication will be important. When a game is tight, you need to be able to execute a play.”

The Indians will open the season Dec. 5 when they play Penn-Trafford. That game will be part of a three-game homestand to open the year.

The Indians will be in Section 1 this season along with Armstrong, Fox Chapel, Franklin Regional, Gateway, Plum and Shaler.

Penn Hills’ three returning starters this season will be point guard Milani Oliver, center Cara Crawford and guard Shai Short.

Oliver, a junior, is a versatile player who Cash believes will be able to create problems on both ends of the floor.

“Milani is one of the best point guard defenders in the area,” Cash said. “She’ll make havoc for other teams on offense and defense.”

With Oliver at the point and Crawford underneath, Penn Hills can play on the wings and under the basket. Crawford is 5-foot-10 and provides size underneath.

“Her growth will be important for us to maintain the level of success,” Cash said. “Cara knows how to finish around the rim. Two of the most important things in basketball are having a good point guard and someone who can score underneath.”

Cash said Penn Hills will need to be tough on defense. The Indians have a strength on the defensive end of the floor and hope the offense will develop as the players get more experience. Penn Hills didn’t have a JV team last year to feed players into the varsity program but will still have some depth.

“We have some middle school kids coming up,” Cash said. “That will help us tremendously. We’ll see how it goes.”

Tags: Penn Hills