Pieces in place for Shady Side Academy girls as postseason run begins
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Saturday, February 15, 2025 | 11:01 AM
Shady Side Academy’s Cassie Sauer works to the basket against Avonworth defenders in December.
Shady Side Academy’s Karis Thomas drives to the basket past Greensburg Central’s Jayla Peterson and Erica Rodriguez during their game on Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, at GCC.
Shady Side Academy’s Leah Buford scores past Greensburg Central’s Erica Rodriguez during their game on Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, at GCC.
The Shady Side Academy girls basketball team is in a strong position to defend its WPIAL Class 3A crown. The Bulldogs turned in an impressive regular season, compiling a 22-0 record with an average margin of victory of 31.6 points per game.
While Shady Side Academy players settled comfortably into their roles on the court, Bulldogs coach Jonna Burke said it wasn’t easy.
“The comfortability changes from game to game,” Burke said. “I think the schedule we played gave us a good experience. We saw all kinds of different things. As the season progresses, you become more comfortable within roles and trusting one another on the floor.”
Shady Side Academy has leaned on its strong rebounding as a hallmark to its defensive efforts. The Bulldogs collectively go to the glass and ensure opponents don’t get many second opportunities.
Six-foot-2 forward Cassie Sauer is Shady Side Academy’s top rebounder, pulling down 13 per contest. Cameron Capel, a 5-7 senior guard, is one of the Bulldogs’ other top rebounders.
“We still remind them about boxing out and going after the ball,” Burke said. “Especially when you have someone as tall as Cassie. You don’t want to count on her to get every rebound. They won’t always be in her range, so we want to rebound as a team.”
Karis Thomas leads the offense by scoring 20.3 points per game. Burke said the Bulldogs had developed a nice balance.
“They are unselfish, and they want to win basketball games,” Burke said. “They care about each other on the floor. Their chemistry is good.”
The returning Bulldogs helped Shady Side Academy reach the PIAA quarterfinals last season before being knocked out by Westmont Hilltop.
As they enter the WPIAL tournament as the top seed in Class 3A, Burke has been stressing to her team that this year will be different.
“You can’t replace the experience we have,” Burke said. “You can have that experience by going through different things. We are fortunate we had a good run last year, but that was last year. That’s not this year’s team. We’ll have to make our own way.”
Tags: Shady Side Academy
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