(Basketball News – Photo Illustration – MetroCreativeConnection)
PARKERSBURG — There will be significant absences during the upcoming high school girls basketball season.
Parkersburg Catholic, which has a proud and rich tradition in the sport, will not field a team for the 2024-25 season. The joint decision by school administrators and coaching staff was made in October and was based on the limited number of players scheduled to participate.
During the offseason, one player opted to transfer and another (Seneca Lang) underwent season-ending surgery. That left first-year coach Bob Kerr with five players.
“As an organization, we realized we were only expecting five or six young women to play basketball.” PCHS Athletic Director Larry Thompson said. “When discussions began, we weighed our options against playing games and injuries. We have decided to cancel this year’s games and make it a year of development.
“We don’t have any seniors this year, and we don’t plan on losing any of them, and we’re going to add a few from the middle school and hit the ground running.
Parkersburg Catholic and the girls state basketball tournament have been synonymous since the school won back-to-back state titles in 1977 and 1978. The Crusaderettes also won a state title in 2022 with a perfect record, winning 10 state titles and winning 10 state titles. As part of their legacy they had four runner-up finishes.
Administrators scoured every nook and cranny of the building to recruit talent. Marty Wiechler, who stepped down as head coach of the PCHS girls team at the end of last season, helped in any way he could.
“We have exhausted all options.” Mr. Thompson said. “I’ve talked to all the young women in the building more times than I can count. I’ve talked to former players, I’ve talked to them. I’ve talked to alumni who are faculty. It’s something they don’t want to do. That was one thing I didn’t want to force.
“We have a rich tradition here at Parkersburg Catholic Church, so we didn’t want to be disrespectful in any way or come across in a certain way. We decided to cancel the season and prepare for next year. I felt it was the best decision.”
There is light at the end of the tunnel for PCHS. The middle school program consisted of 16 players. The numbers were similar at the elementary school level.
“COVID-19 has taken a toll on our organization. That’s why we’re in this situation.” Mr. Thompson said. “Due to COVID, we didn’t have a middle school program for a while. We didn’t have an ongoing breastfeeding program for girls. Now we’ve added a middle school program as well, so over time the numbers will grow. We will be able to build a full team.”
Regarding Carr joining the program as a first-year coach, Thompson mentioned the passion he brings. That feeling will continue through the current stage of development and flourish even further into the 2025-26 season.
“Bob is passionate about sports and developing kids to be great athletes.” Mr. Thompson said. “He is committed to this program.
“It was a very tough and difficult decision, but I think it was the right one.”
Contact Kelly Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com
