Despite changes, Worthington Christian girls basketball enjoying a great regular season

The Warriors are 20-1 and the top seed in the district tournament

POWELL, Ohio – Despite how it might appear on the surface, “different” is one word Meghan Mayotte uses to describe what she and her Worthington Christian girls basketball teammates have experienced this winter.

The Warriors were Division III state runners-up a season ago and haven’t skipped a beat, earning the No. 1 seed for the district tournament and being ranked first in the final state poll.This has come despite Worthington Christian losing two starters to graduation, having another program lynchpin transfer and changing head coaches.

“It was definitely nerve-wracking going into the season having such a young team, having a new coach and losing (some) of our main players,” Mayotte said. “Knowing the girls from such a young age, I always knew how hard they worked, so I’m not really surprised (we only have one loss), especially with our league not being as competitive. We always find a way to win every game and always have really clutch plays at the end that put us above everyone else.”

The leadership provided by Mayotte, a 5-foot-9 combo guard who has signed with Ohio Dominican and is the program’s only senior, might be the biggest reason the Warriors are 20-1.

Worthington Christian closes the regular season Feb. 8 against Bloom-Carroll and begins the postseason Feb. 14 at home against 24th-seeded Fredericktown. Barring an upset, the Warriors could find themselves in a district final for the fourth consecutive season.

Mayotte, who has been a key player since she was a freshman, scored the 1,000th career point of her prep career Nov. 26 in a 66-24 win over Grandview.

Through 20 games, she had scored 1290 career points to rank sixth in program history.

“Meghan is the only senior, and I can’t tell you how big of a part she’s been in what we’re doing,” first-year head coach Aaron Davis said. “We’ve got one senior, two juniors and the rest are freshmen and sophomores.

“It’s been our chemistry. It’s a good group of girls and they get along well. One, they’ve bought into the system the coaching staff has presented to them, and two, we’ve been able to win some really close games that could have gone either way. They’ve made plays late in games to win, they trust each other and really they’ve made plays in close games.”

Worthington Christian’s only loss came Nov. 19 when it fell 44-41 to Wheelersburg, which is ninth in the Division III state poll with its only two losses coming to eighth-ranked Portsmouth West.

The other team ranked in the state poll from central Ohio is No. 6 Africentric, which is the district’s No. 2 seed but would only face the Warriors if both teams make it to the state semifinals in Dayton.

Cincinnati Purcell Marian, which beat Worthington Christian 39-38 in a regional final in 2021 and 62-38 in last year’s state championship game, is now competing in Division II.

“You really get used to having the crowds and all the noise and all the pressure, so it doesn’t make me as nervous as it did before,” Mayotte said. “I just know I want to be satisfied with how I play, so I always go out and work as hard as I can no matter my performance to feel good about my game.

“It’s nice that Purcell Marian has moved up a division. I think we can get back (to the state tournament) but it definitely is not going to be easy. We work so hard as a team, and that’s how we can get back there."

The Warriors were regional runners-up in 2021 when senior Katherine Weakley, who now plays for Cedarville and finished second in program history in career points with 1,539, led the way. Weakley’s sister, Megan Weakley, as well as Mayotte and 2022 graduate Blessing King were other key players that season.

A year ago, King emerged as the district’s Player of the Year while closing her prep career as the Warriors’ all-time leader in rebounds and with more than 1,100 career points. She now plays for Florida Southwestern State.

Last May, Jason Dawson stepped down after three seasons as coach and Davis took over.

Then in the fall, long-time athletic director and boys basketball coach Kevin Weakley, who is the father of Katherine and Megan Weakley, stepped down from both positions and the family moved to Sunbury.

Megan Weakley, a Mount Vernon Nazarene commit, is a senior starter for Big Walnut this season.

“This would have been our eighth year together, and (Megan Weakley and I) even played together in AAU,” Mayotte said. “It definitely is hard without her. It’s sad to see her in a different jersey.

“Things changed in that now I’m the only senior. (Davis) loves to learn from everyone on the team and listens to everyone. We use a lot of what Dawson taught us and have incorporated that into what we do as a team, but (Davis) has a whole different side of coaching than Dawson did.”

Mayotte, who averaged 14 points and five rebounds while earning first-team all-district honors last season, averages 19 points, 5.5 rebounds and two assists this season.

Also a qualifier to the Division II girls tennis state tournament last fall, Mayotte projects as a wing player or combo guard collegiately.

Jamie Custer, a 5-6 junior point guard who started last season, has been battling an injury but is expected back for the tournament. She averages 9.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists. Sophomore guard Faith King, who is Blessing King’s sister, has moved into a more significant role and averages 8.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists. Junior Natalie Woodfin, a 5-4 guard, averages 6.5 points and sophomore Amanda Custer, who is Jamie’s sister, is a 5-8 forward who also contributes.

The Warriors have a pair of 6-footers inside in sophomore Brooke Winfree (3.9 ppg) and Audrey Wilson (3.4 ppg).

“For a young team, we’re all learning together,” Faith King said. “Meghan is our only senior and we love her. We’re all learning together and each game we have to find something that will help us win over the other team other than just our size or skill set we have. It’s definitely fun being more of a part of the team this season. More people rely on me. It’s a little bit more pressure but it’s fun.”

Davis spent the last three years coaching with the Central Ohio Basketball Association before replacing Dawson, who led the program to a 69-11 mark in three seasons.

“It’s been a blast,” Davis said. “I’m passionate about the game of basketball and I can’t play anymore, so coaching is my connection to the game. I’ve found that it’s a good way to teach and mentor the kids and prepare for that next step in life. It’s been very important to me and kind of like a calling I have. Thankfully God’s put me in a position where I can take the experience and use it in a positive way."