Season Preview: 5A/4A South-Central League

With the 2020-21 girls basketball season now scheduled to begin in January, we’re taking a look back/forward at how things went last year and what to look forward to in each of Colorado’s conferences. Many of the leagues are different and the shortened season certainly will present its own unique challenges, but we’re no less excited to see what Colorado’s many talented players have to offer in the spring. Here’s a snapshot of the 5A/4A South-Central League. <b>How it all shook out in ‘19-20</b> The closest Pueblo West came to losing a league game was a 45-24 road victory over Pueblo County as the Cyclones ran through the S-CL with a 10-0 record and were ranked No. 2 in Class 4A for the entire regular season. Pueblo West was led by Class 4A Player of the Year Hannan Simental, who now plays at Northern Colorado, before they fell in the Great Eight to Holy Family, finishing with a 24-2 overall record with the only other loss to Valor Christian. <b>Teams: </b>Pueblo West, Pueblo County, Pueblo East, Pueblo South, Pueblo Central, Pueblo Centennial <b style="font-size: 1rem;">Which playoff team advanced the furthest?</b> Pueblo West easily went the furthest in the Class 4A state tournament by making it to the Great Eight, meanwhile Pueblo South, Pueblo County and Pueblo Central all bowing out in the first round. However, things could be different this year as the Cyclones are moving up to Class 5A and will be facing potentially tougher competition if they make the postseason. <b style="font-size: 1rem;">A few returning players to watch</b> <strong><span style="font-size: 1rem;">[player_tooltip player_id="95180" first="Gabby" last="Louther"], Pueblo West, SF, 2022</span></strong> If it wasn’t Simental scoring, it was likely the 5-foot-11 Louther for the Cyclones in the 2019-2020 season as the junior averaged 7.5 points per game, second behind Simental. Louther did even more than score points as she led the team in rebounds (5.6 per game), second in assists (2.5 per game) and third in steals (2.3 per game). The forward has shown she can do a little bit of everything on the court, and with Simental gone, look for Louther to step up and try to fill the shoes and keep Pueblo West as one of the strongest programs in the state. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="145413" first="Tyjhanae" last="Penny"], Pueblo Centennial, F/G, 2022<img class="size-medium wp-image-230656 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/11/tyjhanae-penny-300x295.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="295" /></strong> The Bulldogs have had a rough few years, but Penny is the beckon of light the program has needed. The junior’s 12.3 points per game last season was fourth in the S-CL as she knocked down 43 3-pointers and and led the team in free throw attempts with 73. Penny isn’t afraid to draw contact, she played football back in Texas where she’s from, nor does she shy away from taking the big shot. Look for the 5-foot-7 Bulldog to keep lifting this program up in 2020-2021. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="117696" first="Chloe" last="Keck"], Pueblo South, SG, 2022<img class="size-medium wp-image-230657 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/11/chloe-keck-291x300.jpg" alt="" width="291" height="300" /></strong> Pueblo South has been a historically great program and Keck hopes to continue the tradition in 2020-2021 as she’s in line to take over the Colts’ program. The 5-foot-6 junior posted 9.6 points per game last season as she played tandem to standout [player_tooltip player_id="115785" first="Jada" last="Dupree"]. Keck hit 27 3-pointers last season and has shown she has the personality and will to make shots through contact. Watch for Keck to take over this Colts team as she has plenty of experience after starting as a freshman two seasons ago when the Colts went all the way to the Class 4A state title game. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="145400" first="Alicia" last="Lest"], Pueblo Central, F, 2021</strong> The S-CL’s leading rebounding in Lest returns after she hauled in 8.7 boards per game last season for the Wildcats. She also served as the team’s second leading scorer with 8.1 points per game, and her role in the Wildcats’ offense is sure to only increase with the graduation of offensive standout [player_tooltip player_id="95080" first="Jocelyn" last="Marquez"]. Lest doubles as a standout volleyball player, which she brought to the basketball court with 3.6 blocks per game last season as well. <strong>Rose Weimer, Pueblo County, SF, 2021<img class="size-medium wp-image-230659 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/11/rose-weimer-222x300.jpg" alt="" width="222" height="300" /></strong> Pueblo County is known for tough defense, so Weimer’s ability on that end won’t be too much of a question mark. The 5-foot-10 forward was third in the S-CL last season in rebounds per game with 6.2 while she was third in scoring by .1 points with 7.7 points per game. Her and Hayle Herrera will need to show some offensive fire power if the Hornets want to upset Pueblo West, so watch for Weimer to step up as she plays more like a guard on offense. <b style="font-size: 1rem;">Some other names to know</b> [player_tooltip player_id="145398" first="Marissa" last="Leyva"], Pueblo West, SG, 5’7", 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="145399" first="Shayla" last="Padilla"], Pueblo West, PF, 5’10", 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="207101" first="Kate" last="Gallery"], Pueblo West, SF, 6’0", 2022 [player_tooltip player_id="207105" first="Sydney" last="Smith"], Pueblo West, SG, 5’8", 2022 Hayle Herrera, Pueblo County, SG, 5’2", 2021 Nyheli Longoria, Pueblo Centennial, G, 2023 Grace Helzer, Pueblo East, G, 2023 <b style="font-size: 1rem;">A quick, early look to the spring</b> Even with the departure of Simental, Pueblo West will be heavy favorites to win the S-CL once again in 2020-2021. With plenty of college talent still around a former college coach in Valerie Stambersky taking over the program, look for the Cyclones to dominate once again. Overall, the S-CL could be headed for a more down year with lots of unproven talent taking over for teams in the upcoming season. Pueblo County and Pueblo South are still threats to make the postseason with the strong defense from the Hornets and the pipeline of talent the Colts still have. Pueblo East and Pueblo Central will have new faces trying to take over for their program, which could come with bumps. Just ask Pueblo Centennial, who hopes their young lineups from the past two seasons can start to turn into wins in the 2020-2021 season.