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Girls Basketball: District Outlooks

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 12, 2007

Class 6A-District 7

Sickles has the best chance of any Hillsborough County team in this district. The Gryphons were runners-up last season, finishing behind Mitchell, but they return plenty of talent, including first-team All-County guard Shawnta Snakovsky. St. Petersburg also should be in the mix. Other county teams include Alonso and Gaither.

BECNEL'S PICKS: Champion - Sickles; Runner-up - St. Petersburg

Class 6A-District 8

Riverview lost the nucleus of last year's 17-7 team to graduation. The Sharks will be small and quick and will rely on a pressure defense. Top returning players include Chelsey Pachoud, Crystal Blake and Gel Ortiz. East Bay (12-14 last season) returns three starters, including forwards Shytina Harley and Jakarra Grace, who averaged 9 and 8.5 rebounds per game, respectively. Other county teams include Durant and Plant City. Sarasota and Sarasota Riverview, which finished 1-2 last season, are the top two teams in this district.

Class 5A-District 8

This is probably the deepest and toughest district in the county. Four teams in the Tribune's preseason Top 10 reside here - No. 2 Freedom, No. 5 Bloomingdale, No. 6 King and No. 8 Tampa Bay Tech - which means two very talented teams' seasons will end in the district tournament. Newsome will try to rebound from last season's 3-20 campaign behind Brittany Michael, Ashley Fuchs and Dana Williams. Wharton will be young this season and will rely on senior Tavoya Tillery and sophomore Shaunice Wiggin for leadership. Armwood and Brandon round out the district.

BECNEL'S PICKS: Champion - Freedom; Runner-up - Bloomingdale

Class 5A-District 10

Like 5A-8, this district boasts four teams in the Tribune Top 10 - No. 4 Plant, No. 7 Hillsborough, No. 9 Blake and No. 10 Jefferson. Chamberlain (11-13 last season) returns three starters and looks to play an up-tempo style led by senior guard Sierra Crawley. Six-foot junior center Gwen Fernandez will anchor the defense in the middle for the Chiefs. Robinson has nowhere to go but up after winning just one game last season. Forwards Zhanea Charles and Akira Conner will lead the young Knights. Rounding out the district are Leto and Middleton

BECNEL'S PICKS: Champion - Plant; Runner-up - Hillsborough

Class 4A-District 9

Spoto, the only Hillsborough County team in this six-member district, enters its second season of basketball. Haines City won the district last season with Lakeland Kathleen finishing as runner-up.

Class 3A-District 11

St. Petersburg Catholic is the favorite here and should successfully defend its district title. The Barons are led by 6-foot-3 center Sasha Chaplin, who committed to Indiana. Tampa Catholic takes over for Academy of the Holy Names as the Barons' biggest challenger. The Jaguars will be led by junior guard Katie Davis and sophomore forward Ali Daigle. AHN hopes to feature a more balanced offensive attack with production from the post and perimeter. Other county teams include Berkeley Prep and Lennard.

BECNEL'S PICKS: Champion - St. Pete Catholic; Runner-up - Tampa Catholic

Class 2A-District 9

Tampa Prep is the only Hillsborough County team in this district. The Terrapins, led by junior guard Ayala Wasser, had only one senior on last season's roster. With Keswick Christian no longer sharing the same district as Tampa Prep, Indian Rocks Christian (last season's runner-up) should be considered the favorite.

Class 1A-District 10

After years of Cambridge dominating this district, Seffner Christian assumed control of it last season and might not give it up for a while. The Crusaders return four starters from last season's 18-11 squad that reached the region semifinals. Junior Jenny Moorer (14.4 ppg, 10.2 rpg) and sophomore Arielle Jadlowski (13.8 ppg, 4.3 rpg) form a solid one-two punch for Seffner Christian. Bayshore Christian wants to use defensive pressure to kick-start its transition game. Seniors Emily Williams and Kirsten Hediger will lead the Faith Warriors. Berean Academy and Tampa Bay Christian round out the district.

BECNEL'S PICKS: Champion - Seffner Christian; Runner-up - Cambridge

Class 1A-District 11

Citrus Park Christian, which was in an all-Hillsborough County district (1A-10) last season, is the only county team in this district. Lakeside Christian is the defending champion, while Oldsmar Christian finished as runner-up.

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