By KIM NORTH

Times Leader Sports Writer

BRIDGEPORT – The last few seasons have not been good to the Bridgeport girls basketball program, but head coach Brittany Hicks is more than excited with what she has seen from her squad coming into the 2022-23 seasons.

The Bulldogs return four letterwinners from last winter. Two of them – seniors Kaylee Bain (5-6) and Alexis Clemens (5-8) – are seeking their fourth letters. Junior Brooke Stewart (5-6) has lettered two times while sophomore Rowyn Herman (5-5) earned a letter as a freshman.

Seniors Ashlynn Allen (5-10) and Daijah Smith (5-7), along with sophomores Jasmine Gonzalez (5-7) and Rylee McElroy (5-6) will also see playing time. Allen and Smith didn’t play last winter.

Completing the roster is a five-member freshmen class that includes Hanna Brewer (5-5), Liberty Chambers (5-7), Allanah Summers (5-5), Hailey Masters (5-6) and Kaylee Baxter (5-5).

“This team has made huge improvements during the off-season and pre-season. I definitely see a more improved team than last year. We have put a lot of focus on playing pressure defense. We sat back on our heels a lot last year waiting for things to happen – this year I hope to see us pressure our opponents more,” Hicks explained. “The key to our offense this year is to play unselfishly and with high confidence because when we do that, good things happen for us.

“I’m excited to watch this group continue to get better and grow throughout the season. If we are firing on all cylinders we will see more wins on our record this year.”

New teams on the schedule are Wood County Christian (twice) and Paden City and Weirton Madonna once each.

Lettermen lost were Hailey Aubrey, Bailey Dyson, Hallee Lewis and Haylee Conaway.

“Our strengths include our toughness and quickness. This group likes to play fearlessly and at a fast pace. They will jump on the ground for loose balls and battle every possession,” Hicks noted. “Our biggest weakness is our size. We will struggle on the boards against bigger teams but I hope that creates mismatches for some of our quicker guards.”