Winning brings Westside newfound attention
The Westside girls basketball team is finally getting some respect under head coach Troy Gillespie.
Gillespie, now in his 11th season at the helm, has the Wolves at No. 14 in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches’ Class 6A state rankings. Considering the talent on hand, Westside could go a lot higher.
“Last year, we weren’t ranked at the start of the season and came within a win of making it to the state tournament,” said Gillespie, alluding to the Wolves’ run to the Class 6A-Region III championship game, where they lost to Cypress Woods. “I think people took notice.”
Why did it take so long for the Wolves to get their due? After all, Westside finished 34-4 a year ago and earned its fourth regional final appearance.
The Wolves could take it a step further, despite a young roster that relies on a combined nine freshmen and sophomores.
“We have five seniors, but more than half the team is made up of underclassmen,” Gillespie said. “There are moments that we don’t look like a top team, but, on a good day, we can beat just about anybody.”
Westside opened the season with a 56-43 victory over Fort Bend Elkins. The Wolves also won four of five games at the Spring Branch ISD Tournament, with their only loss coming to Katy Tompkins 68-34 in the championship game.
The strength of this year’s team is a backcourt led by senior Sentreal Gregory. A two-time all-region selection and last year’s District 20-6A co-most valuable player with former teammate Maddisen Turner (Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi), the 5-foot-6 point guard has already earned a place among the school’s all-time greats. She averaged 15 points, five assists and three steals a year ago.
“Sentreal is one of the top point guards in Houston,” Gillespie said. “Sentreal isn’t very big, but she’s really smart and runs the floor well. She’s also poised and never loses her cool, regardless of the situation.”
Kirbee Celestine, a 5-4 senior, is the shooting guard. Celestine earned first-team all-district honors while averaging eight points last season.
“Kirbee is just an insane shooter, not to mention one of our better defensive players,” Gillespie said.
Meanwhile, Stephanie Gregory, a 5-4 sophomore and Sentreal Gregory’s younger sister, is back. The combo guard, a returning second-team all-district selection, frequently finished in double figures for Westside when not harassing an opponent.
“Stephanie is an incredible hard-nosed defender,” Gillespie said. “She’s one of our glue kids.”
Another veteran in the line-up is senior Tanea Thomas, a 5-9 forward. Another first-team allleague pick, Thomas contributed 10 points and eight rebounds a year ago.
“Tanea can score inside or go outside and hit the 3-pointer,” Gillespie said. “She’s a crafty player and finds weird angles to get baskets.”
New to the starting five is Destini Hearne, a 6-2 post and one of several freshmen expected to make an impact.
“You look at Destini and it’s hard to believe she’s only 14 years old,” Gillespie said. “She has a pretty mature game for her age.”
Hearne has been forced into action because of an injury to senior Kori Seals, a 5-11 post and another first-team all-district performer. Seals, who averaged eight points and eight rebounds last season, is sidelined with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and won’t be available until mid-December.
“Kori is an important part of the team and, hopefully, we’ll get her back in a couple of weeks,” Gillespie said.
The first player off the bench is senior Lydia Breedlove, a 5-3 guard and returning second-team alldistrict player.
“Lydia didn’t play all that much last year, but she’ll have a much bigger role,” Gillespie said.
Also expected to garner significant minutes are sophomores Yasmine Arogunjo and Camara Green, both 5-9 forwards.
But the future of Westside girls basketball is this year’s freshman class, which has helped offset the graduation of seven seniors. In addition to Hearne, other ninth-graders on the varsity include 5-7 guard Triniti Charles, 5-8 guard Helena Johnson, 5-9 guard/forward Jordon Lewis, 5-8 forward Kayla Pilson and 5-5 guard Hannah Smith.
“The freshmen are outstanding and they’ll get even better with more experience,” Gillespie said.
Westside will begin its District 20-6A title defense against Milby at 4:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20, at Butler Field House. Three Houston ISD football teams left in playoffs
History was firmly against the Bellaire football team in its Class 6A-Division I bi-district playoff game against Katy Cinco Ranch last week.
The Cardinals had fallen to the Cougars in the first round the past four seasons. In fact, Bellaire’s last postseason win dated all the back to 1972.
But both streaks came to an end as Bellaire stunned Cinco Ranch 35-31 at Katy’s Rhodes Stadium.
It was a game few predicted the Cardinals would win, but those opinions hardly mattered to firstyear Bellaire head coach Herb Kunz.
“I told the kids before the game that the key to winning was how they reacted to adversity,” Kunz said. “If they made a mistake, they couldn’t let it turn into two or three. They had to stay positive and tough it out.”
Bellaire was plagued with poor field position in the first half, but the Cardinals refused to quit. Senior quarterback John Hubbell tossed a 39-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver Courtney Lark in the first quarter and scored on a one-yard run to help Bellaire tie the game at 1414 at the break.
Hubbell delivered a career performance, completing 23 of 36 passes for 213 yards.
With the season on the line, Kunz turned to Lark, regarded as Bellaire’s best player. The University of Houston commit broke loose on a 69-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter and came up with the game-winner on a twoyard run with 1:48 remaining in the game. Lark finished with nine catches for 81 yards and three carries for 74 yards.
The defense did its part, with senior linebacker/defensive end Nathan Lewis and junior defensive end Jayden Peevy each coming up with multiple sacks.
The special teams made an impact, too, with senior Donovan Stiner blocking a punt a few plays after Bellaire missed a long field goal.
“We had one 15-yard penalty. Otherwise, we played a clean game,” Kunz said. “That’s what it takes to win in the playoffs.”
Next up for Bellaire (65) in an area showdown against Cypress Falls (9-2) at 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 21, at the University of Houston’s TDECU Stadium.
The Golden Eagles advanced with a 72-6 rout against Aldine Nimitz. Kunz recognizes that Bellaire will be a heavy underdog once again.
“We know it’s another big challenge, but no one thought we could beat Cinco Ranch, either,” Kunz said.
Win or lose, it’s already been a memorable postseason for the Cardinals.
“We’ve won our first playoff game in 43 years,” Kunz said. “That’s something to get excited about.”
Meanwhile, Lamar looks capable of making another long playoff run. The District 20-6A champs crushed Katy Morton Ranch 38-17 in a Class 6ADivision I bi-district game at Delmar Stadium.
Lamar head football coach Tom Nolen was mostly satisfied with his team’s performance.
“We played well on defense and special teams and made just enough plays when we needed to on offense,” Nolen said. “It was a team win and everyone contributed.”
The Texans jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, thanks to a 33yard interception return from junior cornerback Jordan Stevens.
Offensively, the Texans failed to net 300 yards, but four running backs – senior Jai’ran Traylor, juniors Caleb Jolivette and Dua’Vadis Williams and sophomore Ta’Zhawn Henry – each had a rushing touchdown.
Lamar (10-1) will now face District 18-6A winner Aldine Eisenhower (8-3) at 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 21, at Aldine’s Thorne Stadium.
“It’s a good match-up between two evenly matched teams,” Nolen said. “We haven’t played Eisenhower in a while, but they’re very athletic and well-coached.”
While Lamar and Bellaire are still alive, two other District 20-6A teams fell in the first round of the Class 6A-Division II playoffs. Reagan (9-2) dropped a 21-13 decision to Strake Jesuit, while Westside (4-7) was walloped by Katy 77-0.
In the Class 5A-Division I playoffs, Madison (7-4) lost to Magnolia West 5420, while Waltrip (6-5) was eliminated by Stratford 59-0.
District 20-5A champion North Forest (10-1) won a shootout with Brenham 41-35, while Sharpstown (7-4) was shut out by Magnolia 42-0.
The Bulldogs will battle College Station (9-2) at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 20, in an area contest at Spring’s Leonard George Stadium.
In Class 4A-Division I bi-district action, Wheatley (5-6) was eliminated by El Campo 63-7 and Sterling (5-6) lost to Stafford 69-26.
The three Class 4A-Division II openers involving Houston ISD teams had Worthing (7-4) losing to Orangefield 37-28, Kashmere (3-8) bowing out against Hamshire-Fannett 52-20 and Scarborough (110) getting blanked by West Orange-Stark 63-0.