(Graphic Illustration - MetroCreativeConnection)

BEVERLY — After four decades of coaching basketball at Fort Frye, including the last 16 seasons as the girls coach, Dan Liedtke has stepped away from the program.

Another Fort Frye legend, Cathy Borich (Clark) has taken over the reins at her alma mater.

“I feel extremely lucky,” said Borich, whose daughters Brooke and Morgan both played under Liedtke. “I’m blessed to have the opportunity to be at the school where I played and had two daughters who went through the program. I’ve lived in Beverly my whole life. It’s very humbling.”

Liedtke, who won more than 700 games in his coaching career, guided the Cadets to the Final Four a year ago.

That team graduated its top player in point guard Emmie Duskey, a four-year starter who earned first team All-Ohio status last season.

However, the Cadets return three other starters from that group, including juniors Ella Dowler and Ava Huffman, who were special and honorable mention all-state picks a year ago.

“Our expectation level is really high,” Borich said. “We have no seniors, so we’re a young team, but we’ve got quite a bit of experience and our expectations are very high.”

Under Borich, the Cadets will look to pump up the pace this winter.

“Our style of play will definitely be something people aren’t necessarily used to,” she said. “We’re looking to push the pace a little more, put pressure on teams and get more shots up.”

That transition has been an adjustment, but the Cadets are taking well to it.

“It definitely plays to our advantage because we’re not a big team,” Borich explained. “We do have athleticism, quickness and speed, and we want to play to those strengths.”

Dowler and Huffman are projected to be the team’s top two scorers.

They’ll also take on a big share of the ball-handling with Duskey gone.

Freshman Raelann Morgenstern was called a “true point guard” by Borich and will handle some of those duties off the bench.

Junior Aubrie Lang is also a returning starter and the closest thing Fort Frye has to a post player.

Lang is listed at 5-foot-5, but she doesn’t play like it.

“Aubrie I feel is a very deceiving player,” Borich laughed. “She isn’t overly tall, but she’s very strong and is a very smart player. She knows how to position herself. She’s one of those kids that just has a knack for knowing where the ball is going. Overall, for our size, we rebound fairly well. That is something we have to focus on is boxing out, because we’re probably going to be the shortest team on the court most of the time.”

Sophomore Elle Casto got a taste of varsity basketball last year as a freshman and will have a much larger role in 2025-26.

“She’s been playing well for us,” Borich said. “I can see her being a key piece to the puzzle. She rebounds well, she’s a good defender with quick hands. She’s going to fit in nicely with this group.”

Junior Khoen Courson completes Fort Frye’s starting five. Along with Morgenstern, Jantzyn Huck is part of a deep freshman class at FFHS. Borich said it’s to be determined how much playing time that group will get on varsity, but it’s a class she’s excited about.

Offensively, the Cadets should be pretty balanced.

“We’re going to do a lot of 3-point shooting and a lot of driving,” Borich said. “We want to shoot 3s, but we don’t want to settle. We want the players to use their individual skills to get to the basket, get in the paint and shoot jumpshots.”

Borich, whose Cadets open up against Federal Hocking as part of Warren’s Clash at the Coliseum on Saturday, said the biggest key for Fort Frye this year is tuning out the outside noise.

“I want them to focus on themselves as a team,” she said. “Try not to get caught up on others’ expectations and kind of focus on what we want to do as a team. For a team coming off making it to state, the expectations are going to be very high, which isn’t a bad thing, but just focus on each other. Make sure we stay together, communicate with one another and lift each other up. There can be so much negativity out there.”

BOYS BASKETBALL

Fort Frye is determined to get back to its winning ways.

Since the 2020-21 team advanced to the Sweet 16, the Cadets have endured four straight losing seasons. However, there’s a lot to be optimistic about this year.

“We’ve got kind of an unproven group this year, but it’s a good mix of older and younger guys,” said FFHS head coach Eric Henniger. “I’m looking forward to this year. Everything seems kind of new. The boys are excited for the season. They seem to be clicking. We had a fun summer and there’s a lot of good expectations this year.”

In typical Fort Frye fashion, the Cadets are going to hang their hats on the defensive end of the floor. Henniger-coached teams play a physical, up-in-your-face brand of basketball. That said, the Cadets are also hoping to be more effective on the other end of the floor.

“We always want to be good at defense,” Henniger said. “This is a team that can get up and down the floor this year. We’re looking to use our speed more than in the past, which should make for some exciting games. We want to score more. We’ve had trouble scoring in the past and we’re hoping to change that this year.”

Last year’s leading scorer, Clayton Miller, graduated, but senior Chatum Courson is back in the fold and primed for a big year.

“Chatum is in his third year starting for us,” Henniger said. “He’s one of the leaders of our team. We’re trying to get him to score a little more. He’s really been working on his game.”

Along with Miller, Coen Fouss, Treven Nicholson and Dakota Snodgrass were also contributors who graduated.

Returning are seniors Kainan Bradford and Terry Tompkins, who bring size and strength to the paint for the Cadets.

“(Bradford) was brand new to our system,” Henniger said of the Tuscarawas Valley transfer. “He really started catching on toward the end of the year and he’s looking to build on that momentum.”

Junior Grady Hesson will start at point guard this year.

He and Courson both battled injuries last season, but when healthy are a dangerous 1-2 punch.

Wyatt Duskey and Aiden Brooks round out the senior class. Both bring athleticism to the guard position. Duskey gave the Cadets big minutes throughout last season.

Sophomore Caden Henniger had a breakout season last year, emerging as a long-range shooting threat. He and classmate Ethan Wagner both will get opportunities this winter.

“We’ve got a lot of guys that are hungry to play,” coach Henniger said. “There’s lots to improve. I know we’ll be good at defense, but we’ve got to score. If you can’t put the ball through the hoop, you’re not going to win, so we’re trying to find ways to score this year.”