The 2024-25 high school girls basketball season is nearing its end.
The Reading High Red Knights are the Berks Girls League champions. The Wyomissing Spartans are the District 3 Class 4A champions for the third straight season, something a Berks girls team had never done.
Wyomissing and Wilson are the last teams standing and gearing up for round two of the PIAA playoffs in their respective classifications. The Bulldogs play Archbishop Carroll Tuesday and the Spartans play Neumann-Goretti Wednesday. Both games will be played at Spring-Ford High School at 7:30 p.m.
As we've blinked and the season came and went, the BerksGirlsBasketball.com team has voted on and selected its inaugural All-Class Starting Lineup, which features the top six players from the freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior classes from teams in the Berks Girls League.
The lists are headlined by Wyomissing senior and Albany commit Amaya Stewart, who was again the league's top player and selected as the BCIAA Player of the Year by league coaches for the third straight season.
Fellow 1,000-point scorers in Brandywine Heights senior Addison Benner, who broke the Bullets' scoring record, and Berks Catholic senior Madison Langdon, who will be playing at Randolph-Macon next season, were also a joy to watch on a nightly basis.
Reading High senior Yamilex Rodriguez took the next step as a leader this season and had the Red Knights lifting gold in the Santander Arena as a result.
Twin Valley junior Hailey Kilgore spearheaded a renaissance in Elverson as the Raiders recaptured the Berks II title after a two-year hiatus.
Wilson juniors Laura Crocona and Violet Houck continued their two-way prowess as the Bulldogs successfully navigated an injury to All-Berks guard Laila Jones to win Berks I and return to the county, district, and state playoffs.
Oley Valley junior Julia Wagner more than doubled her scoring average from a season ago to help replace the loss of more than 60-percent of last year's scoring for the Berks IV champion Lynx, including All-Berks guard Morgan Snyder.
The underclassmen were led by Gov. Mifflin sophomore Bella Super, who led the league in scoring during the regular season at 19.3 points per game and took the Mustangs to the county championship. Wilson sophomores Kailani Hardy and Ryan Leaman also took the next step this season. Twin Valley sophomore Lauren Williams, Conrad Weiser sophomore Geniva Paul, and Schuylkill Valley sophomore Hannah West were each key players for their respective teams.
Reading High freshman Xiani Beatty took the league by notice showing poise in the Red Knights' run to county gold. Brandywine Heights freshman Sophia Benner led the league in 3-pointers made with 64. Twin Valley freshman Olivia Kilgore, Wilson freshman Jade Lee, Gov. Mifflin freshman Saray Renninger, and Muhlenberg freshman Kenleigh Brill played critical roles for their teams and have bright futures.
Now, let's get to the lists.
All-Freshmen Team
Xiani Beatty, Reading High
Averaged 8.0 points per game and saved her best performances for the BCIAA playoffs when she had an 11-point, 11-rebound double-double in the semifinals and a team- and career-high 16 points in the championship victory. Beatty led the team in scoring in six games and teamed with senior Yamilex Rodriguez on ball handling duties in the backcourt.
Sophia Benner, Brandywine Heights
Drilled a league-high 64 3-pointers and averaged 11.4 points per game, the only freshman to average in double figures. Benner hit 10 3s in the Bullets' third game of the season against Pottsgrove, which was the second-highest total in Berks history behind Berks Catholic's Caraline Herb, who made 12 in a game in 2021.
Kenleigh Brill, Muhlenberg
Scored at an 8.9 ppg clip and made a team-high 63 free throws. She shot 75.9-percent from the line, the fourth-highest percentage in Berks. Brill led the Muhls in scoring in eight games including a career-high 17 in the season finale against Susquehanna.
Olivia Kilgore, Twin Valley
The younger sister of All-Berks guard Hailey Kilgore, the addition of Olivia Kilgore (6.0 ppg, 17 3s) was crucial in the Raiders recapturing the Berks II crown. The younger Kilgore began the season coming off the bench and worked her way into the starting lineup by the end of the year.
Jade Lee, Wilson
Lee has been a key contributor off the bench throughout the Bulldogs' 20-win season, playing in 28 of 29 varsity games while initially also playing JV. The post is averaging 5.5 ppg and is yet another talented player who will be returning next season for Wilson.
Saray Renninger, Gov. Mifflin
The youth movement in Gov. Mifflin continued with Renninger joining sophomores Bella Super, Brooklyn George, and Bridget Martin in the varsity starting lineup for Mike Clark's Mustangs, who went all the way to the Berks championship. Renninger averaged 5.9 ppg and hit 17 3s on the wing, also providing defense and rebounding.
Also receiving votes: Addison Harper, Exeter.
Honorable mention: Abby Cannon, Berks Catholic; Esperanza Zudie, Berks Catholic.
All-Sophomore Team
Kailani Hardy, Wilson
The potential was evident when Hardy entered the game as a freshman when she averaged 7.0 points. She has doubled that average this season averaging 14.0 and has increased her 3-point makes from four to 28. Hardy is the No. 4 scorer in Berks and led the Bulldogs in scoring in 19 games, including a career-high 25 in the opener against Emmaus.
Ryan Leaman, Wilson
Leaman slid into the starting lineup with Jones out for the season and made the most of the opportunity. She hit a team-high 35 3s while frequently serving as the team's primary ball handler. After scoring 2.2 ppg as a freshman, Leaman boosted her scoring average to 7.7 this year.
Geniva Paul, Conrad Weiser
The Scouts put together a turnaround season that saw them be one of the last three Berks teams playing alongside Wyomissing and Wilson. Paul was the No. 2 scorer at 8.5 ppg and led the team in scoring seven times including a career-high 17.
Bella Super, Gov. Mifflin
Currently tied as Berks' No. 1 scorer at 19.3 ppg, Super went on a heater in the Berks playoffs to propel Mifflin to the championship game. She dropped 25 in a semifinal win over Wilson and then 28 in the 63-57 championship loss to Reading High. Super led the Mustangs in scoring in 19 games this season and was also a primary ball handler.
Hannah West, Schuylkill Valley
West worked her way into Schuylkill Valley's starting lineup after transferring from Gov. Mifflin and delivered. The sharpshooter went from 3.1 ppg to 9.9 ppg and 15 made 3s to 33. West was also one of 13 Berks players to shoot 70-percent or higher from the foul line with at least 15 attempts. She made 41 free throws at a 73.2-percent rate this season.
Lauren Williams, Twin Valley
Williams was part of head coach Matt Hahn's six-player rotation that played in all 24 games this season. The sophomore finished the season with a bang, scoring in double figures in each of the last six games of the season with a career-high 20 points coming in the BCIAA quarterfinals loss to Mifflin. Williams' scoring average jumped from 3.1 to 8.1 this season.
Also receiving votes: Brooklyn George, Gov. Mifflin; Kaitlyn Houptley, Kutztown; Karly Hyde, Wyomissing; Bridget Martin, Gov. Mifflin.
Honorable mention: Jade Fitzgerald, Kutztown; Addie Loeb, Wyomissing.
All-Junior Team
Laura Crocona, Wilson
Crocona is Wilson's No. 2 scorer at 9.9 ppg with 25 3s, but she makes just as big of an impact on the defensive end, where she typically guards the opposing team's best guard or wing. She led the Bulldogs in scoring—something she's done six times this season—in two key District 3 playback games to get Wilson the fifth seed in states. The Bulldogs then defeated District 1 third-place finisher Upper Dublin in the first round of states.
Violet Houck, Wilson
Houck's impact can get lost when just looking at a box score showing points. Wilson's center leaves her mark on the game in so many other ways most notably rebounding, defense, and leadership. If there is a loose ball, it's a good bet Houck will come up with it. She averages 6.0 ppg, but has also put up some eye-opening stat lines throughout the season, including an 18-point, 21-rebound, five-block outing in a critical Berks I victory over Mifflin in late January and a 21-point, 12-rebound double-double against Upper Dublin in the PIAA tournament.
Hailey Kilgore, Twin Valley
In her third season as Twin Valley's primary scorer, Kilgore continued to churn out the points while also staying healthy. She led the team with an 11.5 scoring average and hit 42 3s, the fifth-most in the league. Kilgore is at 769 career points, the second-most of all juniors trailing only Wilson's Laila Jones (788). The steady progression of the Raiders going from four wins to seven to 14 this season coincides with Kilgore's development as not only a scorer, but a distributor and leader.
Lianna Martir, Muhlenberg
Martir led the Muhls in scoring at 9.1 ppg and also drained 30 3s. After spraining her ankle in the third game of the season and missing two games, Martir rounded back into form in January and led the team in scoring six out of the final 11 games. She dropped 19 in a four-point upset victory over Mifflin and 23 in a near upset of Reading High three days later as the Muhls looked to shake up Berks I. She also had a 24-point performance against Unionville.
Elyssa Sellers, Schuylkill Valley
Sellers stepped into a primary scorer role with the Panthers and produced 10.2 ppg. The lefty teamed up with Gov. Mifflin transfer Hannah West to get SV back into the BCIAA playoffs for the fourth straight season. Sellers missed four games due to injury, but scored in double figures in 11 of her 17 games including a career-high 20 against Antietam in January.
Julia Wagner, Oley Valley
The Lynx needed to find scoring after they graduated over 60-percent of their offensive output from last season. Enter Wagner, who went from scoring 4.2 ppg as a sophomore to 9.3 as a junior. She also made 35 3s, which was 26 more than her total as a sophomore. Wagner, along with senior Izzy Buehler's 10.4 ppg, effectively replaced the lost offensive production as the Lynx again won the Berks IV crown.
Also receiving votes: Teagan Hilburt, Fleetwood; Kacey Maggs, Wyomissing.
Honorable mention: Lily Hare, Oley Valley; Ellie Kaplan, Twin Valley; Lyla Pugh, Tulpehocken; Olivia Schmittinger, Twin Valley.
All-Senior Team
Addison Benner, Brandywine Heights
Benner reached 1,000 points this season and then broke the Bullets' scoring record, finishing her career as the No. 53 scorer in Berks history with 1,282 points. She averaged 13.7 ppg, the fifth-most in Berks, and made 24 3s. Benner averaged double figures every season of her high school career with a 14.1 average as a freshman, 13.2 as a sophomore, and 14.1 as a junior.
Sydney Corado, Berks Catholic
Corado's inside-out game caused a plethora of issues for opposing teams. She was capable of playing in the post, but could also step outside and hit an outside jumper evident by her 39 made 3s on the year which was the seventh-highest mark in Berks. Corado scored 11.7 ppg and finished her career with 830 total points.
Lauren Grabosky, Conrad Weiser
After dealing with injuries her junior season, Grabosky emergence as a senior was crucial in the Scouts going from six wins to 17 and qualifying for the PIAA Tournament for the first time since 2016. The post improved her scoring average from 4.7 in 15 games as a junior to a team-high 9.8 in all 28 games as a senior. Grabosky was also the rim protector defensively and collected a bunch of rebounds.
Madison Langdon, Berks Catholic
Langdon, a Randolph-Macon commit, was the No. 3 scorer in Berks with a 15.1 average. Langdon drilled 44 3s, the fourth-most in the league. She reached the 1,000-point threshold and finished her career with 1,247 points, which was 67th all-time in Berks and third all-time at Berks Catholic. Langdon was also the primary ball handler for the Saints.
Yamilex Rodriguez, Reading High
Rodriguez's development into a leader—along with the ascension of freshman Xiani Beatty—resulted in the Red Knights getting over the hump and winning their first Berks Girls League championship in 15 seasons. The quick, crafty ball handler averaged 13.3 ppg, the sixth-most in Berks, while also providing vocal leadership and full effort defensively. Rodriguez had the highest free throw percentage in the league, making 58 shots at an 84.1-percent clip.
Amaya Stewart, Wyomissing
Last but certainly not least (lists alphabetized by last name), Stewart is currently tied for the Berks lead in scoring average at 19.3 ppg. She has led the Spartans to three straight District 3 titles and another PIAA playoff victory. Wyo plays Neumann-Goretti in the second round Wednesday for the third straight season. A walking double-double, Stewart had 27 points and 14 rebounds in the PIAA opening round victory over Nazareth. The Albany commit currently sits at 1,879 career points, just eight away from breaking Wyomissing's school record held by Rachel Hoffman that was set in 1994. Stewart is currently the No. 9 scorer in Berks Girls League history trailing only Wendy Davis, Corielle Yarde, Zena Edwards (Lutz), Rashida Suber, Peyton McDaniel, Stacey Jack (Edwards), Page Lutz, and Hoffman.
Also receiving votes: Izzy Buehler, Oley Valley; Airyana Jones, Antietam; Mia Vazquez, Gov. Mifflin.
Honorable mention: Avery Baransky, Tulpehocken; Sophia Barrell-Kobryn, Fleetwood; Tamyia Collier, Reading High; Amelia Gassert, Hamburg; Alexis Hardy, Wyomissing; Ryanna Hightower-Prentice, Muhlenberg; Aayla Hofer, Daniel Boone; Meredith Fylypowycz, Exeter; Juliet Snyder, Tulpehocken; Alex Trevena, Conrad Weiser.
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