“Overall, I think we finished right where we needed to be,” says Mclean, “We had a lot of change going into the year .. first year in 3A, NTL big school and under the helm of a new coach .. and I thought the girls responded well.”

Mansfield started the season 1-3, with a pair of losses to Northern Potter, one to Wellsville (NY) and a 43-39 win over eventual 2A champ Muncy. A 4-2 run that included losses to Cowanesque Valley (8-13) and Dundee-Bradford (NY) and wins over North Penn-Liberty (9-13), Addison (NY), Wellsboro (6-15) and small school runner-up Canton (15-7) lifted the Tigers to a .500 record at 5-5 near the midway point of the season. 

“Our biggest highlights were coming out with wins against the two-time defending District 4 2A Champions .. Muncy .. and a win against state qualifying Canton,” says Mclean, “Both are phenomenal teams that earned the right to be where they are. I tell the girls this shows us how close we are and that we have to continue to build and put the work in to get what we want.”

The Lady Tigers dropped their next five games .. to Athens (15-7), Wyalusing (13-9), Towanda (14-8), Troy (18-4) and Northeast Bradford (17-5) .. then stopped the skid with a three game winning streak, topping Sayre (2-20), Williamson (7-14) and Wellsboro for a second time. 

Four straight losses .. to Troy, Athens, Wyalusing and Towanda .. ended Mansfield’s season short of the playoffs with their 8-14 final record, including a 3-9 mark after their 5-5 start. But Mclean believes that the Lady Tigers showed improvement as the season progressed. 

“My biggest thing was the focus on the growth throughout the season,” says Mclean, “Did we get better physically? Yes. Did we get better mentally? Yes. Did we grow from our mistakes? I believe winning 8 games competing in a tough NTL big school division and in a tough 3A class was on par.”

Junior Kameron Lightner led the Lady Tigers in scoring and rebounding with 12 points and 9.5 boards per game with 8 double-doubles on the season, scored in double-digits 15 times and went for 20+ twice .. with 23 in the Muncy win and 20 in a win over Addison.

Freshman Maddie McNamara scored 10.5 points and had nearly 3 steals per game, scoring in double-digits in 11 games, including 20 points in the Tigers’ season-opening loss to NoPo and 22 in their loss to CV. 

Claire Dominick missed the first five games of the season with an injury, but returned to score 9.2 points per game. The sophomore led the Tigers’ in scoring in 6 of their final eight games, scoring in double-digits each night and averaging 13.4 ppg over the stretch. 

“Kameron Lightner has been a force to be reckoned with for several years,” says Mclean, “and this year we were able to lean on Maddie McNamara and Claire Dominick in the scoring department .. which has been a pleasant surprise being as though they are underclassmen. We also have a great group of underclassmen that are ready to step into some bigger roles next year as well.”

The Lady Tigers also return starter Elaina Shaw next season. The sophomore scored 3.7 points and had over a steal per game.

Mansfield loses two seniors to graduation in starter Raegan Watkins (5.9 ppg, 4 rpg) and Keeha Rieppel.

“Our two seniors .. Raegan Watkins and Keeha Rieppel .. have had a long-lasting impact on our program,” says Mclean, “It’s sad to see them go, but I know they’ll have that same impact on others in the world. Raegan was a huge part of that win against Muncy, scoring 10 points and bringing in close to 10 rebounds. Keeha has been a great vocal leader in our program with great effort and energy that you can't coach.”

Of his Tigers’ future as they look to take the next step, Mclean says, “I’m excited to go into next year knowing we can pick right up where we left off .. only losing one starter and continuing to build.”

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