Anita Castellon is back in St. Louis to coach her alma mater, and she is loving every minute of it.
So are her players.
Castellon graduated from St. Louis in the 1980s and returned to be girls’ basketball coach this season. In her first year at the helm, the Sharks have started out 5-3.
Castellon was also at Lansing Sexton as a coach many years ago and was an assistant coach at Lansing Community College.
She lives in DeWitt, but being a St. Louis alumna, she couldn’t resist the chance to return to her school to be its new coach. She had been assisting the previous coach, Walter Berry, and when he decided to retire, he suggested tht Castellon apply for the position because of her familiarity with some of the girls.
“Hopefully the girls are ready to move forward and win districts,” Castellon said. “I’m hoping this group of girls break some of the [school girls’ basketball] records.”
Compared to 1984 when she was a player, “the caliber of ball has increased tremendously and has improved since then,” Castellon said.
The Sharks have been blessed with some top-notch talent this season. Kayla Baxter, a 6’2″ senior, is bringing some key leadership to the program.
Bri Alspaugh, a 6’1″ junior, is averaging about nine points and 10 rebounds per game. She “has improved her game each year, with her inside game, overall shooting, rebounds, and putbacks. The last game we had, she had 14 points and 12 rebounds. She’s definitely a threat against other teams when they play us.”
Five of the key team contributors are juniors, with Michaela Austin and Brogan Holmes among them.
“Both of them are my point guards and my leaders on the floor,” Castellon said. “Brogan has outstanding, unbelievable speed. She has some track records she’s trying to break. It’s tremendous speed with her. They both pretty well set the tone on the floor. They’re both good shooters. We like to see a lot running. We have a group of girls that like to fast break a lot.”
The lineup also includes juniors Taylor Smith, Amanda Corder, and Ashtyn Capen.
“They’re tremendous outside shooters,” Castellon said. “I changed the style of play because last year and years past, they used to set up, bring the ball, and set up offense. We have a running and fast pace just due to the speed we have on the floor.”
Ryan Fagins is a first-year varsity player, who as a junior, has been a major contributor, especially in getting rebounds. “She brings down a lot of rebounds and averages eight rebounds when she plays,” Castellon said.
The Sharks have had some nice efforts all season, but Castellon especially liked the way her team played against Merrill and St. Charles.
“We did move the ball very well overall as a team,” Castellon said. “We passed the ball and got everyone involved in those two games. If we had played that way all season long, teams would have a difficult time against us.”
So far, it’s going well for Castellon at St. Louis. “It’s my home school and the biggest thing about coming back to coach is to be able to get this group of girls that are currently playing to the next level, so they can have something to leave high school with and memories like, ‘hey we won a district,’ ” she said. “They came very close last year to winning the district. It was very disappointing for them.
“I can tell them ‘you know what it takes. You know that feeling of losing.’ They’re eager to get to the districts again. This group of girls is determined to win a district and and get to the next level.”