Sherrard was picked as the favorite to win a tight TRAC West girls basketball race in WRMJ’s preseason conference coaches poll.
The Tigers finished one point ahead of Monmouth-Roseville and two points in front of defending conference champion Riverdale. Sherrard tallied three first-place votes. The Titans were picked first once and the Rams grabbed two first-place votes.
All six coaches in the TRAC West participated. They were asked to rank the teams in their division, excluding themselves, 1-5. A first-place vote received five points, a second-place vote received four points, and down the line.
The poll results are below, followed by a preview of each team in the conference. The number in parentheses represents how many first-place votes a team received.
2024-25 Preseason TRAC West Girls Basketball Coaches Poll
| Rank | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sherrard (3) | 22 |
| 2 | Monmouth-Roseville (1) | 21 |
| 3 | Riverdale (2) | 20 |
| 4 | Rockridge | 12 |
| 5 | Mercer County | 10 |
| 6 | Orion | 5 |
Team Previews
Sherrard Tigers
Head Coach: Doug Swanson (15th season: 296-103)
2023-24 Record: 17-13, 8-4 TRAC West
Postseason: Lost in 2A regional final to Peoria Notre Dame 66-33
Sherrard returns its entire starting lineup from last year’s team that had its season ended by eventual state champion Peoria Notre Dame in the regional final.
Junior guard Adalynn Elsbury led the Tigers in scoring (9.8 points per game) and assists (3.6 per game) last season. Another junior, Grace Bohnert added 5.8 points per game and paced Sherrard on the glass with a team-high 6.1 rebounds per game. The rest of the top-five returners for the Tigers are all seniors – Violet Meskan, a first-team All-TRAC West selection last year (9.5 points, 4.4 rebounds per game), Rachael Fender (6.8 points per game) and Josey Harkey (3.2 points, 4.0 rebounds per game). In all, 89.9% of Sherrard’s scoring is back from the 2023-24 season.
The Tigers bring an experienced club into the 2024-25 season in a program that’s no stranger to success. During head coach Doug Swanson’s tenure, Sherrard has won 10 regional titles and appeared in regional championship games in 12 of 13 full seasons.
Sherrard begins the season hosting Sterling as part of the Geneseo Thanksgiving Tournament on Monday. The Tigers’ TRAC West opener is at home against Rockridge on Dec. 2.
Monmouth-Roseville Titans
Head Coach: Scott Weber (7th season: 121-51)
2023-24 Record: 21-12, 9-3 TRAC West
Postseason: Lost in 2A regional final to Canton 67-35
Monmouth-Roseville will go for its fourth straight 20+ win season in 2024-25.
The Titans’ leading returner is senior post player Brianna Woodard, a 1,000+ point career scorer. She averaged 13 points and nine rebounds per game last season to earn second-team all-TRAC West honors. Senior guard Tatianna Talivaa (12 points per game) was a first-team all-conference selection a year ago. Mia Reynolds, a senior, is another starter returning for the Titans in 2024-25. Outside of that, the rest of the Monmouth-Roseville roster is largely unproven at the varsity level after losing last year’s scoring leader, Carmyn Huston (15.3 points per game), to graduation.
The Titans have played for regional titles in each of the last three years and won the school’s first-ever regional championship in the 2022-23 season.
Monmouth-Roseville opens the season at the ROWVA-Williamsfield/Ridgewood Thanksgiving Tournament against Galva on Monday. The Titans conference opener is at Riverdale on Dec. 2.
Riverdale Rams
Head Coach: Jay Hatch (29th season: 529-318, 7th season at Riverdale: 95-58)
2023-24 Record: 23-6, 11-1 TRAC West
Postseason: Lost in 2A sectional semifinal to Stillman Valley 57-34
Riverdale enters the 2024-25 season as the defending TRAC West champions and the only team in the league that won a regional championship last year.
The Rams graduated their top-two scorers and first-team all-conference selections from the 2023-24 squad, Lexi Duke and Carrieanne Hungate, but return three starters. Sophomore guards Cayleigh Hungate (7.6 points per game) and Jillian Murray (5.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists per game) were both key pieces to Riverdale’s regional championship team as freshmen last year. Molly Skahill, a senior forward, started all 29 games for the Rams last season.
Riverdale and head coach Jay Hatch are five years removed from a trip to state and a fourth-place finish in 2A. Hatch, an IBCA Hall of Famer, has led four teams to the state finals, which includes winning a Class A state title at Alleman in the 2004-05 season.
The Rams begin their campaign by taking on Erie-Prophetstown at the Bureau Valley Thanksgiving Tournament on Monday. The Rams open conference play at home against Monmouth-Roseville on Dec. 2.
Rockridge Rockets
Head Coach: Ryan McDonald (6th season: 57-73)
2023-24 Record: 10-21, 4-8 TRAC West
Postseason: Lost in 2A regional semifinal to Monmouth-Roseville 46-30
Rockridge closed the 2023-24 season strong by winning four of its last five games. The Rockets pulled off an upset win over Mercer County in the regional quarterfinals before falling to Monmouth-Roseville in the semifinal round.
Rockridge lost just one senior from last year’s team, leading scorer Chloe Strachan (8.9 points per game). The Rockets bring everyone else back, including four starters. Seniors Keaten Needham (8.3 points per game), Erica Danner (6.5 points, 6.1 rebounds per game), and Laikyn Parchert (4.2 points, 3.7 rebounds per game) are joined by junior Leah DeCook (4.0 points, 3.4 rebounds per game) as four of the top five from last year’s group that return.
Numbers have been an issue for the Rockridge girls basketball program ever since winning a regional title three years ago and will be something to monitor again throughout the 2024-25 season. The Rockets are starting the season with a 12-player varsity roster, which includes four freshmen.
Rockridge’s season gets underway on Tuesday against Galva at the ROWVA-Williamsfield/Ridgewood Thanksgiving Tournament. The Rockets’ conference schedule opens at Sherrard on Dec. 2.
Mercer County Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Brandon Hofmann (1st season)
2023-24 Record: 14-14, 6-5 LTC
Postseason: Lost in 2A regional quarterfinal to Rockridge 33-31
The 2024-25 season brings a new era for the Mercer County girls basketball program in a couple of different ways. The Golden Eagles will compete in the TRAC for the first time this season and have a new coach, Brandon Hofmann. He takes over for Kate Engwall, who stepped down after nine seasons after the 2023-24 campaign.
Mercer County brings back just two of its eight rotation pieces from last year, including senior Molly Hofmann, who averaged 10.3 points and nine rebounds per game a year ago to earn first-team all-conference recognition in the Lincoln Trail Conference (LTC). Outside of Hofmann, the only other player the Golden Eagles return with varsity experience is fellow senior Claire Fowler, who averaged 1.2 points per game off the bench last season.
The Golden Eagles have just three upperclassmen in the program – two seniors and one junior. Four starters and 73.5% of the team’s scoring graduated from last season’s team. Five of Mercer County’s ten players listed on its varsity roster are freshmen, which sets up a largely unproven and young team to take the program’s first trip around the TRAC schedule.
Mercer County starts the season at the ROWVA-Williamsfield/Ridgewood Thanksgiving Tournament against Quad Cities Christian School on Monday. The Golden Eagles open TRAC West play hosting Orion on Dec. 2.
Orion Chargers
Head Coach: Rick Cline (10th season: 111-153, 3rd season at Orion: 19-44)
2023-24 Record: 3-27, 0-12 TRAC West
Postseason: Lost in 2A regional quarterfinal to IVC 45-30
Orion will be looking to turn the page from a rough 2022-23 season that saw the Chargers go winless in the TRAC West and finish 23 games under .500.
Junior Kamryn Brown, an honorable mention all-conference selection last season, will be the top offensive weapon for Orion in 2024-25. She led the Chargers with 12 points per game last year. Orion returns four of five starters and graduated just one senior from last year’s team, but are struggling with numbers with just 14 players out for girls basketball.
Orion’s season tips off at the ROWVA-Williamsfield/Ridgewood Thanksgiving Tournament against United on Monday. The Chargers open the conference slate at Mercer County on Dec. 2.
WRMJ’s coverage of the TRAC is presented by:
- Midwest Bank, with locations that include Aledo, Andalusia, Monmouth, and Moline
- Local COUNTRY Financial representatives Tracy Bigham, Jason Potter, and John Waugh in Aledo, Brent Bigham in Edgington, and Julie Hessler in Orion.
- Breedlove’s Sporting Goods in Kewanee