New Team Environment Has Monomoy Girls Basketball Surging

HARWICH – A stout defense that in turn generates offense has the Monomoy girls basketball team off to their best start in years. 

The Sharks, under new coach Carley Stauffer, are 6-2, the best mark through eight games in at least the past five seasons. On Monday, Monomoy — playing both zone and man — held visiting Nantucket to just 13 points during regulation in a 40-13 win. 

The Sharks, since even before the season began, were looking to lean into a defense-to-offense approach, and Stauffer said they’ve also worked on transition defense. It showed against Nantucket. Pushing the ball quickly for fast breaks after turnovers, Monomoy took 15 free throws (making 12 of them) against the Whalers.

“Our defensive style really is what's going to create our offense for us, so we've been working a lot on that in practice, and it really showed tonight, and we took care of the ball a lot better tonight on the offensive end,” Stauffer said.

The record approaching the halfway point of the season is nothing short of an auspicious beginning for Monomoy in Stauffer’s first season. Already, the team is just two wins shy of matching last year’s total with 12 games to go (the Sharks hosted Sandwich on Tuesday after The Chronicle’s deadline).

“Having a new coaching staff has been a big part of it, and just the energy from the start was great coming into even tryouts,” senior captain Kiley Mawn said. “Just all the energy and working hard at practice and playing these big games and just starting fresh and starting new.”

Stauffer has rapidly installed and fostered a new culture for the girls basketball program. She jumps in at practices with the players, talks with them and takes their ideas, and she’s created a fun environment, Mawn said. While they may not have necessarily expected it, they knew they were capable of the run they’ve had to open the year and worked hard for the results.

“We really are focusing on being positive this year, and that has been huge for us,” Stauffer said. “I think all the girls are enjoying their season, no matter their role, so that has been super important, that we stay together.”

Against Nantucket, freshman Emma Ayer hit a pair of 3-pointers and led the scoring with 10. Sophomore Ava Pina added 9 points and shot 5 of 5 from the foul line. Senior captain Abrielle Long put in 6 and went 4 of 4 from the line. Junior captain Amanda McIsaac had a number of assists.

Every single player on the roster saw the floor Monday, and eight different players scored. The Sharks led 21-3 at the half. They have yet to surrender 50 or more points to an opponent so far.

“We have our key players, obviously, but I believe in every single one of our players,” Stauffer said. “They have the knowledge to get on the court and they're ready to be available at any time.”

The Sharks, who moved up from Division 4 to Division 3 in girls basketball this year, opened as No. 30 in in the MIAA’s first set of power rankings for the winter season released last week. The seeding as well as the above .500 record has the Sharks in great position to clinch a berth later on in the state tournament, where they haven’t been since 2023. 

Stauffer, to her credit, had keyed in on the group’s potential early on.

“When I took this job, I knew the young players and the veteran players, just from watching them from the opposing side before, and I knew the depth of the bench here,” Stauffer said. “And they really are rising to the occasion, so it's just putting all the pieces together.”