Season Review: Women’s Basketball posts successful 2021-22 season

By Wes Mayberry

ADA — The Ohio Northern women's basketball team put together an impressive 2021-22 season under second-year head coach Mark Huelsman.

The Polar Bears won nine of their first 11 games and finished the season at 17-8 overall, including a 10-6 mark in Ohio Athletic Conference play, and advanced to the OAC Tournament semifinals.

"We got better as the year went on, and I thought we played our best basketball in the last two weeks of the season," Huelsman said. "We had our ups and downs just like every team does. Our players did a really good job of staying focused, which allowed us to make a run in the conference tournament."

The early portion of Northern's schedule was highlighted by a five-game win streak that included a 101-30 win over Geneva (Pa.) in the Bluffton Holiday Tournament. That game marked the first time the Polar Bears scored 100-plus points since a 103-50 win at Baldwin Wallace in the 1987-88 season.

Northern's conference schedule, meanwhile, was highlighted by a 58-54 home win over a Marietta team that was ranked No. 16 in the country at the time and ended up advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Huelsman said that game, which coincided with Alumni Day and the fundraising Bake a Difference Day on Jan. 22, was big in more ways than one.

"It's always good to win on Alumni Day, and it certainly gave us some confidence going into the remainder of our conference schedule," Huelsman said. "We had alumni representing over 20 graduating classes here to cheer us on, and it was humbling to see the support shown by our players, their family and friends, our alums and even supporters of Marietta's program that helped us raise $2,700 for the Amy Weeks Fund to support an alum's mother who had just lost her battle with breast cancer. That is a cause that is very near and dear to our program. It was also exciting to announce our new endowment."

During halftime of the game, the university announced the formation of a new endowment for the women's basketball program, as gifts from alumni and friends had reached the $100,000 threshold for the sport. A plaque commemorating the endowment is displayed in the King Horn building on campus.

In the postseason, the Polar Bears made easy work of Otterbein, winning 62-46 on the road, before falling 64-50 in the semifinals to No. 12 John Carroll, who ended up joining Marietta in the NCAA Tournament's second round.

Northern's success was sparked by its strong defensive play, as the team closed the season leading the OAC in points-per-game allowed (50.9), field goal percentage defense (32.2%) and 3-point percentage defense (24.8%).

Offensively, unselfishness was the name of the game for the Polar Bears, as they racked up 17 victories despite not having a player averaging double figures in scoring.

"Our formula for success has always been to play team offense and team defense and rebound as a group," Huelsman said. "We sacrifice individual accolades for the good of the team."

Senior Alissa Stahler (Lima/Shawnee) and junior Brynn Serbin (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) each averaged a team-high 9.3 points per game, and senior Jaidyn Hale (Lima/Bath) averaged 8.8 points per contest.

Stahler and Serbin were both named to the All-OAC Second Team, and Hale was an All-OAC Honorable Mention selection.

Stahler, who tied sophomore Kristen Luersman (Fort Jennings) for the team lead in rebounding at 5.4 per game, led ONU in blocks with 23 and notched two double-doubles on the season while scoring in double figures in nine games. She played in all 25 games while battling injuries and tallied a career-high 20 points in a win at Capital on Dec. 18 and grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds in a victory at Wilmington on Dec. 8.

"Alissa had a great year," Huelsman said. "She's an undersized post player who has had to find ways to score the ball against bigger players. She was banged up all year, but you never would've known it. I was especially proud of her growth on the defensive end of the floor."

Serbin, a three-time All-OAC selection and the 2019-20 OAC Freshman of the Year, led ONU in assists (76), steals (68) and 3-pointers made (24) in addition to tying Stahler for the team lead in scoring. She led the OAC in steals and ranked fourth in assists and was Northern's third-leading rebounder at 5.3 per game.

"Brynn is a hard worker, and she plays and competes really hard," Huelsman said. "I was glad to see her get recognized by the conference for her efforts."

Serbin scored in double figures in 11 games, including a career-high 19 points in a loss to Baldwin Wallace on Feb. 9. She tallied a career-high 10 rebounds on four occasions and notched two double-doubles. She also set a new career-high in assists with seven in the win over Geneva (Pa.) and tied her career-high with six steals in two games.

Serbin has played in 65 career games at ONU and will enter her senior season ranked eighth in program history in steals (142) and is just 12 assists shy of breaking into the top 20 on the all-time list in that category.

Hale finished her senior season having tied Serbin for the team lead in made 3-pointers with 24, and she ranked second in assists (35) and steals (24).

"Jaidyn does a little bit of everything. Her numbers don't jump off the page at you, but anybody who goes to a game remembers Jaidyn," Huelsman said. "The most important thing she did for us this year was lead. She was our captain, and she always came out ready to play. She's always been a worker, and she really dedicated herself to improving her skills in the summer. I'm glad she was recognized by the conference for that work."

Luersman was also a bright spot for the Polar Bears in 2021-22, tying Stahler for the team lead in rebounds to go with her 6.8 points per game. She was named the OAC Player of the Week on Jan. 31 after posting her first career double-double with career-high marks of 16 points and 15 rebounds in a win over Wilmington on Jan. 26.

The season wasn't all about on-court success, though, as the Polar Bears also shined in the classroom with seven Academic All-OAC honorees in Hale, seniors Lexi Jacobs (Wapakoneta), Molly Palecek (Wadsworth) and Annie Weckesser (Dayton/Chaminade-Julienne), junior Kate Newland (Lakeview/Allen East) and sophomores Grace Dean (Avon/Lake) and Peyton Warnecke (Glandorf/Ottawa-Glandorf).

"Having seven players with a GPA of 3.5 or better in the majors that they're in is really impressive," Huelsman said. "I'm proud of how hard they work and how well they balance their time between academics and athletics."

With seven seniors departing, the Polar Bears will have a new look in the 2022-23 season, but Huelsman is looking forward to having his team build on its success from 2021-22.

"We have talented players returning to our roster, and combining them with a good recruiting class will allow us to continue to carry on the tradition of excellence that we've established in our program," Huelsman said.