On the court, the story is simple: the St. Anthony girls’ basketball team is trying to improve on a 13-13 record last year that saw them finish second in the Del Rey League with a 5-3 record, and they boast the returning talent to do so. Off the court? That’s where the story is. The Saints longtime coach Ray Bennett will be coaching this season just weeks after surviving being hit by a car while walking, an accident that left him unconscious in a hospital for most of September.
“My staff understands and more importantly my wife understands who I am and why I’m doing what I’m doing this year,” said Bennett. “I’ve had conversations with our players and our parents to let them know, this is not a normal season for St. Anthony. If we are able to do something special this year, just think about the story we have to tell. It would really be something else.”
Bennett has appointed assistant Lawrence Brown as a co-acting coach while he’s continuing rehabilitation from his injuries, which include serious damage to his hip and pelvis. Those injuries have left him unable to travel to long road games for the Saints, but he’s planning on coaching home games and those that don’t require too long sitting down in a car.
So why coach? Why not take a year off and spend it rehabbing and sitting on a beach? Bennett scoffed at the idea.
“My love for this game is, I would say, undeniable and unmatched, and incomparable to I feel anybody else who coaches this game,” he said. “I feel in love with it at an early age and the idea of teaching players how to play the right way more than 20 years ago. Coach Brown is going to help because I may need to have another surgery, and the logistics of the travel tournaments.”
Bennett said that while he knows his ordeal will be a big part of the Saints’ story this year, he’s also excited for his group on the court. It will be a unique mix with about half the team in the senior class, and half the team in the freshman class.
“Oddly enough, no sophomores or juniors,” Bennett said. “We will have some freshmen who play right away who we will need to have a big impact.”
The seniors returning include Laila Hughes and Jordyn Washington, who combined to average nearly 30 points per game last year, as well as holding the top two spots on the team in assists and steals per game. The other senior who was a major contributor is senior Dallyn Knox, who will be back to hold down the paint this year.
In the freshman class, Jordyn Ramirez and Ayaka Yiu will likely be starters right out of the gate.
Bennett said it’s a unique setup to have such a wide age gap between one half of the roster and the other.
“The biggest thing for us is obviously going to be leadership, even before the accident I was talking to the seniors and telling them we’re going to be as good as their leadership,” he said. “They’ve been really good with teaching and leading by example.”
The Saints have a tough schedule as always, opening Wednesday at Lynwood and facing a number of tough teams as well as the Nike Tournament of Champions in Arizona. All of that is to prep for the always-tough Del Rey League.
“There’ll be some ups and downs and some close games because the freshmen are going to have to learn on the court,” he said. “The goal as always is to be playing our best basketball in January moving into February and the playoffs.”
