Mark Hamilton did a great job of getting the Batavia girls basketball program back to respectability.
When he stepped down, the school looked for a coach that can take the program to another level. Bill Wade appears to be that man.
Wade coached Byron-Bergen to the state finals in 1984, won a state title in 1999 with Notre Dame and then retired, spending four years as an assistant coach at SUNY Brockport. Wade's career record is 215-52.
He looks to help the squad improve on last year's 16-5 record and be competitive in the Class A sectionals.
The veteran coach has a pair of returning senior stars that are expected to lead a young team this season.
Jaycee Shirk showed marked improvement as last season went on and the 6-foot-1 forward/center is expected to be a force in the paint. Shirk teamed with Alyssa Tretter for that role and now will be handling those duties on her own.
Shirk averaged 12 points with eight rebounds and two blocks per game last season.
The other returning starter is senior guard Brittany Mazurkiewicz, who poured in 10 points with five assists and three steals per game.
Every other player on the roster is a junior.
Stacy Hein is expected to run the point with Brittany Wormley, Alicia Emminger and Michelle Jordan also expected to be key players for the Blue Devils.
Batavia earned a fourth-seed in the Class A playoffs last year, but were knocked out by No. 5 School of the Arts in the quarterfinals, 62-44. Shirk had nine points in that game and Mazurkiewicz had eight.
