If you checked in on the Worcester Academy girls basketball team midway through last winter, you'd see a 5-8 squad going through the expected growing pains adjusting to its third head coach in three years.
But then a switch flipped — and after going 17-2 the rest of the way and soaring to a NEPSAC Class AA championship, the Hilltoppers are brimming with confidence as they prepare for an encore. Coach Dan Sullivan had never coached in girls basketball after moving over from the Worcester Academy boys team. He now has a better frame of reference for what to expect.
"Last year, I had no barometer whatsoever for who was really good, who would do really well in the winter," he said. "Some days, some open gyms, it was like, 'Hey, we're going to be great,' And some days it was like, 'Hey, I'm not really sure,' because I had never really seen, up close, the girls season all the way through. So me having just a year of exposure to see all the players, and all the teams and all the coaches in the league, and NEPSAC in general, is just reassuring to me."
The Hilltoppers graduated our NEPSAC Class AA Player of the Year in Elyse MacDonough and another impact starter in Saige Youngberg. Sullivan and the team knows they can't just copy and paste the blueprint to last season's title. But they also learned that it's OK to struggle and learn early, as long as they peak at the right time.
"It showed us that games aren't really won with how people perceive you in the fall," Sullivan said. "I think that's the key kind of takeaway. If anything, I think it gives us a sense of confidence that it's not all about right now."
Here's how the Hilltoppers are shaping up for this winter.
Ella Getz could be an underrated star
We haven't seen much of Getz since the Hilltoppers' championship triumph. She missed most of the AAU season with a torn labrum and has been absent from recruiting buzz because she committed to UNH back in February. But Getz is on track to return around the start of official NEPSAC practices.
"The rehab is going well," Sullivan said. "We anticipate her — knock on wood as I say this — to be cleared for the start of practice, and probably a few weeks before that, I would think."
When healthy, Getz (Wayland, Mass.) can remind everyone that she's one of the best and most versatile forwards in New England. The 6-foot-1 senior landed on our All-Class AA Second Team last year after averaging 11.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.3 steals while shooting 49 percent from the floor and 35 percent behind the arc. Sullivan said Getz has been working more on her off-hand finishing while recovering from injury, which should make her even harder to guard when she returns.
"I think she's going to have a great year. She's not the true post that exists in our league, but I think she's hard to guard on the perimeter because of that," he said. "She's a mismatch problem whenever a taller, stronger girl is guarding her, because she has that quickness she has (and) she can get to the hoop in one dribble from well beyond the 3-point line."
Gracyn Barnes, Jazzy Mora take command of the backcourt
With MacDonough (now at St. Bonaventure) and Youngberg (now at Mercy) graduated, that opens up a ton of playing time and responsibility in the backcourt. Expect 2027 guard Gracyn Barnes (Grafton, Mass.) to ascend to a leading role after being a starter and coming up huge in the Hilltoppers' championship victory.
Barnes had a breakout AAU season with the Bay State Jaguars, earning her first two scholarship offers from Stony Brook and UNH, as well as debuting on our 2027 class watch list in August.
"She's, I think, one of the best point-of-attack defenders in the NEPSAC," Sullivan said. "I think she's one of the best guards at getting downhill in the NEPSAC. We want to work on expanding her range out a little bit more. She's very good mid range shooter; (she's) working on becoming a true 3-point threat, even more than she already is."
Sullivan mentioned Jazzy Mora as another guard who might be ready for a starter's responsibilities. Mora (Methuen, Mass.) stood out at the NEPSAC Scholastic Showcase as a pull-up scorer who also moved well without the basketball.
"If she can keep staying consistent with how she attacks and everything that she's doing, I think she could be a real spark plug that could surprise some people," Sullivan said. "I think we're going to put the ball in her hands a little bit more this year than it was last year."
Sullivan explained the biggest challenge for the guards will be ranking higher on opponents' scouting reports. He wants to hone their decision-making as floor generals so they don't feel they need to make too much happen by themselves.
"Just being able to pick their spots, in short, I think, is the biggest thing to teach them," he said. "If the shot's not falling from outside, let's try to get a drive off a couple of ball reversals and be able to get to the foul line, see the ball go in the hoop, and then get going from there. They're really coachable and they want to do really well."
Continuity is key
Though the Hilltoppers lost significant star power, the roster as a whole isn't far removed from last year's team. Sullivan also expects the playing time to be a bit more spread out, and it could lead to lesser-known names from last winter getting breakout opportunities. He mentioned a few, like 2027 guards Maddie Keough (Norfolk, Mass.) and Sadie Metzger (Lexington, Mass.), who he's seeing grow more confident making plays.
Another potential riser: 2026 6-1 forward Makena Bailey (Lancaster, Mass.), who helped trememdously as a rim-runner for a fast-paced offense.
"She's a very good athlete, can really guard 1-through-5, and can run like the wind," Sullivan said. "Our best offense is just having Makena run right down the middle of the court, throw the ball up to her and have her lay it in."
Worcester Academy made a couple of minor MIAA transfer splashes. Lily Downing, a super quick, sweet-shooting 2028 guard from Natick, Mass., is someone Sullivan believes can join Barnes and Mora as guard ball-handlers. He's also excited about Addison O'Connor, coming from Shrewsbury, Mass., who adds a level of physicality and toughness to the frontcourt.
"She really rebounds — like, she engulfs the basketball when she goes for it, and she really attacks the ball on a rebound," Sullivan said. "She sets great screens. Her and Gracyn already have good chemistry in a two-man game on a side pick-and-roll or side ball screen."
Last year, Worcester Academy's surge was fueled by a high-octane offense loaded with 3-point shooting, ball movement and fast pace. Sullivan expects those themes again at least in the early going because of the natural athleticism and speed on his roster.
"I think we'll start off being similar. I don't want to say we're going to be exactly the same, but we're going to be similar to start, and then we'll morph as the season goes on," he said. "Again, 30 games is a long season, and even last year, we didn't have the same philosophy in Game 1 than we did Game 32 that we played."
