By Denise Tucker (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The Catholic Lady Irish return three starters from a team that finished a challenging schedule with a 13-14 record that included their final season as a Big 8 East Conference member.
And though they finished the season under .500, 12 of the Lady Irish’s 14 losses were to state-ranked teams in classes 3, 4 and 5.
“These games have only made us tougher and more experienced heading into 2024-25,” head coach Mike Foley said.
In 2024-2025, the Lady Irish will find a new home in the Mid-Lakes Conference and Foley is excited about what the season will bring.
“We return three starters and have additional players with varsity experience, which should give us an edge in multiple games,” said Foley, who is 54-45 at Catholic. “We are tall (five players over 5-foot-10), play good defense, and rebound and guard very well. We will be better offensively, too – the girls have more patience, are more confident and have become better shooters.”
The Lady Irish will be led by returning starters seniors Peyton Wiseman and Lila Griesemer, and junior Alice Farmer.
Peyton Wiseman, senior guard – Earned Class 3 All-District 11, All-Big 8 Conference second-team honors, named Most Valuable Player of the Mansfield Tournament; averaged 13 points per game, 4 rebounds per game and 2.5 steals per game; a three-year starter, who is on pace to reach 1,000 career points and 500 career rebounds this season; signed with NCAA D-I Louisiana Tech University to play soccer. “Great leader and incredible athlete,” Foley said. “Shoots well and slashes to the rim both offensively and defensively.”
Lila Griesemer, senior center – Named All-Big 8 Conference honorable mention; averaged 8 ppg, 7 rpg, 2 blocks per game; led team in blocks and rebounds. “Great athlete; started every game last season. A good rebounder and touch shooter. Lila will be force inside this year.”
Alice Farmer, junior guard – Averaged 6.1 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.8 steals per game. “Really good outside shooter, whose points should increase this year. (Alice) gained confidence as the season progressed and was getting to the rim more last year. Looking for her to take a leadership role this season.”
Foley said the Lady Irish have four more seniors and a junior who return a good deal of experience and will see varsity minutes in seniors Annabelle Cleeton, Grace Hoerschgen, Makenna Phipps, Riley Webster and junior Ragan Barron.
“(We have) eight players that have been in the program for three-plus years,” Foley said. “We have players that run the floor well and we have height and length, which will help us tremendously.
“We (also) have some younger players coming in and they got some good experience working out and playing with the returning players this summer. The future looks bright with Izzy Hoerschgen (sophomore), Riley Hein and Sophia Foley (freshmen).”
Catholic will need to find a way to fill the experienced shoes of Katie Galligos, a four-year varsity player and starter for 3½ years.
“(Katie was) the best defender on the floor most nights,” Foley said. “Her leadership and tenacity will be hard to replace.”
The Lady Irish open the regular season at the Fair Grove Tournament on Dec. 2-6 before hosting three straight games at home against Marionville (Dec. 10), Reeds Spring (Dec. 12) and Parkview (Dec. 16).
“We have a great group of young ladies (both on and off the court),” Foley said. “They are all great leaders in their own right, and hopefully, that and their team mentality will equal additional success for us.
“Southwest Missouri has some of the best girls’ basketball teams in the state. Every game can be tough, and we hope to surprise some teams this season.”
