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Miami Valley Summer League still going strong at 25

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By Scott Hayes, Staff Writer 11:27 AM Wednesday, June 24, 2009

In its 25th season, the Miami Valley Girls Summer League shows no signs of aging.

Forty-two teams from the area competed at the Kingdom Sports Center in Franklin this month, every Tuesday and Thursday night.

The league culminates today, June 25, with a tournament.

“Summer league gets the girls out playing basketball,” said league co-director Tom Benjamin, Springboro High varsity coach. “This is a bit of a generalization, but in my experience, you have to choreograph things to get girls to play summer basketball.

“They don’t go looking for outside games or open gyms. If you don’t create an opportunity for them, they don’t play, so this is a great way to get a ball in their hands and get them working on their game.”

Lebanon High had teams competing at each level of the league, while Waynesville entered four teams.

“It’s been great for us,” Lebanon coach Rob Hodges said. “We’re in a different place than we were last year, and are playing with a lot more comfort and confidence.

“This gives us a chance to build on the positives that we had at the end of the winter and gives us some looks at some of the better programs in our area and see what they do to be successful.”

Hodges’ Warriors won five of their eight games during the “regular season” portion of the league, then opened tournament play with a win over Belmont on Tuesday, June 23.

Waynesville coach Tim Gabbard, co-director of the league with Benjamin, has watched his team succeed in the league as well. He’s taken a different approach, however, choosing not to coach them during league play.

“I let them coach themselves,” Gabbard said. “They learn more that way. They have to think for themselves and figure out how to win. That’s good for them.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4526 or shayes@coxohio.com.

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