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Vanessa Diaz led Gateway to the school’s first regional championship, and a trip to the FHSAA Final Four. PHOTO/JUSTIN MARINO/GATEWAY
When it comes to selecting a Player of the Year, it is sometimes hard to not factor in career achievements. And when came time to select the county’s girls hoops Player of the Year, we simply decided that excellence over four years, combined with a senior campaign that saw her lead the Gateway Panthers to their Final Four appearance, was enough of a reason to name Vanessa Diaz to this year’s honor.
“She followed me to Gateway, and frankly became my favorite player of all time,” Panthers Coach Justin Marino said. “She has been the heart and soul of our team for the last four years and has been a major reason for our success.”
Diaz’s career has been remarkable. As a freshman, she averaged 23.3 points per game when the Panthers went 16-10. She added 21.5 points per game as a sophomore and 17 per game as a junior. The decrease in scoring can easily be attributed to the fact that the Panthers gathered more talent around her, evidenced by the fact that Gateway’s win total — and Diaz’s assist total — also went up each year. For her career, she totaled more the 2,100 points and 244 assists.
But make no mistake about it, the “Player of the Year” has not morphed into a career achievement award. Diaz certainly earned it the honor during her 2022-23 season, averaging 16.2 points and a career-high 3.8 assists per game and guiding the Panthers to 24 wins, a district championship and the school’s first-ever regional title and Final Four appearance.
“Personally, it was a magical season for me,” Diaz said of her senior campaign. “When I first got to Gateway, our program was not very good, but we were a family from the beginning. We kept working hard and improving every week and every season and it paid off for us. We became the first team in school history to win a regional championship. Knowing that the school will have a Final Four banner hanging in the gym forever, and knowing I played a part in that happening, will always have special meaning to me.”
The only senior on the News-Gazette All-County team, Diaz will continue her playing career at Mount Mary University, a Division III private school in Milwaukee where she hopes to major in exercise physiology.
“I am not sure whether I what the final destination will be, whether it is sports medicine, a sports psychologist, or even coaching. I just know I love basketball and want to help other athletes reach their goals.”
Diaz is joined by six juniors and, surprisingly, four freshmen. Joining Diaz from the Panthers squad is junior Malayna Stevenson and freshman Alyssa Marino. Stevenson, who averaged 19 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game, was the choice of the county coaches for the Orange Belt Conference Player of the Year. She went over the 1,000-point career mark as a junior and returns to lead a talented Panthers squad. Marino is a young sharpshooter that averaged 6.3 points per game and 5.5 assists while helping run Gateway’s offense.
St. Cloud finished the season with a 21-7 record and won the Orange Belt Conference tournament but was severely affected with injuries and illness late in the season. Its three nominees, a trio of juniors, are forward Emily Lockey (14.5 ppg), center Haley Collins (11.1 ppg, 5.7 rpg) and guard Danigzy Mantilla (7.5 ppg, 3.1 apg).
After going 10-38 the previous three seasons, the Harmony Longhorns had a remarkable turnaround under coach Paul Strauch, finishing 16-5 this season. It was Harmony’s first double-digit win season in eight years. Longhorns Faith Wener (10.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and freshman Ella Husbands (6.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg) earn spots on the All-ONG Team for helping spur that revival.
Osceola won just three games a year ago and new Coach Ra’Shawna Sippio immediately started to change the culture for the Lady Kowboys. Osceola went 11-13 this year and freshman Zabrielle Canaday scored 13.8 points per game in helping that turnaround to earn her spot on the All-ONG team.
City of Life junior swing guard Talia St. Hilare averaged 21.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per game for the Class 2A Warriors.
Poinciana freshman Natalie Calderon rounds out the all-star team. She averaged a solid 9.6 ppg and added more than seven rebounds a game in her first season.
Gateway’s Justin Marino is the ONG Coach of the Year for 2022-23. The Panthers reached school record 24 wins and advanced to their first-ever state Final Four. Finishing his fifth season with the Panthers, Marino is 80-32 at the school. In the five prior seasons to his arrival, the Panthers were 22-79. Marino was also the OBC Girls Basketball Coach of the Year.
“Absolutely a great choice,” St. Cloud Coach Chad Ansbaugh said. “Justin has done a remarkable job there and to reach a Final Four is a great achievement. As soon as our season was over, we all became Gateway fans.”
