Centreville senior Caroline Wakefield scored 22 points during her first varsity start at the point guard position Tuesday against Mount Vernon. Photo by Craig Sterbutzel.
Centreville girls’ basketball coach Tom Watson stood in a hallway at Mount Vernon High School and praised Caroline Wakefield following the Wildcats’ season opener Tuesday night.
“I think Caroline is going to be a first-team all-region player,” Watson said. “I just don’t see how she can’t be. She’s the best defensive player out there. You saw her game. She was hands down the best player on the court out there.
“We’re working on her offense. I don’t know how many points she had. It was double digits, I just don’t know how many.”
Wakefield, a four-year member of the Centreville varsity, has received all-district/conference recognition for her defensive skills in each of her first three seasons. This year, however, Wakefield has made the move to point guard, taking over for graduated star Jenna Green, who is now a freshman on the William & Mary women’s team. The Wildcats need Wakefield to take on an offensive mindset as Centreville graduated 78 percent of its scoring, according to Watson, from a team that reached the 2014 region semifinals.
Minutes later, while Wakefield was speaking with a reporter, Watson returned with the senior’s point total: 22.
“I’m pretty sure,” Wakefield said, “that’s probably the most I’ve ever scored in my life.”
Not bad for a first night at a new position.
Wakefield’s 22 points propelled Centreville to a 51-44 victory over Mount Vernon on Dec. 2 at Mount Vernon High School. Wakefield, per usual, was a difference-maker on defense, totaling four steals and two blocks, but she also carried the Wildcats offensively and was the only Centreville player in double figures.
“To be honest, it was something very new,” Wakefield said. “I am glad to take on the role as Jenna Green this year. ... I’m a defensive player for sure, but this year, if we’re going to win games — and coach said, you’re a captain on the floor, you’ve got to act like one — and I think for us to win games, I’ve got to be putting up at least 20 points.”
Wakefield has some big shoes to fill, taking over for Green. To compensate for Wakefield’s lack of experience as a ball-handler, the Wildcats have worked on breaking the press and other strategies that Watson simply didn’t have to worry about when Green was on the court.
“Before, we would just hand the ball to Jenna and Jenna would do it all herself,” Watson said. “Now, we’re setting up plays and setting up different people to handle the ball. We’re basically putting in press breaks. We never had a press break [when Green was a Wildcat]. We didn’t have to. We had the Jenna break — Jenna, get the ball and break the press.”
While Wakefield isn’t a polished product on the offensive end, she’s oozing with athleticism. She recently signed a letter of intent to play Division I lacrosse, her primary sport, at the University of North Carolina. What she lacks in polish, she makes up for with raw talent and hustle.
“Caroline is the B version of Jenna when it comes to handling the ball, but she’s the A version of Jenna when it comes to defense,” Watson said. “I think she’s going to be just as good a player. She just chose to be a lacrosse player instead of a basketball player.”
Centreville trailed 37-32 early in the fourth quarter Tuesday, when Wakefield knocked down a 3-pointer to cut the Wildcat deficit to two. Later, she tied the score at 39 with a steal and layup before sophomore Kam Daily’s layup gave the Wildcats their first lead of the night at 41-39 with 4:47 remaining. Centreville led for the remainder of the contest.
Centreville outscored Mount Vernon 19-8 in the fourth quarter.
Wakefield, a Centreville captain, praised her teammates after the game, including fellow senior captain Chrissy Jacksta, who scored eight points and grabbed seven rebounds despite getting in early foul trouble.
Daily and sophomore Camryn Conklin each scored six points for the Wildcats.
Watson praised the rebounding efforts of guards Noelle Brown (7) and Monica Kirk (3).
“We have a lot of pieces that aren’t put together in the puzzle yet, but we have a puzzle, and a lot of teams don’t,” Watson said. “We have some good pieces, we’ve just got to figure out how to use them correctly.”
Centreville (1-0) returns to action on Tuesday, Dec. 9 with a road game against Marshall at 7:30 p.m. The Wildcats’ first home game is Dec. 16 against Annandale.