After two successful seasons under head coach William Burr, the Oak Park High School girls basketball teams are hungry for more.
Girls basketball first won the CIF championships in the 2022-2023 season for Division 5A, then again in the 2023-2024 season for Division 3AA. Before the 2022-2023 season, OPHS had not competed in CIF in over ten years.
Burr began coaching for OPHS two seasons ago and, in addition to two CIF victories, earned the title “Coach of the Year” twice in a row. His addition to the coaching staff has been a game-changer.
“He did a lot and he was a big part of why they won [CIF],” freshman and varsity player Ava Rogerson said. “The way he is able to form plays and execute them helps the team a lot.”
This season will be Rogerson’s first year playing for OPHS, but she believes in the team and her coach’s capabilities.
“I think we’re going to do well. This is his third year, so the experience is going to get better,” Rogerson said. “I think we’ll play good and get just as far as last year”
Upperclassmen players share the same enthusiasm as Rogerson, like junior and varsity player Joely Chadwick.
“I’m very excited and think it will go very well,” Chadwick said. “[Burr] creates an environment where things are successful. I think we’re gonna win it all.”
Burr also believes this team will triumph. With the new season beginning, he maintains the same high hopes for his players.
“I expect the team to have a lot of fun this year, to have a lot of success,” Burr said. “They’re a great group of girls. They work hard. They’ve got good comradery. They’ve got good attitude.”
Although he wants his teams to be prepared, Burr understands the difficulties of being a student athlete and the need for balance between rigorous hard work and mental health breaks.
“We’ll have a practice sometimes where I bring coloring books and we’ll color,” Burr said. “It’s not easy being a student athlete. You’re managing your academics and then you’re managing your sports, so it’s a lot.”
He strongly believes in female athletes encouraging each other. Burr wants to make sure no one is left behind.
“It’s important for all the athletes—but especially the female athletes—to support one another,” Burr said. “It’s important so you know you’re not in it by yourself.”
Burr recognizes how meaningful these simple acts can be for athletes, so earlier this fall, Burr had his team support the OPHS girls volleyball team at one of their home games.
“They made me and the rest of the volleyball program feel supported by the other sports programs in OPHS,” frosh-soph volleyball player Moira Forsberg wrote. “I feel like all the athletics teams are there for one another.”
With basketball, Burr hopes to not only teach his players how to do well on the court and as athletes, but in life as well.
“My philosophy on coaching is developing the whole person — not just the player, but the person,” Burr said. “So that person can, through basketball, learn about life: how to be a part of a team, how to be held accountable, how to face adversity, how to manage your schedule, how to be a student athlete.”
In addition, Burr also promotes a strong bond between his players and has built a supportive community of team players. His coaching style focuses on the valuable assets of being a team, which will help lead the team to more success.
“[Burr’s coaching is] heavy on the team chemistry and trust,” senior and varsity captain Ella Broms said. “I’ve been captain for four years, but it doesn’t mean I’m the only one who has a say in things. We’re a team. Everyone contributes. Everyone is a leader on the team.”
Overall, the team is confident they will make it to CIF championships again.
“This year is going to be the three-peat,” Broms said.
Come support OPHS’s superstar coach and girls basketball teams throughout the season. View the athletics calendar for all scheduled games.
