Edison State Basketball Off to Dominating Start

The Edison State Community College men's and women's basketball teams returned to the court this month. Both teams have started the season strong, with the women's team currently 6-0 overall and the men's team 5-1 overall.

Head Coach Tim McMahon leads the Lady Chargers for the eighth season, bringing over three decades of coaching expertise to the program. McMahon began his coaching career at Lehman and Botkins High School. At Botkins, he advanced to the assistant varsity coach for the girls' basketball team, where he helped lead the team to two S.C.A.L. League Championships and the title of Regional Runner-Ups. In 2020, McMahon led the Lady Chargers to a conference title and regional championship. The same year, the team was slated to appear in the NJCAA national championship game but missed out on the opportunity to compete due to the pandemic.

McMahon's goals for the Edison State women's basketball team are to win league and head to nationals again.

"That's always our goal," McMahon said. "It will always be the goal."

Voted a preseason favorite for the OCCAC, the Lady Chargers returned to the court with 11 sophomores and four incoming freshmen. Allison Siefring, Maddy Bakosh, and Audra Schaub are returning players and were part of the team that set a record of 28 wins three seasons ago.

"We expect a lot from those three because they're our returning players from that winning team," said McMahon.

The Lady Chargers claimed dominating wins in their first six games, beating the University of Rio Grande JV 112-69 and 110-47 in two competitions. They also defeated Henry Ford College 103-61, Miami University–Middletown 124-59, Clark State College 103-54, and Cedarville University JV 83-58.

"All of the girls played a lot and contributed to our wins so far," said McMahon. "That's what makes a great team, when everybody can contribute to a win."

Joining McMahon is Doug Martin as the assistant coach. Martin has over 30 years of coaching experience; this is his fifth year as Edison State's assistant women's basketball coach. Previously the varsity girls' basketball coach at Anna High School, he helped to lead the Lady Rockets to a State Championship in 2011, State Runner-Up in 2012, and State Championship in 2013.

Leading the men's basketball team for the fourth year is Head Coach Kyle Vanover. He has over 15 years of coaching experience and is currently in the seventh year of coaching his own AAU program, Rush Elite. Vanover has coached at Miami East, Greenville, Lehman, and Graham schools and had winning seasons with all.

The first goal for the men's team is to win a conference title. Vanover would also love to see them make it to nationals. While the team is going through expected growing pains, Vanover sees them accomplishing a lot this season.

"This group of guys is by far ahead of any of our other groups in the past, which is good," Vanover said. "The future is really bright for this group."

"At the college level, wins and losses are what people use to determine a successful or unsuccessful season. We put more into being successful in the classroom. Do we have a group of guys with good character on and off the court? We always try to hold that as one of our highest standards."

The Chargers returned to the court with one sophomore and 16 freshmen, three of which are slated to begin in the spring.

"Everybody on the team has a role, and it's going to take everybody to win a conference title," said Vanover. "We want to make sure we try to pick each other up and work as a team."

Vanover wants to stay the course throughout the season. "We're going to try to keep going in the right direction, not take any steps back, and just keep doing what we're doing right now."

The Chargers have claimed five wins in their first six games, beating the University of Rio Grande JV 89-54 and 73-58 in two competitions. They also defeated Miami University–Middletown 86-72, Clark State College 90-71, and Cedarville University JV 107-70. They fought a tight game against Henry Ford College, suffering an 86-67 loss.

Assistant coaches Craig Maschino and Matt Gross join Vanover in leading the men's team. Maschino is returning for his third year as an assistant coach and brings nearly 20 years of coaching experience to the program. Gross has a decade of coaching experience, five of which are at an elevated AAU level.

Edison State's basketball teams compete in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) and are Division II members of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). Visit athletics.edisonohio.edu for the latest news, upcoming games, and complete rosters.