Brooke Hunt should consider going into the coaching profession.

As the lone returning starter on Waite's defending City League championship and Division I state runner-up team, Hunt's role has gone from supporting cast member to leading role for the Indians.

Waite (0-3, 0-2 CL) has gotten off to a slow start this season and Hunt, a 5-foot-5 senior point guard, knows why.

“Experience,” she said. “We make young mistakes. We have players who've never started and we're asking them to start and fulfill roles. We have to rebound better and make better shot selections, but it's coming along.”

Hunt, who injured her knee in the preseason and missed Waite's season opener, saw action for coach Manny May's squad as a freshman and has been a starter the past three seasons.

Hunt averaged seven points, four assists and nearly four steals a game last season en route to earning third-team all-league honors. Her job was to play strong defense and get the ball into the hands of the Indians' scorers, Ohio Ms. Basketball Natasha Howard, Miriah Haynes and Shanice McNeal.

All of those players are long gone, leaving Hunt in the leadership role.

“Coming into my senior year, I knew what I was up against,” Hunt said. “I'm the only returning starter and I'm dealing with young people. Last year we had Natasha, Miriah and Courtney (Jackson) and we played together since my freshman year and I had a bond with them.

“When you have a new group of people coming in, you have to learn what they're capable of doing on the court. I have to be patient, just like the coaches, because it's a learning process.”

May, in his 13th season, said he wants Hunt to become more vocal during games and in practice, but she's getting the hang of it.

“She has a quiet demeanor, but she works hard every day,” May said. “She's not afraid to get yelled at. She really knows how to keep her head during a game. On top of that, she's an excellent student. I like how she carries herself, on and off the court. She's the same on the court as she is off the court. She works hard in the classroom and on the court.”

It's easy to spot Hunt on the hardwood. Her quickness and intensity are always a thorn in opponents' sides, and she's the only player on the floor who wears sports goggles.

“She's high-energy,” May said. “She's always attacking. You never slow it down when she's in attack mode. She's an emotional player at times. With the most varsity experience in the group, they really look to her to give leadership and she's stepped into that role. Last year she didn't have to be a leader because we had a lot of senior leaders.”

Hunt smiles when she is asked how she's able to sustain her frenetic pace on the basketball court.

“Nobody likes guarding me,” she said, “because I never get tired. When I'm on the court, sometimes I don't think about it. I guess I have a passion for it. I have to go out there and give energy. I can run all day long and I don't get tired.”

Hunt has worn sports goggles during games since her sophomore year.

“My freshman year, I really couldn't see anything on the court,” Hunt said. “My mom (Bridgette) was like, 'If you break those goggles, it's over with. You're going to be (playing) blind.' My sophomore year I asked my dad (Brian) if I could get goggles. He said he knew something was up and asked me if that was why I was slow on the court. He said, 'Why didn't you say anything earlier?' I said I didn't want to look crazy on the court.”

Hunt's tenacity helped Waite's run to its first state championship game last March. The sixth-ranked Indians were close to pulling off a victory over Canton McKinley, but the ninth-ranked Bulldogs won in the final 15 seconds.

That 49-47 loss, Hunt said, stung for quite a while.

“I still think about it,” she said. “It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. When you have it right there in your hands and it's taken away, it hurts. You want to win it for your seniors and all the things you've been through with them. That team, we were like sisters and it was like, wow, it was our last official game and why couldn't our last game be a win.”

Hunt has a 3.3 GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society, the Red Cross Club and the Indian Leadership Club at Waite. She plans to attend a four-year college and become a nurse.

“I love the medical field,” said Hunt, whose mother is close to completing her nursing degree.

In the meantime, there's still time for Hunt and the Indians to compete for their fifth CL title in seven years.

“Our No. 1 thing is just getting better as a team,” Hunt said in her best coach-speak. “You have to be realistic and see what you're working with. We have a young team, but they are hard workers and willing to learn new things. I wouldn't count us out.”

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