EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the latest in a series looking back at the top 10 girls basketball teams, coaches, games and players from last decade

When Montoursville hired Travis Heap hired as its new girls basketball coach in 2014 this reporter was stunned.

“Didn’t he just graduate?” I thought.

Actually, Heap had graduated five years ago. It just felt shorter than that. He also had enjoyed a fine coaching apprenticeship, learning from Hughesville boys coach Nick Tagliaferri and former Montoursville girls coach Kevin Kurtz. He was more than ready and a player who was an outstanding point guard at Montoursville quickly became an excellent coach there, too.

Heap only coached Montoursville for three years, but they were three of the best years the program has experienced since the glory days of Kelly Mazzante ended in 2000. Heap helped Montoursville go 63-16 and his .797 winning percentage was tops among area girls coaches last decade. He packed a lot into a short time as Montoursville twice topped 20 wins, won at least 16 games each year and captured the first district and league championships since 2000.

Montoursville had turned things around under Kurtz putting together three straight winning seasons from 2012-14 after having no winning campaigns the previous nine years. That growth then hit warp speed under Heap.

Heap was only 23 when he took over as was assistant coach Vince Molesky. Assistant coach Erica Logan was the oldest on the staff at 24. The staff might have been inexperienced, but its youth became quite a strength. All three coaches were recent Montoursville graduates. They understood everything their players were going through and could relate to them, arguably as well as any staff around. Combine that with their astute knowledge and Montoursville soared high in that debut season, going 22-4 and reaching both the district final and state tournament for the first time in 15 years.

“How young he (Heap) is definitely helps and he knows so much,” senior point guard Kirsten O’Malley said that year. “It’s a fun practice every day. The locker room is a great atmosphere.”

“I was taught the game by Tag and Mr. (Mark) Molesky at a young age and I was ready for it,” Heap said early that season. “It’s easier to get more out of them because we’re young, we have a lot of energy and we have that burning desire to win and I think the girls are feeding off it pretty strongly.”

Montoursville twice defeated perennial power Mount Carmel that season, including 55-50 in a thrilling District 4 Class AA semifinal. The Warriors ended Mount Carmel’s four-year title reign that night and remain the only team to beat Mount Carmel in districts over the last 10 seasons.

His rookie season went about as well as it possibly could, but Heap faced a different challenge in year No. 2. He coached a senior-laden team in 2015 but now had to replace four multiple-year starters and had just two players with significant varsity experience returning. Again, Heap showed he was up for the challenge and his players responded, making dramatic progress throughout the season.

Montoursville started 5-6, but was competitive in every game, losing a series of close contests. The more experience the Warriors gained the better they played and they took off in the season’s second half. Montoursville won 11 of its next 12 games, beat Warrior Run 39-27 in the district quarterfinals and finished fourth in District 4, coming within a few seconds of again reaching states. Highlighting its improvement that season, Montoursville beat three teams during its second-half surge which had defeated it earlier in the season.

“Losing four starting seniors is big. Most teams couldn’t bounce back from that, but that shows the work ethic our whole team has had from the summer all the way through to get these results,” Heap said. “We knew we were a good team and we just had to go through a little growing pains to realize that.”

“Everyone doubted us,” point guard Lexi Marchioni said following the Warrior Run win. “We’re doing a lot better than people thought. Most people thought we’d either lose in the first round or not even make the playoffs so it feels good to show them that we’re better than that.”

A year later, Montoursville was better than anyone in District 4 Class AAAA.

The roles were reversed and the Warriors now were talented, experienced and confident. Montoursville overpowered most of its opponents, going 21-1 in the regular season while capturing the HAC-II championship with an undefeated league record. The Warriors were a marked team come the postseason, but won three straight hard-fought games and captured that elusive district championship.

Montoursville finished 25-3, also winning the program’s first state tournament game since 2000 when it battered York Suburban, 56-14 in the opening round. Heap resigned following the season, taking an assistant women’s basketball coaching job at Penn College which he still holds. He had a short run at Montoursville, but what a run it was.

“They bought into everything I and all the coach were saying. They worked their butts off and that’s all I can ask as a coach and they had a heck of a run,” Heap said following a season-ending loss against Bishop McDevitt. “I told them look at where they are. When I was going through high school, the most wins our team had was three. In eight years, we’ve come a long way and I’m proud to be a part of it.”