After finishing 8–16 last season, the Wekiva Mustangs girls basketball team is focused on bouncing back and returning to the winning form they showed two years ago when they went 19–12.  

Entering his fourth season at the helm, head coach Jerry Middleton believes this group has the experience and talent to do it after a strong summer. Middleton said last year’s struggles stemmed from a mix of adversity and bad luck.  

“A lot of people don’t know this, but last year, in the summer, we lost the team for three and a half months, so they had no coach,” he said. “I was able to get the team back two weeks before the season started. We’re not making excuses, but we fell short just due to adversity. Then my star point guard, a returning player, tore an ACL the third game of the season, and our backup point guard caught a concussion that same game and was out four weeks. It was an uphill battle the whole time.” 

Despite the setbacks, Middleton said the experience helped his younger players grow and prepare for this season.  

“A lot of our younger girls got a chance to have a lot of hands-on experience, which prepared us for now,” he said. “This summer we went 12-1, and the only team we lost to was Wildwood, the defending state champions. We’re in a good space right now, mentally and physically, and we’re ready to redeem ourselves.” 

The Mustangs return four seniors — Jasmine Pooler, Tiana Washington, Makayla Bell and Paris Blackwood — who provide leadership on a roster that blends veterans with young rising stars. Middleton’s focus, however, is on the development of his underclassmen who gained key experience through last year and the summer.  

“We kind of understood what the seniors were going to bring to the table,” he said. “The biggest thing for us to make that jump was going to be with the rising sophomore, Division I talent Jakayla Johnson, and our rising junior, Ja’niyah Poole. Jakayla averaged eight points last year and led us this summer with 16. Ja’niyah averaged 10 this summer. That’s what I was looking for, them raising their game to that standard.” 

Middleton added that Pooler, who missed most of last year, is now fully healthy. “With Jazz coming back 100%, we’re in the right spot right now,” he said. “Those three young ladies — Ja’niyah Poole, Alexis Hill and Jakayla Johnson — are going to be the key for us getting to where we need to get to, the young girls stepping up.”  

Hill, a 6-foot freshman, will play a key role as she steps in to fill the shoes of a graduated starter. 

The Mustangs’ early schedule is filled with key matchups. They open the season at 7 p.m. Nov. 19 at home against Timber Creek, a game Middleton has circled as a chance to make a statement and open with a win.  

After a few games, the team will battle through the Metro Tournament in the first week of December. The Mustangs head to a highlighted matchup against Bishop Moore on Dec. 11, after the two teams split games last season. 

Middleton’s message for his team is simple: take one game at a time. 

“It’s a marathon, not a sprint,” he said. “We understand what it feels like to be one of the top teams in the state, but we also understand what it feels like to be one of the bottom teams. It’s a humbling thing for us as a team and as a coach.” 

With strong senior leadership, promising young talent and renewed health, Wekiva enters the 2025–26 season ready to climb back toward the top of the Metro Conference.  

“We want to win,” Middleton said. “But it’s about progress every game.”