OBSERVER File Photo Fredonia’s Kazlin Beers (2) contests a shot by Southwestern’s Erin Radack (22) during a game last season.

The high school boys and girls basketball seasons are set to officially begin next week. Many teams in the area face a lot of turnover from last year’s teams, but in turn, many familiar faces are set to hit the hardwood once again. Here is a look at a few things to watch for:

Fredonia Lady ‘Billies lose four starters

After last season where the Fredonia Lady ‘Billies were the last local team left standing — making the Far West regional game — the girls in orange and white will look a lot different in 2018-19.

In addition to the departure of head coach Carol Zirkle, Fredonia lost four of its five starters from a year ago — Katie Price, Gracie Morrison, Hannah Gullo and A’Cetta Farriat. Still, filling spots in the lineup is nothing new for Fredonia. After the departure of the Cybart twins last season, Fredonia had to fill a major void in the lineup and eventually wound up as sectional champions.

Kazlin Beers returns this season as the starting point guard for Fredonia, along with Ally Walton-Bald and a plethora of athletes with big-game experience in multiple sports. It will be interesting to see how the athleticism of Fredonia translates on the court this year.

Silver Creek hopes to put buzzer-beating playoff loss behind them

After the Silver Creek Black Knights saw their 2017-18 season end on their home floor in heartbreaking fashion, 56-55 on a last-second shot to Salamanca, this year’s team comes in as motivated as ever. Braeden Woleben and Dominic Jamison lead an experienced team, under direction of veteran coach Rob Genco, with hopes of establishing themselves as front-runners in CCAA Division 1 East.

While the league season is still a ways away for Silver Creek, keep an eye on the Black Knights in 2018-19. Silver Creek could make some noise as one of the better teams in the area in Class C this year.

Westfield looks to make some noise in division

While many teams in the area face a lot of turnover this season, the Westfield Wolverines and veteran head coach Bob North return plenty of experience this year. Led by Andrew Baribeau and Ryan Jafarjian, the Wolverines look to build upon their 13 win campaign a year ago. Nine of the 12 players on Westfield are juniors this year, meaning that this season could just be a start to the Wolverines’ story, but it has the makings of quite the start on paper.

Also of note: The area has plenty of new head coaches in charge of local varsity basketball programs. In addition to Dunkirk and Fredonia enduring a complete turnover of both varsity coaches, the Brocton boys, Pine Valley girls and Gowanda boys all have new head coaches at the varsity level.

As any fan knows, basketball is a game of momentum and runs. This year will surely present many momentum swings, and it’s anyone’s guess who the last team standing this year may be.

Twitter: @bradencarmen