The York girls basketball team is off and running under new head coach Morgan Jahnke.
The Dukes enjoyed a productive summer that saw them compete in a variety of events, including shootouts at Batavia, Montini and Hersey. The Dukes also played games at Addison Trail and went to Purdue University for an overnight camp.
“We did fine,” said Jahnke, who takes over for Brandon Collings. “We had a lot of work to do. We’re trying to teach a new system, which will take some time, but we will get there.”
Jahnke, a graduate of Grant Community High School in Fox Lake who played collegiately at Benedictine University in Lisle and Concordia University Chicago (in River Forest), was the head coach at Willows Academy in Des Plaines last season.
Jahnke was also JV head coach and varsity assistant coach at Willows where she coached for a total of six years. She was part of Willows teams that won regional titles in 2023, 2024 and 2025 (the 2025 team set a school record for wins in a season). That 2025 team also won a sectional title and made a supersectional appearance.
This past season, Jahnke, who most recently taught physical education and health at Deerfield High School and also previously taught in Chicago, helped direct Willows to its first Independent School League title.
“My old college assistant coach said York was looking for a head coach,” she said. “I wanted to be somewhere where I could teach and coach in-house and York offered me that opportunity. I like Elmhurst and I really like the community. Everybody has been great. It was the perfect fit for me.”
Jahnke liked what she saw this summer. “We have a lot of talent and a lot of potential, for sure,” she said. “It’s a great group of girls. They are a group of girls who like to play basketball and are in it to win it. I am stoked to be coaching them.”
Jahnke noted the Dukes have a good amount of returning talent from last season’s team. “Our seniors are fantastic,” she said. “They are definitely good leaders. A few of them have been on the varsity now for three or four years.”
Senior-to-be Avery Larma, point guard Briley O’Brien, sophomore-to-be Lilly Burnison and Maggie Mikucki, in particular, had strong summers, the coach noted.
Larma, a four-year varsity player, was York’s second-leading scorer last year (8.5 points per game) and averaged 10 points over the second half of the season. O’Brien averaged six points and led the Dukes last year in assists. Burnison suffered a season-ending injury in York’s first game last year (scored 7 points and grabbed 7 rebounds before the injury occurred).
“Avery had that game-winner in the regional final and definitely stood out this summer,” Jahnke said. “Briley is a defensive specialist who sees the floor very well. I’m excited to see Lilly play. I have heard a lot of great things about her. Maggie is a great role model for our team. She’s a senior who does all the dirty work for us. She’s a great rebounder, a defensive person, a leader on the court. It was fantastic to have a lot of girls stand out this summer. We have a lot of talent.”
As with any new coach, Jahnke, who will teach physical education at York, said the summer also was about getting to know her, the new systems and expectations put in place.
“It will take a little time,” she said. “The first week of summer was a little tough, but once they got used to the systems we are running and the culture we want to establish as a team, they did a great job of taking on what I see for our program. They picked up what we are doing on offense and defense.
“Culturally, we’re trying to build a program and build structure. They did a very good job. I definitely saw a lot of improvement with the way I see the game. I like to play fast-paced and am a defensive-heavy coach. With the new shot clock rules coming into play, that will change things. It’s tailored to the way I like to coach. I was impressed with the progress the girls made over the summer from when we started to where we left off.”
Jahnke said the team’s main goal is to win a Class 4A regional title, “and it would be nice conference-wise to be in the top three,” she said. “We’re in a tough conference (West Suburban Silver) and we saw a lot of the conference teams over the summer. We’ll have a tough schedule ahead. Winning a regional and coming in the top three in conference would be ideal.”
Jahnke added the support she’s received since coming to York has been off the charts.
“So many people have reached out and asked if I need anything,” she said. “They are willing to help. It’s great to have a lot of people like that. I’m thrilled to join the York community. My goal is to build on the strong traditions here while fostering a competitive, disciplined and supportive environment for our athletes to thrive on and off the court.”
York went 15-16 overall last season and finished 5-7 in West Suburban Silver action. York lost in overtime to St. Charles North in a Class 4A regional title game.
