helena — Last week, East Helena women's basketball player Dimon Root put pen to paper and signed a letter of intent with Providence College.
This represented the fulfillment of a long-term goal for Root, who had dreamed of playing basketball in college ever since he started playing basketball in elementary school.
“It’s very exciting,” she said. “It's been a long process, but it's very exciting. I'm really excited about this next chapter.”
Root is the main character in a book about East Helena women's basketball.
The East Helena senior has appeared in nearly every varsity game the Vigilantes have played this season, with the exception of the six games he missed with a concussion.
He scored 781 points in three seasons. If Root enters her fourth season with the Vigilantes, she could become the first 1,000-point scorer in program history, as well as the first player to sign exclusively for women's basketball. (Montana Pearson signed with basketball and track and field in 2023).
“I'm very proud of it,” she said. “It’s really amazing to be able to make history like that.”
This goes beyond history and is an example of what is possible for other people in East Helena.
“This is really huge,” East Helena girls basketball head coach Carson Bender said. “At East Helena High School, we didn't have a lot of signing dates at the moment, so we had the kids see what it's like for someone to be scouted, because she has some of the frontier I think it's great for kids to see that and say, “I can do that, too,'' because there's a school and a few other schools scouted her. Doing so will bring your dreams a little closer to reality. ”
Root scored 260 points per season and 15.3 points per game in his 51-game career with East Helena. Root also helped the Vigilantes to their first win and their first postseason victory against Butte Central in February 2023.
Throughout his three seasons at EHHS, Root has proven to be more than just a scorer. She also led the Vigilantes in rebounding in each of the past three seasons, averaging 1.6 blocks (85 total) and 2.7 steals (142) per game, as well as grabbing 381 boards, or 7.5 per game. .
“It was a unique experience,” Root said of playing in East Helena. “We were making history, so we had to build a program from the ground up, and I’m really happy to go there and be a part of it.”
However, his experience playing for the Vigilante was different. Not only did he not have varsity during Root's freshman season, he also did not have the benefit of learning from his upperclassmen.
However, over time Root found her way as a leader and upperclassman, leaving her own legacy to her fellow vigilantes.
“This is the first time in the last two years that we've had freshmen with upperclassmen,” Bender said. “And she's always been in a leadership position. She's also that kind of kid.” — She does everything at full speed. She is a really good example in the sense of always doing the right thing in the right way. ”
Despite Root's obvious talent and production — She scored 14.5 points per game as a sophomore, followed by 15.7 points as a junior and 16.5 points as a senior. — Her value to the vigilantes went far beyond the box score.
“We were very fortunate to have a kid like Dimon in our program from the beginning,” Bender said. “She did everything we asked her to do, and whether we were right or wrong, it sets a really good example for the kids.
“She's a really good teammate,” he added. “At school, she's very nice and respectful to her classmates, and she's a really well-rounded, really good kid. When we talked about wanting to build a program from the ground up, we said we wanted to put character first. I can't think of a better child to represent that character.”
Root has been part of building East Helena's culture, and said everything “just clicked” during her visit to Providence.
“I love all the coaches and hit it off with the girls right away,” Root said. “There's a great culture there and I think it's a really good fit. It's close to home, so that's great. I'm at home.”
“They (Providence) are just a successful program and I’m excited about the next chapter.”
Root said while he is excited about what's next, he will miss not only his teammates but the support of the East Helena community. Her vigilante group will miss her too.
“Things are going to be a lot different without her,” Bender said.
