Teamwork is the combined action of a group of people working toward a similar goal to achieve. The Tigers girls’ basketball team will have to work as a team to achieve goals of going deep into the postseason, maybe more this year than any other year.It’s not every year that you lose four collegiate players on a basketball team. To say the Lady Tigers have some big shoes to fill would be an extreme understatement.
Kortney Dunbar is attending “The Summit” and will be playing for one of the best women’s basketball programs in the nation at Tennessee. Aaliyah Covington will become a Billiken at SLU, and with the class of 2014 talent, Kennedy Martin will be playing at Truman State and Leeah Jason took her talents to McKendree.
After the loss of two Division I basketball players from last year, the girls will have to go back to the basics. Junior Annie Ellis explained how the upcoming season isn’t a “rebuilding year” by any means, but the girls will have to gain the chemistry back after the team was gutted of all the seniors from last year.
The team will have two seniors on the roster, which is somewhat rare. “We will look to (seniors Kirstin Willeford and Amaya Dycus) throughout for how young our team will be,” coach Lorie Blade said.
Blade also explained that because the team is so inexperienced that the coaching staff will get to “break down and coach,” which is what the coaching staff is very good at.
“We really have to break things down as far as angles and where kids are supposed to be,” Blade said.
The physicality of basketball is something that just can’t be taught. Players must fight for every rebound, lock-down on defense and sprint everywhere on the court.
“Hustling and defense will be the biggest factors for us,” Aaliyah Box said. “We also have to encourage everyone and work hard for everything.”
Another big aspect that will take place in the 2014-2015 campaign is the introduction of the youngsters. “We are very inexperienced and very young, but we have a good core of kids to work with,” Blade said.
The company of sophomores Cristeon Waters and Makenzie Silvey will also be a huge part of the Tigers scheme to make it deep into the playoffs.
The girls will be in action in the Quincy Tournament on Nov. 28 in Quincy, Ill.
