ANDERSON — Highland’s new girls varsity basketball coach Chad Cook is getting help from a pair of junior leaders as the Scots make the transition to the 2009-10 season.
“Jessika Lark and Krosley Ogden have helped a lot,” said Cook. “They are our best players and our hardest workers. The rest of the girls are following suit.”
Highland is still a relatively young team with just three seniors, Holly Matthews, Haley Brown and Sydni Cleckley. There are six juniors, no sophomores and two freshmen.
“I like what we’re seeing,” said Cook. “We’re coming off a 6-16 season. We want to make sure we teach them to do things the right way.”
But there are still some questions about what the team will actually look like when the players take the floor.
“That remains to be seen with us,” said Cook. “We want to harness down the defense. I’d like to see us shoot a lot of layups and that comes from defense. But we will still be able to play in the half-court. I played under (former Highland) coach Darner, so I think I know half-court defense.”
Anderson
There’s little doubt that replacing scoring will be the top priority for the Indians. The team lost Jasmine McGhee and Bryesha McCullough. “That was 32 points we lost right there,” said coach Randy Harrison. “We have to find someone to step up, fill the void and score.”
Two seniors, three sophomores and two freshmen will see a lot of the varsity playing time. Dominique Davis and Janelle Davis are the seniors. The sophomores are Crysphena Hill, Bruna Braxton and Denielle Davis. The freshmen are twins Savannah and Sharice Davis.
“We ran the players through the Anderson University summer league and they played well,” said Harrison. “We’ve got athletic, great kids. We are going to be small and fast. If we can’t defend and can’t deny, then we’re going to be in trouble.”
There are five juniors on the varsity roster. Ciedre McDonald could be one of the most critical from that class and she is going to be looked at as a post player.
Liberty Christian
There are expectations of improvement this season and much of that optimism is based around a group of five upperclassmen.
“Our girls have made a lot of improvements over the past year,” said Jason Chappell, the schools’ athletic director and boys basketball coach speaking for girls coach Michael Carey.
“We have a core group of five girls who start in volleyball, basketball and softball,” said Chappell. “These five are Karon Earley, Riley Ramsey, Erika Lindley, Shelley Lehman and Jessica Polhamus. They have jelled and it is helping them in every sport. Their footwork, ball handling and shooting have improved dramatically.”
Liberty Christian has most of its team returning from a year ago.
“We only lost one senior,” said Chappell. “We added some more athletes as well. Junior post player Laura McConnell should make an impact and so should freshman guard Briana Ayers. The Lady Lions should experience some major success with this lineup.”
High School Sports
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Aaron Piper
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Aaron Piper
Discussion
Transition in the city
Changes are in the air for Scots, Indians and Lions
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PH moves on
On the roster of every successful team is a player or two who will do the unpleasant work. The ones who actually find satisfaction in this pursuit are worth their weight in wins to any coach. Pendleton Heights sophomore Kiawna Cottrell was just that player Tuesday as the Arabians advanced to the second round of sectional play with a 55-45 victory over Greenfield-Central.
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Indians slay Spartans
The last time these two girls basketball teams met on Jan. 17, Anderson defeated Connersville 83-74 in overtime. Lady Tribe coach Chad Cook knew the Spartans would come out with a chip on their shoulder ready for revenge in Tuesday’s opening round of the Class 4A sectional.
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Eagles eke by Raiders
Back in November, the Frankton girls basketball team handled Shenandoah by 29 points. Tuesday’s sectional opener at Shenandoah wasn’t as easy, but the end result was the same as Frankton moved on with a 44-43 win over the host Shenandoah Raiders.
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Wapahani ends Lapel’s season
With both teams scrapping for loose balls and rebounds often, the second game of the first-round girls basketball sectional Tuesday night at Shenandoah seemed destined to become a backyard brawl. And as is so often the case, the more experienced team came out on top. A sloppy but hard-fought contest turned into little more than a war of attrition late as finally Lapel ran out of gas, falling to Wapahani 49-33.
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Madison-Grant survives, advances
Madison-Grant girls basketball coach Kyle Douglas reminded his team before Tuesday’s Class 2A sectional opener that the state tournament marks the beginning of a new season. With 4.6 seconds remaining against Alexandria, Argylls senior Taylor McNutt held the first game of that new season in her hands at the free-throw line. She calmly made her first attempt, and wild scramble for the loose ball erupted when her second try glanced off the rim. The clock expired before either team could gain possession, and Madison-Grant (14-8) escaped with a 58-57 victory and a ticket to Round 2.
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Daleville bucks Liberty Christian, heads into Class A semifinals
Not much changed in Sectional 55 on Tuesday at Wes-Del as Daleville pressured the Lions into submission on the way to a 51-24 win and the chance to face the host Wes-Del Warriors.
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Tribe win over Spartans 50 - 46
Photos from the opening round of the Class 4A Sectional at Greenfield-Central on Tuesday.
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Arabians advance after 55-45 win over Cougars
Photos from the Greenfield-Central sectional as the Pendleton Heights Arabians faced the Cougars.
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Jim Bailey: Kids play basketball, but some adults prefer basketbrawl
We’ve heard all too much about the failings of today’s youth. Methinks the blame in most cases is misplaced. Like father like son? Perhaps, which reinforces my point.
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Todd, Blanton grab regional crowns
Pendleton Heights’ Mason Todd and Alexandria’s Luke Blanton won championships in their respective weight classes at Saturday’s Pendleton Heights Wrestling Regional as 15 local competitors survived to wrestle another week.
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