The young players on the girls basketball team have stepped into leadership roles as they sought to improve on the season.  

  “I have tried to step up this season because there’s no upperclassmen really, I’ve tried to work harder by pushing myself at practice and by keeping my grades up so that I know I can help out the team on game day,” sophomore wing Mira Segar said.

   Due to senior Aubrie McRoberts and junior Hailey Decker being the only upperclassmen on the team, multiple underclassmen have been tasked to step up and provide assistance as well as learn quickly. 

   “Not having many upperclassmen is not ideal, but I’m very proud of the younger girls stepping up and filling those roles to the best of their ability,” head coach Cody Morgan said. 

 McRoberts said she has tried to encourage the young players.

   “I think with the lack of upperclassmen this year and being the only senior, being a good leader and a good example was something I felt I really needed to make sure I accomplished this year as I knew my girls on the team look up to the upperclassmen and were turning to me. I always make sure to keep encouraging these girls as I know they are still young and learning,” she said.

   McRoberts added that the team has formed a tight bond.

   “I think as a player, it is always important to have your teammates back on the court, to fight for and with them. But, with these girls this year, it’s not only on the court that we have each other’s backs. It’s outside of basketball too. We have built a bond so tight with new friendships and I’m so glad I get to play with them all by my side. That is what matters at the end of the day,” McRoberts said.

   Basketball, for some, is just something to do during the season, for others it’s a lifestyle and they work daily to improve their skills and get better on and off the court. 

   “I always try to stay improving. When I was younger, like back in third grade, every night I would do 50 practice shots with a ball laying down. I go to the park with my dad and shoot for hours. Also, the team sometimes gets together for an open gym and that helps a lot,” freshman post Ashley Spry said. 

   The team is currently sitting at a season record of 4-15 thus far into the season. The team is hopeful for a turnaround season and are working practice to practice to improve. 

   “During practice, we scrimmage a lot and I feel like that helps our team a lot because we know what defense and offense are going to look like in a game and if we learn some of their plays we can try to figure it out sometimes. We also work on things like rebound drills that help us to get more aggressive to get the ball and that’s my favorite drill that we do,” junior post Hailey Decker said. 

   The girls recently played Lincoln on Jan. 27 on their home court and took the win with a score of 76-51. Wins like these are what are helping the team to keep their heads up and maintain a positive attitude on the court. 

   “I try to always have a good attitude on and off the court because it overall makes the team look better as a whole and and well put together,” sophomore Mira Segar said. 

   With their most recent win, and the girls are hopeful and optimistic progressing into the rest of the season.