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| Junior all-Missota Conference guard Sofia Chadwick (photo by Jim Lindquist) |
The young Tigers took their lumps during the 2012-13 season but with a year of experience and physical maturity behind them, third-year coach Sondra Chadwick is hoping for a reversal of fortunes.
"The fact that we were so young last year was a challenge," Chadwick said, "but one that will pay off for us this year. The experience the girls got last year put them far ahead of where we would normally expect to be at the start of the season.
"These girls have worked very hard in the off-season and have made a commitment to improve individually which will help the team improve as a whole...I anticipate we will be competitive in all of our games this season, including both the conference and the section."
Chadwick has eight reasons on which to base her optimism, namely the veterans returning from last year's 2-25 season.
At the top of the last is junior guard Sofia Chadwick who led the team in scoring (15 points per game) and assists last season and landed a spot on the elite all-Missota Conference team. Alicia Hett, another junior back court player, received all-league honorable mention last winter.
Other returnees include senior forward Aly Grebner; junior forward Kaitlyn Gorden, the team's leading rebounder a year ago; junior guards Abby Gallus, Jordyn Homeier and Leah Hammond and sophomore guard Morgan Mach.
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| Junior guard Alicia Hett (photo by Jim Lindquist) |
Chadwick listed experience, versatility and the ability to shoot the basketball as big pluses for her 2013-14 team.
"We are seeing a nice mix of athletes who can score from inside and outside and run the floor," she said. "We can already see our transition game has improved tremendously since last season. We should also be more of a three-point threat than we were last year."
Chadwick said Chaska is the clear favorite in the race for Missota Conference honors with New Prague and Shakopee also fielding quality teams. Lakeville North won the section title last season and is the favorite to repeat in 2014.
"The biggest factors for our success will be how much these girls will compete with each other in practice, embrace their roles, play consistently and continue to improve," Chadwick said.
Chadwick and veteran ninth grade coach Joe McCarthy have been conducting practices with athletic director Bill Tschida filling in as a temporary assistant until a new junior varsity coach is hired.
The Tigers open their season Tuesday, Dec. 3, with a non-conference home game with section rival Rochester Mayo.
