By Rob Patrick
Basketball gets under way in Bryant tonight when the freshman teams and the Bryant White girls eighth grade teams host their respective counterparts from Morrilton at the middle school gym starting at 5 p.m.
Expectations are high for the freshman girls with the influx of players from the eighth grade team which went undefeated last year.[more]
“I think the girls understand that expectations only go so far,” said Lady Hornets freshman coach Eric Andrews. “They’ve been working real hard in the pre-season, trying to make some that stuff happen. We’ve tried to go through the pre-season understanding that things don’t just happen because they’re expected. We’ve got to go out and work hard to make it happen. And they’ve been doing a good job of that so far.”
Andrews got his complete team together after the Lady Hornets freshman volleyball team finished its season on Oct. 17.
“Right now, we feel real good about our strong guard play,” he said. “We’ve got three or four very good guards to send out there. We’ve got McKenzie Adams, Logan Davis, Keiara Moore, McKenzie Rice. They should all play a very important roll in our offense and our defense where we can put a lot of pressure on other teams this year.
“Our post play is coming along very well,” he continued. “We’ve got a little bit of size this year. Whitney Myer is about 6-1. She’s come a lot way over the summer and the preseason. She’s playing well right now. Lauren Buck comes in at about 5-11 and she can step out on the floor. She’s able to shoot the ball a little bit which adds another dimension to our post play. She can also post up pretty well and score inside.
"Also, Courtney Davidson, she’s kind of our all-purpose player. She can step out on the floor, she can bang around inside. She’s a very good rebounder, just a real scrappy player. She’s got a nose for the ball and she always seems to be in there mixing it up with everybody.”
The team also includes Skylar Combs, Carley Yazza, Sarah McPherson, Kimberly Henderson, Kristen Scarlett and Hayley Murphy.
Hornets freshman coach Steve Wilson didn’t get his full team until football season ended last Tuesday.
“I think we’ll be a very athletic team,” said Hornets head coach Steve Wilson. “Most of the fall, those that didn’t play football have been working on weights and also on fundamentals. We kind of joined in with the senior high.
“We’ve kind of been rushed to put in a game plan,” he added. “But that’s kind of the way it goes every year.
“The kids have been hungry to learn,” he concluded. “We’re looking forward to the season.”
The team includes Aaron Bell, Zack Cambron, David Carranza, James Davis, Joshua Davis, Strodney Davis, Riley Hall, Jalen Hewitt, Cody Higgins, Skyler McKissock, Leon Neale, Austin Privett, Luke Rayburn, Jason Salas, Marcus Wilson and Scott Workman.
