By Anvil Welch
awelch@joplinglobe.com
A size disadvantage virtually is a given for the Verona High School girls basketball team.
“Everyone we play is taller,” Wildcat coach Ryan Yates said on Thursday.
Yates warned, however, that Montrose, Saturday’s 1 p.m. opponent in a MSHSAA Class 1 quarterfinal, is blessed with more than size.
“They’re quick, too,” Yates said of the Bluejays. “They have good athletes. They have good shooters. There are reasons why they are unbeaten. Montrose is a very good team.”
Verona (24-5), which is ranked seventh by the Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association, challenges second-ranked Montrose (28-0) in Sedalia at State Fair Community College.
Added Yates: “We need a complete game. We have to outwork Montrose in every aspect for us to win this game.”
Said Montrose coach Scott Ireland: “We’ll have a height advantage. But Verona is a solid team. They’re guard-oriented. They have quickness and can shoot.”
Verona finished with nine treys in ousting Humansville 64-54 on Tuesday night in the sectional round at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar. The Wildcats sank seven 3s in building a 35-20 haftime lead.
Ireland, meanwhile, wasn’t completely satisfied with the Bluejays’ 68-43 win against Hume at Clinton High School.
“We missed a lot of easy shots and should have done a better job of rebounding,” Ireland said.
Ireland, who’s in his first season as head coach (replacing Lynn Morgan), listed a probable starting lineup of 5-foot-5 sophomore Katelyn Bracher, 5-7 junior Felicia Foster, 5-8 sophomore Victoria Engeman, 5-11 sophomore Kendall Hart and 5-11 junior Morgan Eye.
Eye, who’s averaging about 23 points, and Hart (18 points, 11 rebounds) received all-state honors last season as the Bluejays reached the quarterfinals before losing to eventual state champion Exeter.
Ireland, a graduate of Seymour High School and Missouri State, also is boys coach at Montrose and guided them to a 23-4 record. He also is the superintendent.
Marion County, which lost to Exeter in the finals, is rated No.1 this season.
Yates plans to counter with the usual Verona alignment of 5-6 senior Beth Bigham, 5-9 senior Jori Dodson and the sophomore trio of 5-6 Tristan Carrasquillo, 5-4 Jenna Chadd and 5-6 Jessica Smith.
Carrasquillo and Chadd scored 24 points apiece in the Wildcats’ win against Humansville.
History will be made today as each team is seeking its first semifinal appearance.
