By Anvil Welch
awelch@joplinglobe.com
Jonathan Wengert, girls basketball coach at Carl Junction High School, believes the Bulldogs can turn around their finish of last season.
That also means that Wengert believes they can compete for Big 8 Conference and Class 4 district honors.
“We should have a solid team,” Wengert said.
“We had a good summer. We have a year of experience under a new system. We’re understanding more of what we can do on both offense and defense.
“We should continue to improve each game,” Wengert said.
“I’m very pleased with the work ethic we’ve had during the summer and in practice. The players work very hard.
“We probably could use more depth,” Wengert said. “Keys include taking care of the ball and making good decisions.”
Wengert, who’s assisted by Mandy Lybeck and Eric Johnson, has the starters from a 6-18, 1-6 edition.
They are 5-foot-9 senior Lauren McRae and the junior quartet of 5-6 Jaime Dunaway, 5-4 Ashton Holland, 6-0 Lanie Skaggs and 5-9 Mackenzie Valenti.
There are two more letter-winners in 5-6 junior Maddie Stevenson and 5-5 sophomore Sami Thomas.
Claire Prather, a 5-5 junior, returns after missing the 2008-09 season because of an ACL tear.
“We expect Prather to be our point guard this season,” Wengert said. “She really should be an asset.”
Completing the varsity roster, Wengert said, are 5-6 sophomore Caitlyn Carter, 5-7 sophomores Shelby Campbell and Kelsey Swarens and 5-6 freshman Maddie Ferson.
McRae, an all-Big choice (second unit), averaged 14.2 points, 8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 2 steals last season.
Valenti added averages of 9 points and 5.4 boards.
Scoring averages also included 5.9 for Holland, 3.8 for Dunaway and 3.7 for Skaggs.
Dunaway, Holland and Skaggs each averaged nearly three boards. Holland Valenti averaged 1.6 assists and Holland 1.8 steals.
The Bulldogs open their season at 7:30 p.m. Monday in their annual St. John’s Sports Care Classic. Carl Junction is seeded fourth and will take on Nevada
McRae and Valenti are expected to join Prather in the starting lineup for the opener, Wengert said.
“There’s strong competition among Dunaway, Holland, Skaggs, Stevenson and Thomas for the remaining two spots,” Wengert said.
