Friday, Aug. 15, 2008

Ready, set, serve!

By BRIAN HERNALSTEEN

News-Mirror Writer

The girls were on the court early. The fourth of August, to be exact.

And like in years past, just a few days before their first round of scrimmages and games, teams were holding tryouts.

Throwing together a mix of girls that can compete in such a short time is difficult, but the girls of the Mansfield school district manage to do just that, as well as compete at a respectable level.

Last season, three Mansfield teams (Mansfield, Legacy and Summit) made the playoff cut. With the district’s realigning, all four could see themselves a part of the postseason action at the end of the year.

Mansfield

The defending 4-5A champions have their work cut out for them. In the realignment, the Tigers were thrust into a district with a few top tier teams, not just from the area, but from the state as well.

With that in mind, fans of the Tigers take comfort in the fact that Judith McGill is still the coach, and that not much has changed.

The practices are still disciplined. The hunger for another district title is there, but the faces are different. Nine seniors return, but some of them don’t have experience from last year’s team that went to playoffs.

"Having a big senior class is great because they have been through the program for four years. But a lot of them haven’t seen playing time on a varsity court. And while there are plenty of seniors, there is still a lack of experience," said McGill. "I don’t really care if you are a senior or a freshman, if you can play, you are going to play."

And that has been proven with the style and the mannerisms in practice. Girls that want to earn a spot work hard and are barking plays from the sidelines looking for a way to help.

"It’s a lot of work, but it is also a lot of fun," said co-captain Haley Williams. "We spend all of the off-season training and getting ready for next season, so tryouts were almost like more practices for us."

Though the "tough" schools are on the docket for the Tigers, the girls are taking it in stride, almost confident in their abilities and mindset for the season.

Senior co-captain Autumn Pressley has a take similar to the rest of the team, saying that games against the Arlington schools are "just another team, and just another game," and that their focus is to not be "overwhelmed" by the competition.

The strength of this team, according to the girls, is well-rounded play. They feel that on the offensive side, they strike fast and with little hesitation. On the defensive side, the girls do enough screaming and yelling that their play on the other end of the net might carry them for a few games this season.

"We have the right mind set, it’s almost like we are ready for battle," said senior co-captain Kimi Laachowicz "We run the net well and we find a way to get points. In the end, we want a seventh district title."

Summit

The Jags were a bit of a surprise last year, clinching the fourth playoff spot in 4-5A.

The girls don’t think it was a fluke.

"Having that under our belt helps us a lot going into the new season. People doubted us, but the coaches are great and we have focus," said senior Breonna Loud. "The goals are set, and it comes down to us to complete them."

There is a cloud of seriousness that the girls noticed from the first day. The practices were in order, and conditioning becomes a top priority.

The only thing standing in their way is a tough district.

With Mansfield, Arlington, Arlington Martin and Arlington Lamar, it is completely plausible that six different teams have a shot at the four playoff spots.

"I think it will make us rise to the occasion," said coach Linda Alfaro. "There is another level that we have to rise to, and the girls are ready for that. We want to get out of district and go to the playoffs again, but the ultimate goal is to prove that we can hang with those top teams."

And if there is a strong point to this team, it is resilience.

Last season, the team got off to a rough start and many had written off a playoff chance for the Jaguars. But the girls stuck together and finished strong to clinch the fourth playoff spot from 4-5A.

"It feels like that we are now a bigger underdog than we were last year. All that we went through last year has prepared us for this year," said senior Meagan Peters. "We are all pushing each other in practice more than we did last year. There is a lot more conditioning this year, and we hope that endurance will help us as the year goes on."

The girls have said that the coaching staff has a renewed focus on endurance, and conditioning drills are now a part of practice every day.

"There is a lot of conditioning. Defense wins games, and we have been focusing on our defense, which has improved from the conditioning," said senior Alisha Filmore. "Once we get that down, the ball is in our court.

"We have lofty goals and we want to win in every game we play in. The team is very competitive like that this year."

The girls got off to a solid start on Tuesday, handling Grand Prairie with ease.

But the real challenge will come as the district schedule starts, and the coaches believe this team will be ready.

"The challenges are tougher this season. The big thing for us is to finish with that top four and go on to playoffs," said Alfaro. "We have been stuck at the bi-district level the last couple years, but with a tough district like this, our mindset is to make to area."

Legacy

In the Broncos’ first year of play, the team made an impressive run at playoffs, qualifying for the 5A playoffs with a group of young players hungry to prove themselves.

All of the starters from last year are back, making the Broncos a force in District 8-4A.

"This is a group that sets high goals. They did it last year, and this year they have set those goals even higher," said coach Jennifer Chandler. "We have been very competitive against each other in practice. I think we need to mature a little on the court and carry that confidence from practice into the games, but we are on track."

The Broncos showed a glimmer of that maturity and a little bit of resistance Tuesday night.

Trailing 2-0 heading into the third game, the Broncos needed three wins in three games to win the match over Guyer. Legacy won the first two games, but lost a thrilling fifth game 19-17.

Though the Broncos did not get the win, it did prove to the girls that when this team has focus, they can hang with anyone.

"We do great when it comes to making adjustments. When we get down, we come out swinging," said senior Caitlyn Hudson. "Going to playoffs last year opened our eyes. Playing against those top teams proved that we could hang."

Now that Legacy is in a new district at the 4A level, and returning 10 players including six starters, a district title is not out of the question.

"We don’t want to get too cocky about it, but that is a goal we are hoping for. Our defense is pretty impressive and we all have experience with each other," said junior co-captain Leslie Jackson. "We are comfortable with each other, and we know what the other can do."

The girls know each other and can feed off of the emotions of their teammates. With a district that is very winnable for the Broncos, that will factor into their style of play.

"We want to win every time we step on the court. I do like our chances in district, it is a very winnable situation," Chandler said. "These girls are excited and are fierce competitors. They are resilient and tough."

After the district title, though, thoughts have to turn toward playoffs.

"Just the fact that we got there last year shows us what we can do and how well we can play," said junior co-captain Bekah Dorsey. "Our record at home last year wasn’t that great, but this year we wanted to be much better at home. We wanted to go undefeated at home this year, but if we only lose once that should be all right."

Timberview

Height, defense, a bitter taste.

The Timberview Wolves have all those things and want to use them to get back to the playoffs.

After making the playoffs for three straight years, the Wolves missed out last year, and they’re ready to go back. With a new district and new rivals, anything can happen.

"We want to make regionals, then go as far as we can. We couldn’t quite do it for the seniors last year, but this year we want to make up for that," said senior Jessica Sparrow. "One of the goals for us is to play better as a team this year, and I think our defense is a big part of that."

The front line of the Wolves is pretty intimidating with Camille Redmon and Paige Williams shutting down opposing teams.

Their height rivals many of the boys their age, and their defensive game rivals many of their district opponents.

Redmon is listed at 6 foot 4, and Williams is also over six feet.

"We call them the 'Twin Towers’ because they can be pretty intimidating to opponents," said Megan Seiler. "The team is pretty much the same as last year, but the attitude has to be different. We want to be first in district, because it is a tough district. We want to make playoffs ahead of other teams that some people might rank ahead of us."

The old saying is that "defense wins championships." If that is true, the Wolves have to feel good.

The championship goal is something that is on the mind of other teams in the district, including Mansfield rival, Legacy.

Adding to the fact that Stephenville won a state championship just a few years ago, nothing will be a cake walk.

"We are returning four starters with seven seniors on the roster. They want to go all out and leave their mark on the program," said Timberview coach Beth Wills. "We have the height, the combination of experience and youth, so now it just a matter of putting it together.

"We want to win, but the goals are set higher than just that."

Goals are not only set higher, but they are also set at the heart of the program.

"A big goal we have is to build a family program where everyone can depend on one another all the time," said senior Chanice Smith. "We have all been doing this for a while, so hopefully the younger kids are buying into that. I think that if we all buy into the family concept, we could be a very good team."