Prep has resource in seniors
Moe McCormack smiled when asked if she thought her seniors could lead the team into the playoffs.
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Moe McCormack, who coaches the Lady Cavaliers in basketball, talks to her players during a timeout in the Augusta Christian game. They beat the Lady Lions early in the season, but were defeated at home.
Photo by Jim Blaylock
"As a coach, you always dream of having a team full of seniors," she said before the season. "This is one of those years where we can be very good because of our seniors."
The Augusta Prep basketball coach returned Abby Alexander, Mary Hannah Lynn, Katelyn Gibbs and Caroline Hull in a starting lineup composed of four seniors, and has another senior in Kelly Sadler, who can come off the bench.
Prep (6-6) has responded with a variety of results early this season.
The Lady Cavaliers looked impressive as they defeated Augusta Christian 42-36 early in the season, but fell to the Lady Lions by 12 at home. Prep beat Curtis Baptist by 13 and 18 points, but lost by one to the Crusaders. They have lost three times to Briarwood by a combined 12 points.
"When we can control the pace, we can be very good," McCormack said after the victory over ACS. "When we can't, then we can struggle."
Augusta Prep's Abby Alexander and Augusta Christian's Jordan Little fight for a loose ball during a game in Martinez. Alexander is one of four seniors returning to the Lady Cavaliers' starting lineup, a statistic their coach says is a dream come true.[
Photo by Jim Blaylock
The Lady Cavs are a team that can run up and down the court or slow it down to frustrate an opponent, as they did against the Lady Lions. Prep is also a team that likes to score down low with Lynn and Gibbs.
When the game plan works, the Lady Cavs look like a playoff team.
"I think we have been up and down this season," Alexander said. "We have been very inconsistent. But we started slow against John Hancock and came back strong. We worked out some kinks, we hope, and should be ready to go when region games start."
The seniors, along with fifth starter Monica Ploetzke, all average more than seven points a game.
Gibbs leads with nine points a game, while Ploetkze averages seven.
All five starters have scored 13 points in a game at least once, yet none has scored more than 15 in a game.
"We are really balanced," Alexander said. "Anyone can be the leading scorer on any night. That will definitely help us as we go along."
Alexander said she believes that balance will help the team when the region schedule begins.
Augusta Prep's Katelyn Gibbs shoots over an Augusta Christian defender. Gibbs is another of the Lady Cavs' starting seniors. The two teams met Jan. 6 in Martinez.
Photo by Jim Blaylock
"We really thought we'd be doing better," she said. "We haven't pinpointed the problem. We haven't been on at the same time yet. But the seniors know this is a marathon and not a sprint. We can still be very good."