2016-17 basketball preview: Fair Grove Girls

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The Fair Grove girls graduated seven seniors that accounted for 61% of the team’s scoring in 2015-16, but those haven’t dampened expectations for this season.

Sophomore Alana Findley is the reason why.

As a freshman, Findley stepped into a senior-dominated team and led the Lady Eagles in scoring (12.9 points per game) and rebounding (11.4 rebounds per game).

“She brings so much athleticism to each game,” Fair Grove coach Jenny Talbert said. “She is very competitive and has a strong work ethic.”

Last year Findley attempted just three shots from beyond the arc and made none of them. While the post is where most of her work will be done, the 5’10 sophomore has expanded her game this offseason.

“Last year she stayed inside the lane most of the time, but she has expanded her range and ball handling and because of that she will be much more versatile. I imagine she will play on the perimeter and in the lane,” Talbert said.

Lorin Weaver will provide a steady senior presence at guard, as she enters her fourth season of varsity basketball.

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“She (Weaver) plays extremely hard and can fulfill many different roles on the floor. She has tremendous leadership ability and we look for her to really embrace that role this year,” Talbert said. “She is capable of bringing the ball up the floor and can also mix it up with post players in the lane. She was one of our best defenders last year and we know she will continue to fill that role for us.”

Weaver averaged 7.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and was second on the team at 2.2 steals per game as a junior.

Harley Maxwell is a 6’2 sophomore that saw action in 19 varsity games last year, but will be called upon for much more this season.

“Harley is not only tall, but also very physically strong. We expect her to be an impact player in the lane, not just on the offensive end but also on the defensive end of the floor,” Maxwell said.

Taylor Bell, a 5’10 junior has played both post and guard at the junior varsity level, and she will step up to big minutes on varsity this year. Sophomore Alexus Rust ran the point for the junior varsity, and will be looked upon as a ball handler this year.

Freshman Maddie Clark will provide speed and quickness to the varsity team at guard right out of the gate.

Talbert also expects junior Jordan Coddington and sophomores Cydney Fullerton and Lexie Sutherland to compete for minutes.

Talbert is keeping expectations high even with all of the new faces on varsity.

“We have high expectations for this team. We graduated seven from last year’s team, but we really like what we have returning and the new faces coming up. We expect to compete in every game and plan to being playing our best ball at the end of the season,” Talbert said. “Our conference will once again be tough, but we know those games will help us prepare for Districts. We were District runner-up to Strafford last year and we would like nothing more than to make a longer run in the post season.”

Fair Grove opens the season on Dec. 5 at home against Osceola.

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