By Allen VanNess (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Coming off a successful 22-7 season that concluded with loss in the district championship to Class 2 power and eventual state champion Crane Lady Pirates, Spokane head coach Doug Hepler has a strong core of players returning and hopes his team is ready to take another step forward this season.
Losing seniors Sabrina Lator and Lizzie Jordan leaves big holes to fill, especially when it comes to the leadership both players brought to the team last season.
“Losing seniors is always tough, as someone needs to step up and fill the void,” said Hepler. “These two were not just good leaders, they were also good people. Their work ethnic and desire to win helped push us every day in practice. We can’t just replace them with one girl. Several will need to step in to fill their shoes.”
The good news for the Lady Owls? They return a large number of players and nearly all their starters, so experience should not be an issue for them.
Fortunately for the Lady Owls, they return eight from last season, including four starters. Those returning are seniors Meghan Robertson, Shasta Turnbough, Rachelle McMurray and Lacee Kootz and juniors Kaylee Armitage, Casey Wallace, Karly Murray and Taylor Riott. Robertson and Wallace return after earning all-conference, all-district nods last season.
“[Our strength this season is] the amount of returners,” Hepler said. “It’s a team effort. We have to all step up our game and fill our roles.”
Along with the eight returnees from last season, Paige Tate and Makaela McClure are two newcomers who Hepler hopes can immediately step up and help fill the roles for the Lady Owls need filled this season. Undoubtedly, while having so many athletes back from last season is a major plus, it will take everyone on the team to repeat last season’s success.
Overall, with the amount of experience returning and a couple of newcomers who can step up and help the Owls, Hepler believes his team is capable of competing at a high level and another successful season is the expectation.
“I expect this team to step up and take the next step forward,” Hepler said. “[I expect them] to be hungry to compete and leave a legacy for future Owl teams to strive for.”
While the conference won’t be an easy one, Hepler and the Owls are certainly ready to get the season underway and see what they are made of.
“The conference will be tough like it always has been with many teams that can compete at a high level,” Hepler said. “[We are] looking forward to the challenges night in and night out.”
Hepler and the Lady Owls begin their season on Nov. 21 when they host the Hurley Tigers in Spokane before heading to their first in-season tournament when they play in the Blue Eye Invitation on Nov. 28.
