2020-21 Winter Preview: Crane Girls Basketball

fullsizeoutput_6ba02

By Mark Spillane

Despite having no seniors on last year’s roster, the Crane Lady Pirates won eight games. It’s something Head Coach Jeremy Mullins believes will go a long way during the upcoming season.

“The biggest lesson we learned from last season is how hard we have to work everything single night in order to be successful,” Mullins said. “The other thing we gained from last season was experience. The experience our young team learned will benefit us tremendously this season.”

That experience will all start with sophomore Zoe Reel. She averaged 19.4 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game on her way to a first-team all-conference honors as a freshman.

“Zoe is a very aggressive and physical player, who is extremely athletic,” Mullins said. “These traits, combined with the fact that she [was] a freshman, allowed her to step in and make an impact.”

Now, Zoe is the clear-cut leader on the court, but she’ll need help for the Lady Pirates to find success.

Mullins points to two junior guards who have made big offseason improvements.

CLICK HERE FOR ALL OF THE WINTER SPORTS PREVIEWS

“Danielle Cutbirth and Gracie Brawley, the improvement we have seen from Danielle and Gracie this off season is impressive. The experience that they gained from last season has given them a boost of confidence that has helped in their ball handling and ability to attack the rim.”

Another junior, forward Emrey Ellingsworth has shown improvement heading into the season.

“During the offseason the staff has seen Emrey’s decision making skills improve along with her strength and defensive efforts,” Mullins said.

Senior forward Celsie Killman, senior guard Robyn Pascale, and sophomore guard Lilly McMenamy should also contribute as returners to this year’s team.

Freshmen guards Kailey Vaught and Gracie Rich also have the chance to make an impact for Crane this year.

Last season’s eight wins were a large drop off from win totals of 18 and 21 in the previous two years. With that in mind, Mullins says the Lady Pirates are ready to get back to their winning ways.

“After a decidedly non-Lady Pirate like season in 2019-20 we will be looking to achieve at a higher level. As always we will depend on defensive effort and hard work on both ends of the court to achieve this.”

Crane opens the season with a home game versus Ash Grove on Nov. 23.

Related Posts

Loading...