By Michael Cignoli (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Coming off back-to-back 12-win seasons, the Fair Grove girls basketball team returns a large group of young players who have the chance to prove the past two years have been outliers.
Before finishing just below .500 two years ago, the Eagles had won at least 16 games in all but one season since they placed third in the state in 2009. The program’s string of success included seven 20-win campaigns and two additional district championships in 2011 and 2013.
With several newcomers joining the roster last season, coach Jenny Talbert’s team finished 12-11. They’ll look to not only stay on the right side of .500 this winter, but go even further.
“We have high expectations to not just compete with all the opponents on our schedule but also win the games,” Talbert said. “Last year we took a step and got back to a winning season, but in games with state-ranked opponents we struggled. We want to be competitive in each and every game we play this year. We want to compete for conference and district championships.”
They’ll need to find a way to do that without all-district and all-conference point guard Brooklyn Luna, who finished her tenure with the 18th-highest career assist total (423) in state history. The three-year Fair Grove starter is now playing at Missouri Valley College, but Talbert is excited to see what a solid group of returning starters and key contributors will accomplish this winter.
“They had to grow up quickly last year,” Talbert said. “Many of them played lots of varsity minutes and they were able to see what it takes to compete at that level. We were able to improve and work on those things this summer. It will be great for them to know what to expect out of a varsity game this year instead of having to learn as the season went on.”
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The top returning player is junior forward Kameron Green, who earned all-conference and all-district honors after leading the team in scoring (17.9 points per game) and rebounding (8.3).
“She has a great touch around the rim and has gotten better at being aggressive on both ends of the floor,” Talbert said. “She wants to make her team the best team possible and she knows that in order for us to achieve great things, she has to be very involved on the court.”
With only one senior on the roster, Green will also have the opportunity to take on a leadership role — especially with as many as six freshmen expected to challenge for varsity time.
“We have huge expectations for her this year,” Talbert said. “She has shown her potential and now we are ready for her to raise the bar again. We will have many young players on our team this year and we want her to not only lead our team in her basketball skills, we want her to become more of a vocal leader to help us reach our full potential.”
The freshman class — point guard Brooke Daniels, guard Ashton Bell, guard Cam Hart, forward Shea Skouby, guard/forward Emma Padgett, and forward Abbey Green — didn’t lose a single game in middle school, giving the Eagles reason to be optimistic about the program’s future.
“I think we will be very athletic and able to guard and score from many different positions,” Talbert said. “In the last couple of years we have had 1-2 consistent scoring threats. I feel that we will have many people who are able to score and also many girls will get after it and guard hard.”
It would be the second consecutive season freshmen made immediate contributions to the varsity lineup, as guard Allison Findley and forward Hannah Maxwell were high on the team leaderboard in key statistical categories during their first seasons. Now sophomores, Maxwell was second in rebounds (4.6 per game), while Findley was third in scoring (5.7) and fourth in rebounds (3.8).
Junior forward Lauren Thomlinson (4.0 rebounds per game) is another strong defender.
“Lauren had the opportunity to play many minutes last season at the varsity level,” Talbert said. “She gained valuable experience. She is very physically strong and we expect her to be ready to play physical defense and rebound hard for us this season.”
Junior guard Savanna Luna also returns, while sophomore guard Taylor Green also has a chance to see some varsity time this season. Forward Bradi Weaver will be Fair Grove’s lone senior.
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“Being the only senior, we expect her to be a great leader for our young team,” Talbert said.
Talbert expects the Eagles to play an up-tempo, aggressive brand of basketball where the defense sets the tone. She also wants to see the Eagles cut down their turnovers after averaging just over 20 per game last year.
“I really think we need to win the turnover battle this year,” Talbert said. “We will be young at some of our positions, but I really think we will have to handle the ball at key possessions to find success.”
The Eagles will travel to Marshfield for a November 16 jamboree with the Blue Jays and Waynesville, then open the regular season on November 23 at Mountain Grove.
Their home opener will come during the 41st Annual Fair Grove Invitational Tournament, which begins on November 29, while their Mid-Lakes Conference schedule starts December 9 at Forsyth.
