By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Nixa girls basketball enjoyed another successful campaign last season in head coach Jenny Talbert’s second season at the helm.
The Eagles compiled a 25-4 record, falling to Kickapoo in the district title match.
“Last season we had a tremendous year,” Talbert said. “We unfortunately lost to Kickapoo in the district championship game, but our players gained such great experience by putting ourselves in championship situations, and I really think that will help us moving forward this season.”
A pair of talented seniors return to lead Nixa this season in Taylor Wood and Gwen Kubik.
Wood, a 5-foot-11 senior all-conference and all-district honoree, averaged 11.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 steals per contest last season.
“Taylor was a steady impact player for us last season,” Talbert said. “She can score in bunches, and her length and athleticism make her a tremendous defender. She was one of our go-to players last season and we expect her to take on an even bigger role this season. She can score in a variety of ways, and we plan to use all of her versatility this season on both ends of the floor. She is poised to have a great senior year, and we expect her to be one of our main leaders and go to players.”
Kubik, a 6-foot-1 senior, recorded 6 points and 6.3 rebounds per game as a junior.
“Gwen is a tremendous impact player in the lane,” Talbert said. “Can score inside and has worked on her range so she can knock down shots outside the lane. Great post defender. Is a tremendous volleyball player as well and has great shot blocking ability. She is also one of the best post passers I’ve ever coached. She blocked 54 shots last season. We think she will really make her senior year her best year yet. Plan on her being a leader for us and being one of our go-to players.”
Talbert also expects a host of varsity newcomers to step in and compete for playing time this season in 5-foot-6 senior Esther Dancey, 6-foot senior Hannah Middleton, 5-foot-6 junior Jordan Phillips, 5-foot-11 sophomore Cora Kubik, 6-foot sophomore Katie Bryant and 5-foot-11 junior Claire Clark.
”I’m excited to see the girls compete at practice and work to get playing time at the varsity level,” Talbert said. “We don’t have a ton of experience returning so we are excited to see who steps up this season to fill some of the roles.”
While Nixa will be relatively inexperienced heading into the varsity season, Talbert’s expectations remain the same.
“We will be different this season since we did lose a lot of varsity experience; however, we have players that are ready to work and compete for varsity time,” Talbert said. “We graduated our leading scorer and our third leading scorer from last season; however, we know that Taylor and Gwen are ready to step up and take on much larger roles their senior season and be leaders to our new varsity players. I also have confidence that our newcomers will adjust to varsity basketball quickly so that our team will be playing our best basketball at the end of the season.”
Following a Nov. 19 home jamboree, Nixa opens its season at home Nov. 24 against Columbia Hickman.
