By Chris Parker
Exeter girls basketball went 12-15 last season posting the most wins for the program since winning 14 in 2018-19.
“We had a great season last year, but I believe we can be even better this year if we put in the work,” Young said. “I feel like we can pick any five players on the floor and they can all play any position, no one is really tied to just being able to play one position.”
Four starters return from last year led by senior Shea Hilburn. The forward earned unanimous First-Team All-Ozark 7 honors. She has already eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for her career and is working towards the 1,500-point milestone.
Honesty Hall (senior shooting guard), Beatriz Alcaraz (junior point guard) and Jaylee Hawkins (junior shooting guard) are the other three returning starters.
Sophomores Breely Willis (shooting guard) and Jaycee Lile (forward) earned letters as freshmen and return.
“(We have) four returning starters that have played together for the last three years,” Exeter head coach Jennifer White said. “They are all four very quick, and they all work very well together.”
Freshmen Bobbi Hall and Madison Younger both will see varsity minutes in their first high school seasons. Junior Kiarah Lokot returns after having to miss last season due to health reasons.
The focus for Exeter in the early going will be to improve on the defensive end.
“We struggled defensively last season,” Young said. “That is the most important thing we need to work on early in the season. I think we may struggle with rebounding more than we did last year. Our freshman and one sophomore are going to have to step up and fill the gap early on.”
Exeter opens the season at East Newton on Nov. 24.
“Our ultimate goal is a district championship of course because we came up short last year, but I feel like a successful season for us will be learning to compete as a team, and learning to trust each other no matter which five players are on the floor,” Young said. “We lack a lot of confidence on the offensive end.”
