With no seniors on the roster, and only two juniors, Lincoln Academy girls’ basketball teams fields one of the youngest teams in the state this season.
“We could be the youngest team in the state,” returning coach Conrad Lewis said. “But that’s not all bad. They are a great group of kids; they hustle and they love to play ball. They do everything a coach asks them to do. They are fun to work with.”
“We are working on improvement in every practice and every game. We may surprise a few people. The big word is improvement – that’s all you can ask of kids,” Lewis said.
“We’ve got to have patience, look for improvement and be positive,” Lewis added of his veteran coaching staff, including JV coach Donovan York and volunteer assistant Kevin Feltis. “We’re all LA grads,” Lewis said.
“We need the fans to be positive and cheer hard. We are preparing for the future, but not giving up the present,” Lewis said.
The numbers are way down again this year, but Lewis is optimistic about the future of the program with solid numbers coming up through the junior high programs.
The Lady Eagles lost six seniors from a team that went 6-12 last season. Juniors on the team include veteran Merissa Look, who was the third leading scorer last season, and Kelsey Peaslee who saw limited varsity action last year.
Sophomores are Rachel Hughes, Kayla Brackett, Jenn Genthner and Danielle Pierce. The bulk of the team are from the freshman class, including Taylor Oliver, Leslie Sandefur, Danielle Pinkham, Bailey Pendleton (currently injured), and swing players Sophia Carbonneau and Maria Naylor. Other players may swing up to varsity, based on how well they play during the JV game.