With the temperatures dwindling down below freezing in Missouri, it is officially “steal your boyfriend’s hoodie season” at Windsor. And the girls basketball team hopes to steal a few more wins this winter as well.

The girls in brown and gold come off a tough season last year in which they were able to come out on top in just three of their matchups. However, both of the team’s two top scorers from a year ago are returning this year, so the Owls hope to make some strides in the right direction this year.

A few aspects considered to be strengths of the team are their youth and their speed. Their youth is evident in the fact that out of the 10 players the team is currently carrying on their roster, four of them are underclassmen.

“We are a lot younger this year. And I think we bring a little enthusiasm and excitement and hopefully some sparks defensively where we struggled last year,” head girls coach Kim Schmidt said.

The team’s coach added that there were also some other benefits to having so many young competitors.

“They keep everyone on their toes,” Schmidt said. “And they bring the competition as far as trying to steal spots, which helps everyone to work harder.”

Returning player and now senior Madi Miller also spoke praises over the youth of the team.

“We have some sophomores who are ready to go and are really fast,” Miller said.

But even with the benefits of youth on the team, the experience that the seniors have to offer is a big factor as well. The team has five returning seniors from last year, and seniors Maddy Lynch and Kaitlin Lewis have an additional year of varsity experience on top of that.

The team is following up a loss on opening night, but not one to be all too discouraged by as the Herculaneum Blackcats finished up last season with a record of 22-4.  The team plays next against Lindbergh 6:30 pm today at Mehlville in the Southside Classic. The team is hopeful that they can get a couple of wins out of the tournament this year.

“It will be a good time to see if we can get some chemistry between the returners and the younger girls,” Schmidt said.