If the first game is any indication, the Windsor girls basketball team is trending in the right direction.
For the first time since 2014, the Windsor girls basketball team beat the Herculaneum Blackcats.
Junior Ashley Perkins, who was out with an injury, said, “It was definitely a big win for us. The team worked so hard.”
Last season, the Owls finished the season 11-14. The top four scorers from that team have since graduated. However, the team is hopeful that they will see improvements this season.
“We are hoping to improve on our season last year. We are bringing some new faces to the varsity level and think we have the pieces that can make us more successful,” head coach Kim Schmidt.
In the first game against Herculaneum, senior Adrianna Mancuso led the way with 25 points. Junior Sara Wieberg chipped in with seven points and senior Madison Williams scored 6. Riley Fendler led the team with 7 rebounds. The Owls also expect freshmen Brooklyn Johnson to play a key role for the team this season.
“This year we are losing a lot of height but we are gaining speed and we are gaining better shooters also. We learned from the jamboree that height doesn’t matter as much because we still got the rebounds,” Fendler said.
The team is returning five seniors: Mancuso, Maggie Bunton, Fendler, Genna Turnbough and Williams.
Schmidt said, “Their experience should help move us in the right direction.”
With so many new starters this season, the team still expects to play well.
“I think the season will go better than (most) expect,” Fendler said, “I think the main leaders will be the seniors just because we have been there the longest and we know the plays.”
Juniors Avari LaPlant and Averi Davis, along with sophomore Lyla Bieser, will also play important roles for the team this season.
The Owls begin play in the Southside Tournament at 5pm today against Bayless at Affton.
With so many fresh faces seeing significant varsity action for the first time, the team expects to be at its best by the end of the season.
“We would like to put ourselves in a position to compete in the conference and be playing our best basketball when it counts at the end of the season,” Schmidt said.
