Following a 4-20 season last year, the Lady Dogs were excited to get to take the court again to prove that they had been working hard all off-season to improve.
The Bulldogs graduated a lot of seniors from last year’s team but gained a lot of sophomores that will play a key role in the team’s success this year. Tracie Adams will be at the helm of the Sr girls this year as she moved up from her Junior high position.
To begin the season, the Dogs faced off against the Indians of Caddo Hills who had already played 7 games. The Bulldogs started Senior Hailey Stidman, Senior Molly Richmond, Senior Bianca Hinojosa, Sophomore Reagan Adams, and Sophomore Daileigh Hunt.
The Dogs performed well in the season opener, especially against a team coming in that was 6-1. They forced the Indians into a bunch of turnovers and were able to capitalize in transition. The Indians went home with the second loss of the season with the final score being 39-36.
The Dogs then would play back-to-back nights against the Fountain Lake Cobras and the Mansfield Tigers. The Cobras full-court pressed the Dogs all night long and caused lots of turnovers, but the Dogs hung in there and played hard. The Dogs got within one point after Bianca Hinojosa splashed a 3 pointer, but after Adams and Hunt fouled out the Dogs just could not pull it out. The final score was 35-40 in the Cobras favor. Hinojosa led the scoring for the dogs with 12 points and Hailey Stidman added 9. The Dogs would travel to Mansfield the following night to play in energy-filled Tiger Stadium.
The toll of the previous night’s game played a factor as the Dogs looked exhausted from the tip. There were some bright spots though for Senior Hailey Stidman as she was able to score 12 points. Waldron would fall to the Tigers as the final score was 25-47.
Coach Tracie Adams had this to say about the Dogs 1-2 start to the season. “I have been really excited and pleased with our defense. This team is a 32 min never-give-up bunch of girls. We may not be the most talented on the floor but you won’t outwork us. Offensively we are still working out the kinks and learning to read each other. Being able to finish on simple shots is the key. These girls have come together and become a team; they understand the team is bigger than any one individual.”
The Senior High Girls will take on the Ozark Hillbillies on Monday, November 15 at the WAC. JV girls will begin to play at 5:00 followed by JV boys and then Sr girls followed by Sr boys
