Metro East Lutheran girls basketball team appears set for solid season
EDWARDSVILLE – Metro East Lutheran's girls basketball team has a good mix of youth and veterans heading into the 2015-16 season.
How far the Knights go, however, may well depend on the kind of chemistry MEL can develop as the season goes on.
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“We've been looking good so far,” said Knight coach Rob Stock. “We've got a good combination of young players and returning players; how we do depends on how we mesh together as a team.”
The Knights, who finished 13-12 last year, found themselves on the the losing end against Valmeyer in last year's IHSA Class 1A Waterloo Gibaut Regional.
One thing the Knights will be is quick. “We'll be a quick team, but not a big team,” Stock said. “One thing we'll have to do is crash the boards pretty hard, work as a team to box out. Our team speed is pretty good, but we'll have to limit the chances the other teams get against us.”
Four seniors are expected to provide leadership for MEL; they are Hannah Landers, Karley Schuley, Audrey Paitz and Abby Yurchuck. “We'll be expecting the seniors to show leadership throughout the year,” Stock said. Newcomers to the team include freshmen Ellen Schulte and Sami Kastings as well as junior Suze Jezek.
The Knights' schedule will provide quite a few challenges throughout the year; they'll open the season with the Columbia Tipoff Classic this coming week, with MEL opening up against host Columbia at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The tournament also features Lebanon, Marquette Catholic, Triad, Greenvlle, Waterloo and the Columbia JV side.
As usual, the Prairie State Conference games against the Explorers, Nokomis and East Alton-Wood River, among others, will provide stiff tests as the season goes on. “Nokomis is going to be good and Marquette will be solid,” Stock said. “We'll also have a tough game right before the regional with Breese Mater Dei coming in; that will provide us a good test right before the postseason.”
While it may take a bit for the Knights to develop some chemistry, Stock is optimistic about his team's chances. “The potential is there,” Stock said. “I think we're a team that can put up 15-20 wins; it depends on how good they can play together as a team.
“We can go something like 8-10 deep. We just have to develop the chemistry, and I think they can.”
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