Goessel girls prepare to build on past success

Front: Megan Guerrero, and Rebecca Sawyer. Back: Haley O'Neal, Madison Smith, and Stephany Meyer.The Goessel girls basketball team is gearing up to rebuild and reload this season, after losing five starters to graduation.

After finishing last season at 16-5 overall and 9-0 in league, the Bluebirds have some big shoes to fill.

Twelfth-year head coach Ryan Hoopes has a group that’s up for the challenge, however.

“We have a couple girls who have some solid varsity experience on successful teams,” he said. “That experience and leadership should help us improve quickly.”

Senior post player Stephany Meyer, 6-foot-0-inches, will be one of those leaders.

“Stephany is an outstanding athlete,” Hoopes noted. “She is usually the fastest girl on the court. She runs the floor and jumps very well. She has improved tremendously and will be a key contributor on both defense and offense this year for us.”

Madison Smith, 5-6 senior guard, will also be a player to watch.

“We will look to Madison to handle the ball a lot for us this year,” Hoopes said. “She has a nice shot. We will rely on her to be an outside threat for us.”

The Bluebirds will need to be ready for league competition from Rural Vista and Little River, as well.

“Keys for us this year will be finding players that can handle pressure and move the ball efficiently,” Hoopes said. “Defense should be a strength of ours. If we can find ways to put points on the board consistently, this could be a fun team to watch.”

Goessel fans will get that chance at home for the season opener against Inman on Friday, Nov. 30.

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