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| High looking for answers during summer ball |
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7/12/2019
By Dan Manley
Advocate Sports Editor
Plenty of questions and a few answers.
That’s where new Montgomery County girls’ basketball coach Dustin High finds himself as the “dead period” comes to an end and the Lady Indians begin working out again.
High is as optimistic as possible as he takes over a program that has produced few wins over the last three seasons and has a roster filled with young players.
The question in everyone’s mind right now is “how long?” and “can?” the MCHS program get back to its place of prominence in the 10th Region and in statewide circles after going through a period where they won seven titles in eight years earlier in this century.
One question High doesn’t have to deal with is where Kennon Owens fits into the picture. The junior wing player has apparently transferred to Scott County for the 2019-2020 school year.
“We’ll certainly miss her experience,” High said. “She has a tremendous amount of potential and certainly would have played a key role for us.
“More than anything it just means we’ll be even younger than before.”
The Lady Indians may well have been looking at a starting lineup that would have included two juniors in Owens and center Savannah Parker, a freshman in Shae Harris and two eighth-graders in Hayden Barrier and Allie Dillon.
Owens’ departure opens up a spot that could well be filled by freshman Maddie Zeek, although it’s a little bit early to be talking about starting lineups as High works his way through trying to fit the pieces together.
There are some players who weren’t on the roster last season who are working out with the team this summer. Adrienne Tuttle, Kayhlan Kerns and Rebecca Burns are three of those who will battle for playing time.
Senior guard Bailey Cobb will be back and lend support in the backcourt along with freshman Ella Routt. Emily Zink is an undersized post player who has a great understanding of the game and will certainly add some depth.
“Overall, things have gone pretty well thus far,” High said of the summer games the Lady Indians have been involved in prior to the “dead period.”
Parker is both a nice player to have returning while also raising some questions.
An honorable mention selection in the 10th Region last year, Parker gives the Lady Indians a player who can be a major force in the paint both on offense and defense.
The question will be her stamina and just how many minutes a game she’ll be involved.
“We’ve seen her be really dominant at times this summer,” High said. “I’ve been impressed with the way she can run the floor, I just hope we can see that on a consistent basis.”
With so many young players on the roster, High knows there can be some surprises in store this season.
“We’ll be hoping that some of these girls have breakout seasons where the experiences they’ve already had along with them being a year older combine for a major step forward in their games. If we can get several of those then we’ll have a chance to surprise some people.”
Freshman Shae Harris is one of those players.
“How good can Shae Harris be at this game?” High questioned. “I’d say simply as good as she wants to be. She’s still learning about the game and about the things she can do, but this is one time where saying the sky is the limit isn’t an exaggeration.”
There are also some other names who may not be high on the list right now but could be before the season is over.
“There are players that we’re not naming right now that, in the back of my mind, could easily be factors for us before the season is over,” he added.
However, High is trying to keep everything in perspective.
“We’ve got a long way to go, that would be obvious to anyone,” he said. “But we’ve got girls that have some good basic skills and the challenge is to try and put everything together in a team game.”
High said that schedule appears to be complete and that he should be ready to release an official lineup of games in the next few weeks.
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