Girls basketball team kicks it into high gear
January 14, 2020
Senior Captain Grace Cote prepares to shoot free throws. The team beat Woodbury 97-69 Dec. 6.
The girls basketball team is off to a hot start to their season. To begin the year 9-3 is a strong accomplishment. The team got second in the state championships last year and they begin another run. Although the team has a plethora of returning talent, their leading scorer Sara Scalia graduated last season. Nevertheless, the team has adjusted well in Scalia’s absence.
Senior captain Grace Cote not only succeeds in her play, but also when she is not on the floor she still has an impact on the game. Having this presence from a returning senior sets a precedent for how the team plays.
“I bring shooting and communication to the floor. I talk to my team to tell them where they should be. When I’m off the floor I can cheer on the team,” Cote said.
Coach Willie Taylor has coached the team for six years and has found a lot of success in those years. Taylor left St. Paul Central in 2014 to pursue college coaching opportunities, but chose the job at Stillwater. Taylor led the team to a state birth last year and the team was awarded second place on the backs of leading scorer Scalia and junior Alexis Pratt.
“I bring a really good energy. I always think it’s important no matter what’s going on in the court, no matter how I’m playing personally or how the game is going, just always keeping a positive mindset.
— Senior Captain Mary Fultz
“Alexis Pratt was one of the top players in the state last year and she has been even better this year than last year. She’s just a dynamic player that can make plays on offense and defense, all over the court,” Taylor said.
A returning player has benefited the first year players, it gives them a spark to play even better. Fultz has stepped into a leadership role and thrived. Fultz makes sure the team always focuses on the game when on the bench and leads the team on the court as well. Having such high quality captains speaks volume to the team’s success so far this year.
“Having played since kindergarten in the Stillwater program it’s really cool to be a captain and just kind of have that like honor of getting to represent the team. It’s also really cool to be looked at as a leader and it’s really fun to help all the younger girls. Just being the leader of the team with the other seniors is really fulfilling,” Fultz said.
The preseason poll ranked the team as sixth in the state. This ranking has forced some teams to not schedule games against SAHS. Cote believes it has put a target on the team’s back. Nevertheless the team has had a strong outing in the first 10 games this season and Taylor has high expectations for the team to make it back to state.
“My expectation is to keep improving. I think right now we’re are ranked fifth and our schedules really tough so we might lose a game or two, but our goal is to make it back to state. I expect us to be in the state tournament again,” Taylor said.
Lucas Polucha • Feb 6, 2020 at 1:27 am
I like the style and personality in the lead, it draws you in. However, you seem to hint at some potentially interesting things, only to not deliver. An example of this is your background on Coach Taylor, where you mention his career as a coach but don’t go in depth. The article is also a bit off with the pacing/sentence structure. I have some moments questioning why there’s a comma, or finding a sentence that simply spews basic information, instead of adding to the story.
Austin Fierro • Feb 5, 2020 at 10:45 pm
This article did well by adding some statistics to back up the things that were said. Very well written and strong quotes.
Julia Bennett • Feb 5, 2020 at 9:43 pm
I liked the inclusion of statistics from this year’s season to highlight their success so far. The people you chose to interview were great sources as captains and added a lot to the story. I also loved the headline, it was attention grabbing and made me want to read more!
Mia Lucido • Feb 5, 2020 at 7:34 pm
I really like this article in that it shows the passion the team has, especially the upperclassmen. By reading this you can tell their coach has high expectations and really believes in this team.
Elaina Mankowski • Feb 4, 2020 at 8:39 am
I thought the quotes were very strong in supporting your facts about girls on the team. I also enjoyed having the statistics to back up the fact that the team is continuing to do well.
Ava Hoelzel • Jan 30, 2020 at 3:11 pm
I like how you displayed the information. I enjoyed how there was information about the players individually and the team as a whole. I also liked how there was the perspective of the coach and the players on the team.
Natalie Williams • Jan 24, 2020 at 8:22 am
I really enjoyed reading this story. Not only did it provide strong facts and statistics, but it also showed readers the drive this team has through its quotes. The story had a tone of hopefulness and determination, which really improved the story’s impact on readers. Overall, this article was very strong and keeps readers attention until the end.