The Olds High School (OHS) Spartans senior girls' basketball team faces some challenges as they prepare to host their home tournament next month.
During the Jan. 11 weekend, the Spartan boys' and girls' basketball teams will be hosting a tournament at the Ralph Klein Centre (RKC).
"That's big here. We will have about 20 teams here. So it's quite a big deal," Spartan girls head coach Brad Clapp says. "We'll really put RKC to work that weekend and it's great to see."
One of the big challenges the team has to overcome is the loss of Erin Ross, who is in her third year playing with the team.
She injured her ankle during a recent tournament and is now out for several weeks.
"She did some damage there, so she's wearing a boot and she will be out for some time. And she is our starting post," Clapp says.
"She gives us a lot of size and a lot of experience. She's a three-year senior and we counted on her to be a big part of our offence.
"So without Erin we now have to re-jiggle some things. We've got some new kids trying to pick up the slack and we have to look at playing a slightly different style of basketball. So that's tough."
Another challenge is the team's size.
Clapp says generally speaking, players on this year's edition of the Spartan senior girls' team are average height to slightly tall.
"They're fairly average, and we have a little bit of size, but compared to the teams that we'll be playing, they're small."
There are three rookies on the team this year: Aaralyn Longmuir and Avary Hickman along with Trinity Cenaiko. Cenaiko is a Grade 11 student who transferred to OHS. Therefore, Clapp counts her as a rookie on the team.
"The rookies are light, compared to some of the senior girls that they'll be up against," Clapp says.
"So they put in a great effort, but they're giving up — in some cases — 30 to 40 pounds. That's tough. It's tough inside. They have to just keep battling and they have to use speed."
He says the rookies have a lot to learn but they're coming along well.
"They're getting comfortable with their shooting and actual game shooting, versus just taking potshots," Clapp says.
Clapp says the aggressiveness of the game is something the seniors know and understand, but it can be eye-opening for the rookies.
"To come into that new is really hard. It generally takes a year just to find your comfort zone," he says.
"This is something new for these guys. Now that they've seen some game time, they realize what happens in a game and that you're not open and you only have a second to shoot and that you have to get open right now so that you can deliver quickly. So that's something that they're working on now."
There's been pressure too, because the team had to play nine games this month.
Clapp says that's a "crazy start" but it slows down in January, before picking up again in February.
The team is working on defence first.
Clapp says Olds Koinonia Christian School "schooled" the Spartans during a recent game.
"Their fundamentals are so strong and they absolutely showed some gaps in our defence," he says.
"They would run a fast break on us that was a little bit embarrassing and the girls kind of got a wake-up call on the speed at which this game can be played, so they have something to work towards.
"It's always defence first; five players together playing defence as a unit. That's our number 1 goal and then we turn it over to the offence probably from that," Clapp says.
'What we really want to do is create turnovers, steals and then take the offence off the defensive turnovers. That's kind of what we're all about."
Rebounds are another aspect of the game they'll work on.
"The rebounds are such a big, important part of the game. The key to rebounds is boxing out, is blocking your adversary and that really comes with experience," Clapp says.
"Anyone can stand under the basket and jump up and down, but it's another thing to have the footwork, the positioning. To take the body and just to be comfortable with that.
"It's easy to just chase the ball, but it's not very effective. Body awareness and blocking out often leads to your teammates collecting the loose ball. So that's key, but that's also where it's tough if you give up 30 pounds and four inches.
"So it becomes really important, that footwork; being in the right position. And again, the idea of team defence — five players together, working as a unit. And we just need to keep working on that. That's all we can do."
