Ken Roberts
Sports Writer
Coach Jason Gorham hopes this will be a break out year for Sweet Home. After taking a young squad through a 1-21 season, he is certainly ready for it. He thinks the girls are also, which showed up in their summer season.
“We played 25 games this summer,” said Gorham. “That just helps a lot.”
He cut the varsity squad down to a basic eight players, though JV players, who practice with the varsity, may see some additional time. Gorham likes the team chemistry in the program from top to bottom. The freshman squad has provided the much-needed numbers of quality players. Gorham hopes that team chemistry will translate into wins.
“In the pre-season, we could be around .500 realistically,” said Gorham. “If we work hard and see some improvement, we have a legitimate chance at that.”
In conference play, it could be much tougher in what Gorham calls the best league in the state. The top teams from last year, North Marion and Cascade, return most of their players. Sweet Home has to target Stayton and Molalla, who are somewhat down from last year, and then take two wins from Sisters, the one team they beat last year.
To rein in some of the better teams, Gorham says it must start with limiting turnovers. They must get a good shot opportunity each time down the floor. Then, of course, the defense must be tougher.
“Last year we gave up 52 points per game,” said Gorham. “We have to get below that.”
The Huskies will try to keep the ball away from the inside threats and force teams to score from the outside and from certain places on the floor. If Sweet Home rebounds well, things should work out.
Maybe that .500 goal for pre-season might hold up all year long.
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The Huskies are much stronger at this spot and have more depth. Rachel Gaskey, in her fourth year in the program, made great strides last year. She rebounded and defended well last year and will be a better inside scoring threat this year with her improvement on fundamentals.
Mallory Carlson returns after spending last year as a foreign exchange student in Japan.
She has picked up the system and gives the Huskies some inside quickness and scoring punch. Sophomore Ashlee Gorgita will help the Huskies get up and down the floor quickly. She is an outstanding rebounder and working on fundamental techniques offensively.
Wings
Senior Kendra Greene is Sweet Home’s leading outside shooter who also likes to run in transition. With the depth at the post position, junior Chelsea Hackworth has moved to her natural position at the wing where she can penetrate and pull up for the jump shot. She will also be assigned to defend the other team’s leading scorer. Her quickness creates some opportunities for the Huskies to have mismatches in her favor.
Also an outstanding defender, senior Ashley Wall provides the Huskies with intensity and knowledge of the game. She does all the little things well, including rebounding even though she is 5’5″. Sophomore Nicki Aerni has great athletic ability and is able to create her own shot to help the Huskies score
Point Guard
Hannah Swanson with great quickness and ball handling skills will get the Huskies into their offense. Though just a sophomore, she knows the game and has worked hard at it her whole life.
She had some varsity experience last year and played on the summer league team. She has the ability to penetrate and finish.
Aerni, who is also confident with the ball and makes few mistakes, will be Swanson’s substitute.
Rebounding
According to Gorham, all the players like to mix it up so rebounding should be solid. However, it will continue to be a focus for every game.
Ball-handling
Overall, Gorham considers this something the team must continue to become more confident with, especially when handling full court pressure.
“There is no magical fix,” said Gorham. “You just have work at it to get better.”
To get better, Gorham wants to see his team see the floor better and read the defense.
Shooting
Gorham feels that the Huskies’ shooting technique has improved, but he needs to have his team trust their form and the confidence in their shot.
“We’re trying to instill that and get them to believe in themselves,” said Gorham.
Speed
The Huskies are much quicker this year with more endurance, even the same players who played last year. Gorham hopes their speed will allow them to get out and run more for some easy lay-ins.
“Last year it held us back,” said Gorham. “We didn’t get many baskets in transition.”
Leadership
The three seniors, Gaskey, Greene, and Carlson, will share this role. Though none are particularly vocal leaders, they are all multiple sport athletes who are quality people and good role models for the rest of the team.
Offense and Defense
The focus will continue to remain on solid half court offense and defense. That starts with good ball and player movement within the offense.
“The more you make the defense adjust and work,” said Gorham, “the better your opportunities for scoring.”
So they will start by emphasizing ball control with many screens in their motion offense, looking to take what the defense will give them. They will also use a 1-4 high post in given situations.
On defense, look for the Huskies to primarily use man to man defense in the half court, occasionally applying a 1-2-2 zone to confuse the opponent’s offense. Gorham is still evaluating whether the Huskies are ready to use full court pressure or not.
“Our half court defense is good, so there is no use giving up easy shots,” emphasized Gorham.
“The problem is getting the girls aggressive enough to press.”