Eagle Ridge Girls Basketball Preview

Coach: Kristen Martin, 1st year

Schedule:

Date Day of Week Opponent Location Time

November 4, 2014 Tuesday Northside Baptist School (Mayfield, Ky.) Away 5:30 p.m.

November 7, 2014 Friday Thomas Jefferson School (St. Louis) Home 6 p.m.

November 11, 2014 Tuesday Rivers of Life Christian School (Granite City, Ill.) Home 4 p.m.

November 14, 2014 Friday Bethel Christian Academy (S. Roxana, Ill.) Away 5 p.m.

November 18, 2014 Tuesday Community Christian Academy (Barnhart) Home 5 p.m.

November 21, 2014 Friday Crosspoint Christian School (Villa Ridge) Away 5 p.m.

November 25, 2014 Tuesday Tower Grove Christian School (St. Louis) Away 4 p.m.

December 2, 2014 Tuesday Agape Christian School (Marion, Ill.) Home 5 p.m.

December 5, 2014 Friday The Fulton School at St. Albans Home 6 p.m.

December 9, 2014 Tuesday Westwood Baptist Academy (Poplar Bluff) Away 5 p.m.

December 12, 2014 Friday Providence Classical Christian Academy (St. Louis) Home 6 p.m.

December 16, 2014 Tuesday Rivers of Life Christian School (Granite City, Ill.) Away 5 p.m.

December 19, 2014 Friday Liberty Christian Academy (Wright City) Home 5 p.m.

January 6, 2015 Tuesday Delta R-5 High School Away 6 p.m.

January 9, 2015 Friday Crosspoint Christian School (Villa Ridge) Home 5 p.m.

January 16, 2015 Friday Liberty Christian Academy (Wright City) Away 5 p.m.

January 20, 2015 Tuesday Providence Classical Christian Academy (St. Louis) Away 5 p.m.

January 23, 2015 Friday Westwood Baptist Academy (Poplar Bluff) Home 5 p.m.

January 27, 2015 Tuesday Community Christian Academy (Barnhart) Away 6:30 p.m.

January 30, 2015 Friday The Fulton School at St. Albans Away 6 p.m.

February 3, 2015 Tuesday Thomas Jefferson School (St. Louis) Away 5 p.m.

February 6, 2015 Friday Bethel Christian Academy (S. Roxana, Ill.) Home 5 p.m.

February 9-13, 2015 Monday-Friday Metro Athletic Conference (MAC) Tournament TBD TBA

February 17, 2015 Tuesday Northside Baptist School (Mayfield, Ky.) Home 5:30 p.m.

February 19-21, 2015 Thursday-Saturday MCSAA State Tournament Joplin TBA

Roster:

No. Player Year

1 Sarah Jackson 8

2 Hannah Petzoldt 11

3 Noel Friedrich 9

5 Jessie Gartman 9

10 Shaina Canady 12

33 Aubree Westerfield 11

35 Callie Hefner 11

44 Emily Jackson 11

Returning starters: Emily Jackson, Shaina Canady

Starters lost: Sierra Roth

Last year's record: 8-11

Postseason result: Lost in semifinal game of MCSAA state tournament

Last year's leaders:

Points: Emily Jackson (7.9 ppg)

Rebounds: Jessie Gartman (8.1 rpg)

Assists: Hannah Petzoldt (1.9 apg)

Team outlook

The Eagle Ridge girls basketball team will face the same scenario it has become accustomed to over the past few years.

For the third straight season, the Eagles will be led by a new coach. This time around it will be Kristen Martin.

Martin said she is still getting acquainted with her team three games into the season.

"I'm really still getting to know my girls' strengths and definitely their weaknesses," Martin said. "We have a lot of new players and just a couple returners. Just getting them to mesh and play well together is probably the biggest concern for us."

Senior Shaina Candy and junior Emily Jackson are the Eagles' only two returning starters.

Junior transfer Aubree Westerfield has already made an impact for the 3-0 Eagles.

"She's one of our biggest assets this year," Martin said. "She can hit an outside shot and play down low some, so it was a blessing to have her on our team this year."

Martin said she also will look to some of her younger players to fill big roles including freshmen Jessie Gartman and Noel Friedrich.

"They're really having to fill big shoes this year, which is something they've probably never had to do," Martin said. "I can definitely see that they're starting to come into their own, but there are always those growing pains."

Gartman and Friedrich will switch back and forth at the guard position, which was played by Sierra Roth, who graduated after last season.

Eagle Ridge will have just seven players on its roster.

"There are times when I'm sure they will get tired and be out of breathe, but that's why conditioning is so important for us," Martin said. "We're doing sprints every day and running the floor in preparation for that."

Being quick and in shape will also be vital for Martin's offense, which will be new for many of the girls.

"Our opponents will have to be quick if they are going to play with us and keep up with us," Martin said. "I like to run a fast offense and I like lots of movement. I'm working on getting them in really good shape this year, and them just being quick on their feet is a new level that I don't think they've been pushed to before. They've done really well with it so far, but there is more to improve on."

Martin hopes the Eagles can play a strong zone defense, despite having a small team.

"We'll do man occasionally, but since we have such a small team we want to keep it simple and not get them too tired," Martin said. "Usually we're sticking to a zone and if we need it we'll switch to a man."

Looking back

Eagle Ridge finished last season with an 8-11 record after losing in a semifinal at the Missouri Christian Schools Athletic Association state tournament.

Martin said the Eagles are ready to put that behind them and start fresh.

"I'm not really concerned about what happened last year and I don't think they should be either," Martin said. "I think they've put that behind them and are ready to get back to winning. That's going to take a lot of work, but I think these girls are really buying into what I'm trying to show them and have that desire to win."

-- Ben Striker