New coach brings confidence to girls squad
November 25, 2009
By Tara Ballenger
Mount Si’s Sarah McDonald (20) and Emily Feree (10) battle for a rebound in a game last year against Sammamish. File
Though this season will be Megan Botulinski’s first coaching the Mount Si girls basketball team, she said she is confident in the group of girls she has inherited.The team came in just shy of .500 last year under Dirk Hansen, winning 11 and losing 13. Botulinski plans to play up the players’ strengths — teamwork and quickness — while pumping up defense to improve the numbers this year.
Team cohesion is a major asset for the Wildcats, especially since there is a new coach. Only four players have graduated since last season, and the team has four seniors for this one.
“I have a big returning group,” Botulinski said. “We didn’t lose that many seniors.”
Guards Emily Feree and Karly Thompson, as well as posts Allysa McLauchlin and Tracy Nelson, are the four team captains and returning seniors. McLauchlin is returning after a two-year hiatus caused by a shoulder injury, Botulinski said.
One of the seniors the team lost, however, was the Wildcats’ top scorer, so Botulinski will be looking for another girl to fill those shoes.
She said she is excited about the potential she sees in the group, both with the returning girls and the overall team chemistry.
“They’re a great group of girls. They’re really positive and motivated while they practice,” Botulinski said. “They are focusing on the team and the importance of unity.”
She is having each girl take a turn to bring and read an inspirational quote before practice. The most recent one was a nugget from Phil Jackson brought in by junior Jori Braun: “Good teams become great ones when the members trust each other enough to surrender the ‘me’ for the ‘we.’”
Botulinski said her junior class — Kassidy Maddux, Hailey Eddings and Stevie Riley — is “scrappy” and has the speed to make up for the team’s lack of considerable height.
“I have three guards that are very quick,” Botulinski said. “They have those quick-twitch muscles and they are great defensively, too.”
This season’s team has two underclassmen, freshman Molly Sellers and sophomore Sarah McDonald.
“Molly is a very poised player. Even though she’s young, she’s very humble and has a lot of skills,” Botulinski said. “And Sarah is coming off a really great volleyball season, so she’s bringing a lot of momentum onto the court already.”
The Wildcats will be looking out for Mercer Island and Liberty as key competitors.
“Hopefully, we will be scouting them and seeing what we need to do to prepare for them,” Botulinski said. “We need to develop good defensive strategies all around and then apply those to the game.”
The team’s first game is Dec. 4 against Eastlake in Sammamish. Until then, Botulinski said her team will continue to work on their weaknesses and improve their strengths.
“We will just be making sure that we are, as a team, on the same page — coaches and players,” she said. “Plus, we can always improve on our rebounding.”
Tara Ballengar: 392-6434 ext. 248 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com. Comment at www.snovalleystar.com.
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