New coach still has a lot of unknowns

Megan Tutor has a lot of unknowns as she heads into her first year as head coach for the Harmony Grove Lady Cardinals. But she is not too concerned. “We are beginning the year with a group of experienced girls,” Tutor said. “They struggled the past couple of years, but they have worked very hard in the offseason and are showing some promising signs of a great season.” Although Tutor started in June, she has not seen her entire squad in action, as most of her players are still in volleyball. “We have about six who are actually in the gym practicing,” she said. Of those six, only two — junior Kylie Moore and junior Raven Newton — will start. “Kylie can score from anywhere she is at,” Tutor said. “Raven can handle the ball well, and she’s a really great defender.” Tutor has spent the past two seasons at Shirley and was at Sacred Heart for two years before that. “I was really happy where I was at,” Tutor said. “But I had some people tell me about this job opening and that I should check it out. “So I talked to the athletic director, and that’s kind of where it started.” Tutor replaces Chris Smith, who left for Arkansas Baptist in Little Rock. “We have several returning starters and players who received a lot of playing time last year,” Tutor said. “We hope that our experience will be one of our strengths going into this season. “We have several guards who shoot outside well, while we also have a couple girls who can score inside.” Harmony Grove finished 7-12 last season and returns three starters in senior Leighton Withers, Moore and Newton. “Leighton is our post,” Tutor said. “She is kind of our inside girl.” Sophomore Kaitlyn Fletcher will see some playing time, but Tutor said she is not sure how Fletcher will handle playing at the senior high level. “I feel like she is bringing a lot to our team,” Tutor said. “We looked pretty good at team camps. I’m just not sure how that will transfer over.” Tutor said the biggest difference fans can expect from a team under her leadership is the pace of the game. “We may run at a faster pace than what they have seen in the past,” she said. She also said she prefers to run man coverage as much as possible. “But it will all depend on our personnel,” Tutor said. “We will have to mix it up and run some zone as well.” Right now, the biggest goal for the Lady Cardinals is to make it to the state tournament. “With more experience, we hope to exceed the previous year by making the regional tournament and into the state tournament,” Tutor said. “We also just want to show improvement game by game. “Every game, we are trying to get better.” The Lady Cardinals will open the season Nov. 9 at Bauxite.