Lady Beavers relying on young group against state champs
The defending 2017-2018 4A state champs, Central Arkansas Christian, have dropped down into Glen Rose’s conference, 3A-5, and head coach Roy Ray said he knows CAC will be his team’s toughest opponent this season. However, the Lady Beavers have proven themselves a worthy match for CAC by advancing to the regional tournament four years straight under Ray’s coaching. “Last year, we finished third in conference and advanced to the regional tournament for four straight years,” Ray said. “We will need to make the district finals to help improve our chances of advancing to the state tournament this season.” Returning players sophomore Love Doddridge, with 9.7 points and 3.4 rebounds per game last year, and senior Kasey Griffin, with 2.2 points and 3.1 assists per game, will help the team’s chances for advancement, the coach said. Also, junior Molly Padgett and sophomore Kamryn Raper will assist from the inside, along with Doddridge stepping up. The Lady Beavers are looking to their younger players to be a solid force this season. Assisting from the outside will be Griffith, junior Rachel LeQuieu, sophomore Emma McJunkins and sophomore Maddi Carver. The team looks to improve on its 14-16 record from last season. Overall, coach Ray’s five-year career record is 156-137. “With two seniors on the team, we will depend heavily on the younger groups,” Ray said. “Look for us to improve every game going into conference play in December.” This improvement comes from the team’s ability to go 10 players deep this season with “strong juniors and sophomores” rising to the front to push the team, Ray said. Having lost most of the seniors, Ray said, this younger team is looking to gain strength through its consistent hard work and teamwork to unify the Lady Beavers and keep their eyes on the prize — the state tournament.