Youth is a pro and con for the Lady Little Johns

The Danville Lady Little Johns are young, which is a drawback, but they’re experienced in that youth, assistant coach Deanna Spears said. The team, coming off a 13-14 season, is led for the second year by RJ Smith. Smith will also be assisted by Dusty Wright. Returning starters are 10th-graders Maddie Stanley, who averaged 15.9 points, 2.7 steals and 8.2 rebounds per game and 70 percent from the free-throw line; Hally Rial, who averaged 9.8 points, 1.5 steals and 5.8 rebounds per game and 65 percent from the free-throw line; and Alexis Minnie, who averaged 5.7 points, 1.3 steals and 3.3 rebounds per game. The assistant coach named Maddie Stanley and her cousin, ninth-grader Lydia Stanley, as the team’s best inside players. Maddie Stanley is “an experienced player; she is able to transition easily from the outside to the inside,” Spears said. Lydia Stanley “is able to transition easily from the outside to the inside. They are both a double threat.” On the perimeter, the coaches will look to Rial, who transitions easily from the inside out. She’s “a double threat who can hit the 3 ball,” and Minnie, “who has good ball-handling and shooting skills,” Spears said. Being young is both a strength and a weakness, she said. “We should exceed [last season] in the fact that we are more experienced this year,” Spears said. “We started four freshmen last year, so they have gained a lot of knowledge for the game. The whole team has put in hard work this summer, and [the players] hold themselves to a high standard for the season.” Games to watch include Bigelow on Nov. 11, which should be intense and fun for the fans, she said. “They knocked us out of the regional tournament last year, and our girls will be out for their revenge,” Spears said. However, as far as toughest opponents, Spears also named Cossatot River on Feb. 1, along with Bigelow. “Both teams run a very uptempo-paced game. Bigelow … is expected to have everyone back this year,” she said. Reflecting on her team’s chances this year, Spears is calmly confident. “We are still a pretty young team with only having two seniors, but I expect to come out and compete in a lot of games this year,” the coach said.