Mengel leads in team’s turnaround.
After a successful 2014 season, the Exeter Township Senior High School girls’ basketball team is ready to make their mark in 2015. Led by new head coach Charles Truckermiller and senior Abby Mengel, the team is looking forward to good competition this season.
“Last year we made out better than we thought we would,” said Mengel. “Wemade it to the county and district playoffs, and we split our games with Governor Mifflin, 2-2. This year we have the same expectations. We lost our leading scorer, but we all have to step up and I think we can make it to counties and districts, and maybe even further this year.”
The team’s expectations for the year will not change because the team has a new head coach.
“Coach Truck’s expectations are as high, if not higher, than ours,” said Mengel. “He knows he can push us to our full capability, and a spot in the counties and districts are what I’m aiming for, and he could be aiming even higher.”
The way that Mengel and her teammates are looking to accomplishing those goals are really simple.
“We just have to be able to work together and execute plays,” Mengel said. “In our scrimmages we’ve had, we’ve had success pushing the ball up the floor, which is what Coach Truck wants us to do. Bottom line, we need to execute and play defense. That’s how we’ll score.”
Mengel’s goal for herself this season is to be a leader on the team. She said, “I want to show the girls that I’ll be there for them on and off the court, pushing them, not only being able to score, but assist and do anything I can to make the team successful.”
The senior noted that she felt a little pressure to perform this year at the beginning. Mengel commented, “Once I got to know Coach Truck and we got the team back together I was a little more at ease. Ali Snyder is with me yet, and we have Cachet (Greene) down low, and Samantha Snyder, so I’m more at ease with those girls around me.”
Mengel also noted her approach to the season this year will be a little different with this being her senior year.
“I just have to come at it with full force and not slow down,” said Mengel. “I need to keep pushing to get where I and the team want to be. I try not to
think about it, and when I’m out there on the floor, I just let it go and focus on what needs to be done.”
Mengel is one of four returning starters, and she said with that, the team will be expected to repeat their performance of the past two seasons. Mengel noted, “Losing Jen Eck was a big deal, but that just means that the four of us have to step up. The goals and expectations are there for us, and we know what we have to do to continue to be a successful program.
“The younger girls will also be at ease knowing that they have the four of us to look to, and they know they can come to us for anything they may need. My expectations for the four of us are to keep our program playing at the highest level possible.”
Mengel noted that the team’s recent turnaround comes down to coaching style. She said, “We had Coach ( Ted) Snyder and now we have Coach Truck. They have the same mentality, in which they want us to push the ball, execute and play good defense. That’s made us realize that we can go out there and compete with any team. We have to go out and push every time.”
The seniors are trying to help the coaches along by helping with the team’s mental approach to the game. It can be a tough thing to do with a program that had struggled for many years like the Exeter girls basketball program. After a successful season last year, that will hopefully put the teamin the right mindset this year.
“I think I’ve helped a little with changing the team’s attitude and the way we play,” said Mengel. “We had a negative mindset, and there may have been a time where we thought we couldn’t compete with anybody. Coach Snyder started us down the road of a positive mindset, and Coach Truck has continued that trend in the short time he’s been here. Ever since, we were able to come out and do what we needed to do. Having a positive mindset makes us have a better outcome on the court.”
Moving forward, Mengel said that the underclassmen will be able to see how the upperclassmen perform, and hopefully it will mean continued success for the program for many years to come. The team in the present knows what’s expected and what’s to be done, and that message will be spread to all the future girls’ squads.
“Our positive trend of play will continue simply by going out on the floor and playing the way we know how,” said Mengel. “Coach Truck says we don’t have a definite starting five right now because he will put five girls on the court until he knows who’ll compete. He’s going to put the girls who deserve to be out there on the floor. You have to earn your spot and show you can compete, and it’ll be a tough decision for him. That goes to show that we’re all putting in the work because we all want to be out there.”
Mengel said the one thing she can take away from this season when all is said and done is a positive attitude.
“With all the things we’ve gone through as a team, these past two years have been successful for us, and we’ve stuck it out, and I hope it continues for the program,” she said. “Being positive was all a part of it, and I’m sure that will be the trend heading into the future.”