Meet the Lady Bombers of Basketball - By Camryn Reynolds
Richland Bomber Girls Basketball Season has officially begun. This season is a season of rebuilding, as at the end of last season, the team lost six seniors, three of whom were starters. This was a significant loss because it changed the whole team dynamic, as they will have to adjust to new players taking on new roles. The team is very excited about this season because it entails many new goals, new coaches, new players, and new excitement. I got to speak to three returning seniors, Maya Rowe, Kaya Chang, Jazmyn Soldat, and Coach Westerfield, about all the recent changes this season.
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| Photo: RHS Yearbook |
I talked to Coach Westerfield after the first day of tryouts to see what her thoughts were about this season, and this is what she had to say: "We have a couple of new prospects and some new freshmen that we have been looking at. We also have some returns stepping into new roles on the court, and I think we will be solid at every position. For our returners, we have Kylee Kukes stepping in on point, Mackenzie Schulz stepping in on the inside and has lots of muscle, Kaya Chang going in on guard and is very good at defensive, Jazmyn Soldat and Ryanne Stottlemyre are good shooters, and Maya Role is going to be stepping up more offensively. I was very pleased with the summer turnout and how competitive we will be."
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| Photo: RHS Yearbook |
Westerfield has lots of new ideas and goals for this team and is excited about the rebuild of the season. New coaches will also be coming in to help Westerfield this season. There is Coach P, who was helping out with the boys' basketball program last year, and he is assisting with conditioning and the guards and has a lot of fresh ideas. There is also a new C-Team coach, Coach M. She is a teacher from Libby, has played basketball in the past, and is bringing in some good fundamentals for the team. The last new Coach is Kirk Westerfield. He has refereed in the past and understands the game very well, and people think he will be a good addition.
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| Photo: RHS Yearbook |
I also wanted to get a different perspective on the new season from the players, mainly some of the returning seniors, to see how they think the team will adjust to the loss of the players. Maya Rowe, a senior forward, said, "I'm excited for this season because it is my senior one. I think we are going to have a solid team. We have lots of new potential and some good freshmen coming in. The initial loss will be hard for us, but we will grow into it, and I think it will push us together because we have a strong team unity."
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| Photo: RHS Yearbook |
The next player I spoke to was Kaya Chang, a senior guard; "I am excited about this season; it is my last as a senior, and I want to make it memorable and enjoyable. I've been playing with some of these girls since the beginning, and I feel we need to go out with a bang to have closure. We've got some new players who are meshing well, chemistry-wise, with our team; I'm excited to see how the season plays out with our strengths together."
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| Photo: RHS Yearbook |
The last player I spoke to was Jazmyn Soldat, senior guard; "It looks like it will be a competitive season in the MCC. We aim to compete in every game, work hard no matter the score, and bring our best. This year, we've got some new, talented freshmen with much potential ready to play. It will be a busy season, and we must be ready for everything. I'm excited to see what this team can do and our dynamic on the court."
Overall, the loss of the players saddens the team, but they are ready to have the opportunity to rebuild their team and have a great season. This will be a tough season as the MCC is pretty strong, and the team will have some intense competition. They have finished tryouts and have their official varsity roster, which they are very pleased with. This season, there are four returning seniors, two juniors, and one sophomore. We also have the Head Coach Amy Westerfield returning. For two of the returners, this is the first full year on varsity, as they were swingers last year, and this year, there are three entirely new players, two of whom are freshmen, and the other is a sophomore.
Official Varsity Roster:
