Jessica McNichols takes over the Lockwood girls basketball team this year with the Lady Tigers coming off of a 17-win season that ended in a district semifinal loss.
Lockwood lost three seniors and its coach from last season’s team. Jessica McNichols takes over this season as head coach. She was an assistant at Reeds Spring each of the last two seasons.
She will have the luxury of a potent one-two punch in seniors Rylee Neill and Moriah Coose to help the transition this season. Neill was the team’s leading scorer at 16.8 points per game to go with 3.9 rebounds and 3.7 assists per contest. Coose was the team’s leading rebounder at 9.1 per game and also scored in double figures at 11.5 per game.
“Rylee and Moriah work well on and off the ball together,” McNichols said. “They have played together for many years and set each other and our team up for success. They are dedicated competitors and continually strive to push themselves, each other and their teammates to get better every day. I am really excited to see what they do this season.”
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The third and fourth-leading scorers graduated, so the Lady Tigers will need some new faces to step up in their wake.
Elizabeth Cossins and Hope Dunagan will be looked to inside to battle on the boards and pick up some scoring responsibilities this year. Heather Byrnes will be a key piece on the perimeter and need to knock down open shots while creating mismatches. Makenzie Purinton and Kaylee Kennon will create addition offense with strong defensive intensity.
All five of those players averaged between 1.6 and 4.0 points per game last season.
McKenzie Kennon, Tiffaney Clabaugh and Abriel Vaughn will also compete for varsity time, as the Lady Tigers look to keep their success going.
“We are taking this season one opponent at a time,” McNichols said. “We want to continue to have focused effort every day. It is our goal to show up ready to compete in every game against any opponent.”
Lockwood opens the season on Nov. 17 at home against Dadeville.
