By Denise Tucker (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
The Waynesville Lady Tigers will field a young squad, in terms of varsity experience, in the 2021-22 season and will need to find a way to fill the big shoes left by Naudia Evans.
The Lady Tigers wrapped up the 2020-21 season with 12-12 overall record, 3-5 in the Ozark Conference, falling in the first round of the Class 6 District 10 tournament to Springfield Central.
Gone from that squad are five varsity players in Naudia Evans, Toni Durrant (3 points per game), Asia Morgan (4.3 points per game), Astacia Garcia and Chambre Garcia.
Evans averaged 17 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals per game. She was a Class 6 First-Team All-State, all-conference, All-OC defense, and all-district selection, including being named Co-Player of the Year, as well as a McDonald’s All-American nominee. Evans is currently playing for Molly Miller (former Drury University coach) at NCAA Division I Grand Canyon University.
“Naudia was our team captain and go-to player for the last three years,” said Waynesville head coach Brittany Matlock. “She led us in many stat categories and left her mark on our program.
“Our team did a great job of working through all of the challenges that were thrown their way (last season). There are many moments that we could have just given up, but we kept moving forward. For that, I will always be proud of that group.”
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The future is bright for the Lady Tigers with the return of sophomore forward Breona Hurd. As a freshman, Hurd averaged 17 ppg, 9 rpg, 2 apg and 1 spg and earned all-district and all-conference honorable mention honors. The 6-foot-1 Hurd is receiving interest from Missouri State University, University of Louisville, University of Missouri, Drake University, University of Oklahoma and others.
“She is an all-around player that contributes on both ends of the floor,” Matlock said. “I am excited to continue to watch her grow on and off the court and am looking forward to what the future holds.”
Seniors Kaylee Gambill, Brielle Garcia, Aainana Jones and C.J. Jones all have seen varsity time and will be looked upon to take on more responsibilities.
“We will be young with varsity experience,” Matlock said. “I look forward to us getting better each day and making progress toward our goals on and off the court.”
The Lady Tigers open their season in the Carthage Tournament on Dec. 2-4 and will be competing in the Norm Stewart Classic – 48 hours of basketball at Mizzou – facing Lincoln Prep at 6 a.m. Dec. 10.
Matlock is encouraged by how her team is preparing for the season.
“We have a group that is eager to learn and not afraid to work,” Matlock said. “As a coach, you can’t ask for much more than that. As long as we are making forward progress each day and being competitive, everything else will take care of itself.
“We have a tough conference and nonconference schedule. We want to be competitive night in and night out.”
