By Brennan Stebbins (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
After a state championship and a runner-up finish in back-to-back seasons, there probably weren’t many spectators surprised to see the El Dorado Springs girls basketball team make another deep playoff run last season.
But the Bulldogs themselves weren’t quite sure what to expect last winter.
“It was a kind of surprising season, we didn’t know exactly what we had going in and our schedule was pretty stinking brutal,” said head coach Beau Swopes. “The girls just came out and I felt got better every game. We dealt with more adversity last year than what we have in the past; we’ve had quite a few injuries and a girl would always step up.”
When it was all said and done, El Dorado Springs finished again as the Class 3 runner up after a 28-4 season––the fifth season in a row in which the Bulldogs won at least 24 games. It ended with a 33-27 loss to Fair Grove in the championship.
“Being the third time we played them, we knew a lot of the stuff they were going to do and they knew what we were going to do,” Swopes said. “We scored it and showed it being a great game but defensively both teams played really well. We didn’t make the shots we needed to and ended our season. It was still really good. You look at the big picture of it and the girls really grew as a team and continued to fight. It makes for an exciting beginning of the year this year.”
The Bulldogs graduated three seniors from last year’s squad: post players Gracie Mead (second team all-conference) and Abi Schmitt (honorable mention), and guard Tenlie Steward.
“Three big losses for us,” Swopes said. “Two starters and one of our first ones off the bench.”
El Dorado Springs still returns a lot of production from last year’s state finals team. The list of returners is highlighted by all-state players Neely Schaaf, now a senior, and McKinli Mays, a junior. Both also nabbed first team honors in the Ozark Highlands Conference, and Schaaf was the conference player of the year. And senior Alexis Collins, another first teamer in the Ozark Highlands, also returns as one of the team’s big scorers.
Schaaf averaged 13.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.8 steals per contest last season. Mays averaged 13.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.3 steals. Collins averaged 11.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, two assists and a steal.
“Neely will be a four-year starter this year,” said Swopes, who was named Ozark Highlands coach of the year last season. “She stepped in early her freshman year and settled the game down for everybody. She’s really come into her own. She shoots the ball extremely well, sees the floor and has a knack for scoring and defensively she can guard 1-through-5 even though she doesn’t have a lot of height. She does a great job of positioning defensively and really puts a lot of work into it. She’s had a really good summer and played a lot of travel ball this summer.
“McKinli started started as a freshman, as well, and was just kind of a pest outside on the perimeter defensively,” he said. “She was a little bit undersized as a freshman and she’s continued to grow a little bit and she’s gotten better and better every year. She likes to get up and down the court and is probably one of the faster kids I’ve had with the ball. Great track athlete and she just goes out and competes.”
Swopes said Collins has become one of the team’s better shooters and doesn’t need much space to get a shot off. She knocked down eight 3-pointers in a game early last season, and nearly surpassed that total later on.
“She does a great job for us on the outside and helps spread the floor,” Swopes said. “She can get to the basket. She’s a lot more comfortable on the outside just shooting. She does a really good job in her role.”
Joining those big three returners is a list including senior Avery Floyd, who Swopes said can attack and shoot from the outside and is a physically strong guard who can even defend on the inside; and three others who got most of their minutes at the JV level in junior Braylie Steward, the younger sister of Tenlie; junior Sage McCullough; and sophomore Allie Thompson.
“Braylie and Allie can play multiple positions inside or outside and are both athletic,” Swopes said. “All of them really like to compete. Sage can shoot the ball from the outside and has gotten a lot better with her ball handling and ability to attack. I think those three will bring some nice things but they’ll be young so early we may have some struggles but I think they’ll be ready.”
Additionally, senior Lily Taylor, who didn’t play last season, will give the team a physical presence inside and some much-needed depth.
The Bulldogs’ schedule, which opens with a November 18 jamboree at Lamar, will once again expose El Dorado Springs to some “really difficult” competition.
“We start off the season (Nov. 26) against Republic and we’ve got Fair Grove, Skyline, Strafford, Tipton, the Pink and White tournament you know you’re going to play great teams in,” Swopes said. “Our schedule is pretty loaded and we’re going to have to come ready to play about every single game.”
After Republic, the Bulldogs return to the Carthage Lady Tigers Invitational which features Missouri schools playing out-of-state opponents. The Bulldogs will also participate in the 12 Courts of Christmas and play Kearney on December 21.
“We’re going to have to have a lot of stuff in and ready to go and be rolling when we get rolling,” Swopes said.
