Friday, Nov. 28, 2008

Yellow Jackets study chemistry

Irmo coach Monica Williams will say her girls basketball team met all its goals last season.

Her tone of voice tells otherwise. Sure, the Yellow Jackets went 21-4 and 10-0 in the region. Sure, they beat Westside in the first round of Upper State.

But a 50-36 second-round loss to state runner-up Dorman still stings.

"I think the kids are still real hungry," Williams said. "To make it to state, to make it past the second or third round, we have to stay hungry."

And Irmo will have to learn how to win without last year's leading scorer and rebounder, Brittany Jackson. Junior forward Sarah Green, described by Williams as athletic and hard-working, will be leaned on to fill that void.

It's a challenge Green relishes.

"I don't feel any pressure," said Green, who averaged 8 points and 6 rebounds a game last season. "I want to be the leading scorer in the region, and I know my team has my back."

The Yellow Jackets return two other starters: junior point guard Brooke McCants and senior shooting guard Tarea Yates. The duo combined for 13 points a game last year. To fill the rest of the stat sheet, Irmo will have to rely on an influx of young, inexperienced talent.

Senior captain Caitlin Vaughn said the Yellow Jackets are still learning to play together, and in some cases, just getting to know each other. The past few weeks have been spent bonding as a team — joking around in the locker room and hanging out after practice.

"We're growing closer as the season goes along," Vaughn said.

On the court, Williams is looking for McCants to become a more vocal leader. Already, the junior is taking her role seriously. When McCants talks about the Yellow Jackets, she sounds like a coach, stressing hard work, hustle and constant effort as keys to a successful season.

"We can't slack off for one play. Because if we do, the game is not going to go our way," McCants said.

The team showed promise in preseason practice and scrimmages, Williams said, but the Yellow Jackets have struggled with scoring and defense. And Williams said Irmo has a long way to go if it wants to make a deep postseason run, especially coming out of the tough Region 5-4A.

"Right now, we are trying to find the right combination and find the right team chemistry," Williams said. "We have to mesh all these kids together."

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