The winter sports season has arrived and the girls basketball team is ready for another great season. The team has many changes coming from last year into this season. Last year they graduated five seniors and this year they only have two seniors, Rachel Miller and Hailey Waystedt.
The team is relatively inexperienced, as they have only one returning starter; however, their teamwork from many years of playing together is paying off. Senior, Rachel Miller says, “Our team dynamic is special this year. Being made up of only juniors and seniors, we have the advantage of having played a lot of basketball with one another, which has made our connections both on and off the court stronger than in the past.”
They started the season strong with an exciting win in overtime against Superior. They have lost to Superior for the past five years, so it brought a lot of confidence to the team to do well this season. Although they fell short in the next games against Bloomer, and St. Croix Central, the team has not let that set them back and has been practicing hard to fix small mistakes and improve every day.
The team is looking to have another great season coming off their 17-8 record from last season. Last season, the girl’s team tied with Cameron and Barron for second place in the conference, just behind St. Croix Falls. This season, they have a good chance of being one of the top conference contenders again with Cameron, Barron, and Northwestern.
When asked about the outlook of this new team this season, junior Grace Schmidt said, “I’m excited for this year and looking forward to seeing what we can do as a team. We have a really close group that knows how to work well with each other on and off the court.” The team is excited to see how their teamwork will pay off on the court. As the season continues, they look to improve on the little things and keep their tight bond as a team.
Make sure to follow the Cane Nation and the Hayward Girls Basketball Instagram pages to stay updated on dates and themes for the games. The team looks forward to seeing you at the R.J.S. Gymnasium to cheer them on.
