Goodrich’s varsity girls basketball team welcomed back a familiar face in its first game of the regular season.
The Martians defeated visiting Davison 68-36 on Tuesday, Aug. 29, as junior Kortni Elsworth scored 13 points to lead the Martians to the victory.
The game featured the return of Amy Gall, a former teacher and assistant basketball coach who is in her first year as Davison’s head coach. As it turns out, her first game as the Cardinals? head coach came against the Martians.
‘To be completely honest, I knew we were going to play Goodrich our first game of the season when I was hired at Davison,? Gall said. ‘Although we lost, I thought it was a good learning experience for our team. (Goodrich coach) Jason (Gray) has some great athletes on his side.?
On the Goodrich side of things, Gray said the overriding concern for the Martians heading into the game was not so much going up against someone who had been their assistant last season, but the fact they were trying to work out the first-game jitters.
‘There’s a million things to get worried about heading into the first game of the season,? he said.
Gall was hired at Davison this past spring to rebuild a program that went 5-16 last season. Despite now being employed in the Davison school district, Gall, who was also the Martians? varsity softball coach last season, still plans to come back to Goodrich in the spring of 2007 to coach the softball team.
She said despite the team’s record from last year, she expects the Cardinals to compete and strive to get better.
‘I told the kids we need to set goals in an attainable direction,? she said. ‘I feel we can be at least .500, but we need to shoot to be better. Really and truly, I think the biggest thing is to continue to raise think the biggest thing is to to continue to raise the bar for ourselves.?
Gall said key players for the Cardinals this season will be seniors Megan Kehl, Sarah Chazick and Kayla Varyas, and freshmen Megan Overstreet and Jourdin Barkman.
The first quarter started slowly for both teams, but by the end, the Martians had asserted themselves and established a 13-3 lead. Goodrich put the game out of reach in the second quarter, outscoring the Cardinals 20-7 to take a 33-10 lead at halftime.
‘Our defense was exceptional ? it was better than I expected it to be,? Gray said.On the other sideline, Gall said after they shook off their first-game jitters, the Cardinals showed some positive signs in the second half.
‘Overall, my kids never stopped working,? she said. ‘They worked hard throughout the game and never gave up. We continued to push the ball up the floor. In the second half, we looked inside to the post and moved the ball around.?
Several other Martians helped Elsworth contribute to the team’s win. Junior Brandi Kushuba scored eight points, while senior Autumn Haggadone and juniors Megan McGinnis and JoAnne Carter scored seven points apiece.
‘My second biggest concern heading into the game (after defense) was how our bench was going to perform,? Gray said. ‘We have a lot of newcomers. Our bench really put together a first-class performance.?