The 2019-20 season for the 7th grade Cowgirls basketball team wrapped up with a pair of victories over Clear Lake on January 28, which pushed us to a final record of 10-13. Back before Thanksgiving, our schedule kicked off with tough loss at Iowa Falls-Alden, but the girls bounced back and were able to get a close win at St. Edmonds. We then lost to Hampton-Dumont-CAL before a split with Clear Lake. The very next night, the Cowgirls also picked up a win against a South Hamilton squad comprised of 7th and 8th graders.
Coming out of Christmas break, we ran into a tough stretch of games, and we came up winless against Humboldt, Algona, and Hampton-Dumont-CAL. However, the Cowgirls would end up victorious in seven out of their last eight matchups, sweeping the Webster City, Eagle Grove, and the previously mentioned Clear Lake games. We split the second series at Algona.
Against most of our opponents this season, we would play two games on a given night. These are generally classified as an “A” game and a “B” game. At the end of the season, our record in “A” games was 5-7, while our record in “B” games was 5-6.
Elliot Ennis and Indy Johnson were our leading scorers respectively. Elliot gave us a really nice presence in the lane and is quickly establishing herself as one of the better post players in the area. Indy is a very athletic guard with solid ball-handling skills and a dangerous jump shot.
Kennedy Jackson and Delainey DeHate gave us a lot of quality minutes from the guard positions, as well. Kennedy has good court vision and can really attack defenses from the left side of the basket. Delainey brings a defensive intensity to the court, and she is a fearless competitor against opponents with a size advantage.
Shelby Warnke and Jorja Fulk played the majority of the season on the wing for us. Although she didn’t rack up a ton of points, Shelby did a nice job setting screens and rebounding. She also played her best defense of the season in the finale against Clear Lake. I believe Jorja was new to the sport of basketball this year, but she has the athleticism to become a very solid player. She racked up a bunch of steals that led to easy layups.
Risse Ayala and Jordyce Duncalf were willing to fit the lineup wherever they were needed. We used Risse primarily on the wing and at the guard spot. She was able to knock down a couple 3-pointers against Iowa Falls, and I could always count on Risse to sprint back on defense.
Jordyce played in the post and on the wing for us. As the season progressed, she gained a lot of confidence in her ability to put up quick shots amongst a congested defense.
Georgia Wilson ended up nudging out Delainey DeHate by one point to be our third leading scorer this season. Georgia loves to attack the basket off the dribble (both in transition and from her guard position), which resulted in lots of layups for her this season. Gabby Oppman was also new to the sport this year. Although she didn’t often find herself in scoring position, she made her shots count when she ended up on the free-throw line. Gabby also showed some real progress on her defensive game.
A lot of teams might have gotten dejected and given up in the midst of a losing slump like we encountered in early January. However, I was really pleased with this group’s ability to refocus their energy. They were able to stay positive and bounce back to wrap up the season on a bit of a hot streak. Looking around the conference, this particular grade level seems to have a ton of competitiveness, so it will be important for our Cowgirls to keep working on their basketball skills and fitness in the offseason.
With only ten girls on our squad this year, I felt like we may have been one of the best conditioned teams around. The willingness of our girls to play so hard for such a long time, is hopefully a good indication that this group of Cowgirls does have the work ethic needed to keep them succeeding.
