Basketball Feature: Lynchburg-Clay Lady Mustangs
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
For Lynchburg-Clay senior Sarah Rosselott, her final year as a member of the Lady Mustangs' basketball team will also make her the final girl from her class who will be in the varsity basketball program.
Rosselott, who will be playing in her third year at the varsity level, is the last senior of any of the girls in the Class of 2014 to remain a member of the basketball program, something that is not only a little strange for her, but something she says will take a little getting used to.
"It is weird, because I've always had (other classmates) with me, but nobody else is playing, so it is different," Rosselott said. "I keep playing for the team.
"I've always enjoyed my teammates, especially in high school. I've played with a great group of girls, and I've always liked my coaches. They are very good at what they do."
Though she's the final senior, getting to this point of her basketball career began with the help of her father, Bill Rosselott.
“My dad has always liked basketball, so I started because of him," the senior said. "He started me in it, then after that, I've always played.
"I was in fifth grade, around 10 years old, when I started. My team name was the 'Stangs, just one of the youth teams in town."
With her love of basketball starting at a young age, Rosselott talked about why she continued to play the game.
"I liked it when I started it. It made me set goals for myself," she said. "My sisters played (Lindsey and Jessica Rosselott), so I wanted follow in their footsteps."
LC head coach Whitney Lewis spoke highly of her senior player.
"Sarah is an athlete … she's a winner," Lewis said. "She's competitive as all get out, in practice and games … that's one of our strengths. We're all competitive and want to win. She adds to that.
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"Her enthusiasm is big for us. She brings a lot to the table in that regard. I think she's going to step up a lot this season in terms of scoring productions and her overall play."
Rosselott is no stranger when it comes to being a part of winning teams. Last season, LC won 18 basketball games, and this fall, as a member of the soccer team, she was a big part of their record-breaking season.
As a member of the '13 Lady Mustangs soccer team, they finished Division III Regional Runners-up, along with collecting a district championship and a Southern Hills Athletic Conference title, where the Lady Mustangs went undefeated in the conference. In fact, the soccer team finished with a school-record number of wins with 19, while tallying just one loss and one tie.
"It was great … I was so excited," Rosselott said about the soccer season. "We had a great team. We had a lot of good players. We could come off the field in the first half and have a whole other set of girls that were just as good as the starters.
"I wish we would have gone further, but getting as far as we did … that was an incredible thing."
That success from the soccer field is something Rosselott wants to bring to the basketball court, as every girl on the varsity roster was also a member of the soccer team.
"We're going to have speed in basketball this year, so hopefully that will help us," she said. "I want to go far in basketball. My high school years, we've always done well, but with it being my senior year, I want to go further.
"We know what we have to do as a team. We know what to expect from other teams. We know what we have to do to be successful."
One plus for Rosselott is she's able to share her senior season with her cousins Hannah and McKayla Binkley, who will be freshmen on the varsity team.
"I'm excited to share the court with them," she said. "I love the fact I get to play my final year with them. They are very talented basketball players and very good at what they do.
"We knew this was going to happen, and we're all pretty excited about it."
Rosselott, who will be playing in her third year at the varsity level, is the last senior of any of the girls in the Class of 2014 to remain a member of the basketball program, something that is not only a little strange for her, but something she says will take a little getting used to.
"It is weird, because I've always had (other classmates) with me, but nobody else is playing, so it is different," Rosselott said. "I keep playing for the team.
"I've always enjoyed my teammates, especially in high school. I've played with a great group of girls, and I've always liked my coaches. They are very good at what they do."
Though she's the final senior, getting to this point of her basketball career began with the help of her father, Bill Rosselott.
“My dad has always liked basketball, so I started because of him," the senior said. "He started me in it, then after that, I've always played.
"I was in fifth grade, around 10 years old, when I started. My team name was the 'Stangs, just one of the youth teams in town."
With her love of basketball starting at a young age, Rosselott talked about why she continued to play the game.
"I liked it when I started it. It made me set goals for myself," she said. "My sisters played (Lindsey and Jessica Rosselott), so I wanted follow in their footsteps."
LC head coach Whitney Lewis spoke highly of her senior player.
"Sarah is an athlete … she's a winner," Lewis said. "She's competitive as all get out, in practice and games … that's one of our strengths. We're all competitive and want to win. She adds to that.
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"Her enthusiasm is big for us. She brings a lot to the table in that regard. I think she's going to step up a lot this season in terms of scoring productions and her overall play."
Rosselott is no stranger when it comes to being a part of winning teams. Last season, LC won 18 basketball games, and this fall, as a member of the soccer team, she was a big part of their record-breaking season.
As a member of the '13 Lady Mustangs soccer team, they finished Division III Regional Runners-up, along with collecting a district championship and a Southern Hills Athletic Conference title, where the Lady Mustangs went undefeated in the conference. In fact, the soccer team finished with a school-record number of wins with 19, while tallying just one loss and one tie.
"It was great … I was so excited," Rosselott said about the soccer season. "We had a great team. We had a lot of good players. We could come off the field in the first half and have a whole other set of girls that were just as good as the starters.
"I wish we would have gone further, but getting as far as we did … that was an incredible thing."
That success from the soccer field is something Rosselott wants to bring to the basketball court, as every girl on the varsity roster was also a member of the soccer team.
"We're going to have speed in basketball this year, so hopefully that will help us," she said. "I want to go far in basketball. My high school years, we've always done well, but with it being my senior year, I want to go further.
"We know what we have to do as a team. We know what to expect from other teams. We know what we have to do to be successful."
One plus for Rosselott is she's able to share her senior season with her cousins Hannah and McKayla Binkley, who will be freshmen on the varsity team.
"I'm excited to share the court with them," she said. "I love the fact I get to play my final year with them. They are very talented basketball players and very good at what they do.
"We knew this was going to happen, and we're all pretty excited about it."