Team Preview: Will Lady 'Cats earn more wins in new era?
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
There is a new head coach on the sideline this season for the Whiteoak Lady Wildcats, and in turn, there will be a new outlook for the program that has mostly struggled for the past six seasons.
John Kirschner has taken over the WHS program in hopes of turning it around, as WHS hasn't had a winning season since the 2007-08 campaign. Since that last winning season, WHS has a combined 13 wins the past six seasons.
Last year, WHS finished 2-20 overall and 0-13 in the Southern Hills Athletic Conference.
Kirschner, who was formerly an assistant at WHS, spoke about the offseason of the Lady 'Cats thus far.
[[In-content Ad]]"It got off to a slow start because I was hired late in the year," he said. "I went several months without an assistant coach, and we now have everything lined up and things are going a lot smoother.
"We are finally focused on basketball now. Two weeks in, we really haven't had a stream of practices without some type of interruption."
His assistant will be former WHS player Haley Bingamon.
But for WHS this season, they do return all-district selection Emma Wardlow, who will be a junior. Wardlow will be a three-year starter for WHS, finishing as the leading scorer of the team her first two seasons with the orange-and-black.
For Wardlow, she averaged 13.1 points per game last season, along with 7.8 rebounds per game. She also had 2.1 steals per game and 1.9 assists.
"Emma is an extraordinary leader," Kirschner said. "She's the first one to practice and the last one to leave. She's mentoring the younger girls all the time.
"She's probably her worst critic. I can ride her tail all practice long, but I can't do anything like she'll critique herself. Twice already, she's come up to me after practice and apologized about not being the best she can be. She can be a vocal leader, but she also leads by example."
One big loss for WHS will be Amber Gorman, who was the second-leading scorer on the team in 2013-14. The graduated Gorman scored 9.5 ppg and had 7.2 rpg in her final season at WHS.
WHS this season will have four seniors in Emily Stratton, Courtney Cummings, Jayde Parr and Sunnie Lehr. Juniors are Wardlow, Ashleigh Harless and Michaela Luman.
"Michaela is ready for this step up to the varsity team after dominating JV last year," Kirschner said. "She'll be a big part of what we do.
"I expect all the girls to lead in some fashion, but our seniors, Sunnie and Courtney ... they've stepped up into a leadership role."
The sophomores are Alexis Jones, Emily Edingfield, Jaycie Parr and Maggie Carr.
"I've coached the sophomores since they were in seventh grade," Kirschner said. "I know what they are capable of. They will be the core of the team, and we have some great leadership with these underclassmen.
"Jaycie is also a leader on this team as a sophomore. She has a lot of respect from the upperclassmen. She's battled injuries in the past, and now she's able to go full bore. She was within an eyelash of being a team captain."
Even with the struggles of the program as of late, the new head coach does have solid expectations for his team.
"Being realistic, we are just trying to teach the girls how to win," Kirschner said. "I believe the talent is there and think the only limitations we have are the ones they put on themselves.
"We have the talent, but it will come done to executing. With the younger sophomore class … they knew a little bit more of what I'm about, and I know what they are about. Now we have to mesh the older group with them, and our success will depend on that."
The focus for this year in the WHS program isn't on the past, but what lies ahead and how they can improve overall.
"It has been a culture of years we are trying to get past, and right now the word we use is 'accountability,'" Kirschner said. "I hold myself accountable, and I make them hold themselves accountable.
"We can't look in the past and point fingers. You were either a part of it or you weren't, and if you want to change that, you have to take it upon yourself to help the team get better. You have to trust your teammates and coaches. They've embraced that.
"I've seen a big chance just in practice. This is my fourth year here (three as an assistant), and the positivity amongst this group is different than what I've seen in the past."
WHS also has some motivation headed into the season.
"In our preseason poll, we were voted last by the coaches, and we take that kind of personal and use it as motivation," Kirschner said. "We are tired of being the little stepsisters of the league.
"A sense of pride is something we've been preaching to the girls. At some point, you have to have enough of it. The girls are motivated, but until we do something to change that perspective, that's where we are going to be picked. This time next year, I hope that's not where we are picked."
John Kirschner has taken over the WHS program in hopes of turning it around, as WHS hasn't had a winning season since the 2007-08 campaign. Since that last winning season, WHS has a combined 13 wins the past six seasons.
Last year, WHS finished 2-20 overall and 0-13 in the Southern Hills Athletic Conference.
Kirschner, who was formerly an assistant at WHS, spoke about the offseason of the Lady 'Cats thus far.
[[In-content Ad]]"It got off to a slow start because I was hired late in the year," he said. "I went several months without an assistant coach, and we now have everything lined up and things are going a lot smoother.
"We are finally focused on basketball now. Two weeks in, we really haven't had a stream of practices without some type of interruption."
His assistant will be former WHS player Haley Bingamon.
But for WHS this season, they do return all-district selection Emma Wardlow, who will be a junior. Wardlow will be a three-year starter for WHS, finishing as the leading scorer of the team her first two seasons with the orange-and-black.
For Wardlow, she averaged 13.1 points per game last season, along with 7.8 rebounds per game. She also had 2.1 steals per game and 1.9 assists.
"Emma is an extraordinary leader," Kirschner said. "She's the first one to practice and the last one to leave. She's mentoring the younger girls all the time.
"She's probably her worst critic. I can ride her tail all practice long, but I can't do anything like she'll critique herself. Twice already, she's come up to me after practice and apologized about not being the best she can be. She can be a vocal leader, but she also leads by example."
One big loss for WHS will be Amber Gorman, who was the second-leading scorer on the team in 2013-14. The graduated Gorman scored 9.5 ppg and had 7.2 rpg in her final season at WHS.
WHS this season will have four seniors in Emily Stratton, Courtney Cummings, Jayde Parr and Sunnie Lehr. Juniors are Wardlow, Ashleigh Harless and Michaela Luman.
"Michaela is ready for this step up to the varsity team after dominating JV last year," Kirschner said. "She'll be a big part of what we do.
"I expect all the girls to lead in some fashion, but our seniors, Sunnie and Courtney ... they've stepped up into a leadership role."
The sophomores are Alexis Jones, Emily Edingfield, Jaycie Parr and Maggie Carr.
"I've coached the sophomores since they were in seventh grade," Kirschner said. "I know what they are capable of. They will be the core of the team, and we have some great leadership with these underclassmen.
"Jaycie is also a leader on this team as a sophomore. She has a lot of respect from the upperclassmen. She's battled injuries in the past, and now she's able to go full bore. She was within an eyelash of being a team captain."
Even with the struggles of the program as of late, the new head coach does have solid expectations for his team.
"Being realistic, we are just trying to teach the girls how to win," Kirschner said. "I believe the talent is there and think the only limitations we have are the ones they put on themselves.
"We have the talent, but it will come done to executing. With the younger sophomore class … they knew a little bit more of what I'm about, and I know what they are about. Now we have to mesh the older group with them, and our success will depend on that."
The focus for this year in the WHS program isn't on the past, but what lies ahead and how they can improve overall.
"It has been a culture of years we are trying to get past, and right now the word we use is 'accountability,'" Kirschner said. "I hold myself accountable, and I make them hold themselves accountable.
"We can't look in the past and point fingers. You were either a part of it or you weren't, and if you want to change that, you have to take it upon yourself to help the team get better. You have to trust your teammates and coaches. They've embraced that.
"I've seen a big chance just in practice. This is my fourth year here (three as an assistant), and the positivity amongst this group is different than what I've seen in the past."
WHS also has some motivation headed into the season.
"In our preseason poll, we were voted last by the coaches, and we take that kind of personal and use it as motivation," Kirschner said. "We are tired of being the little stepsisters of the league.
"A sense of pride is something we've been preaching to the girls. At some point, you have to have enough of it. The girls are motivated, but until we do something to change that perspective, that's where we are going to be picked. This time next year, I hope that's not where we are picked."