WINONA LAKE – With a new coach and a large contingent of seniors, the Lakeland Christian Academy girls basketball team is looking to build on the 7-17 season the Lady Cougars had last year. Five seniors make up the majority of the nine-player roster for the Lady Cougars. Rachel Sand and Hannah Delp lead the returnees, averaging 13 and 11 points per game last season, respectively. Carissa Urschalitz, Brighty Walters and Gabby Catron make up the rest of the senior class. They’ll be joined on the court by junior Melissa Goss, who averaged just over four points a game last year, and Ellie Nieveen. Sophomore Brady Gross and freshman Maddie Paris round out the squad. The junior varsity team is comprised of a junior, two sophomores and five freshman. “They’re a great group of girls. We have a strong group of five seniors this year. It was helpful that I could assist with the volleyball team, so I got to know some of the girls that way. They have a great heart for each other and they’re coming together very well so far,” said first-year head coach Allison Kauffman. “We also have a group of freshmen that have reached out to one another; that’s been really cool for me to see. We do have strong leadership on the team, especially at the varsity level. We have our two leading scorers returning, and we’re looking to them for leadership. They’re a group of girls that’s ready to work hard, and I’m really excited to see what’s in store for the season.” Kauffman is looking to her two leading scorers to provide an inside/outside combination that will be difficult for opposing teams to defend. Sand was also the team’s leading rebounder, and Delp hit 29 shots from beyond the arc in 2014-15. “Rachel is a solid scorer on the inside, and Hannah is our best three-point shooter, so having that inside-out game will be our main threat,” said Kauffman. “We’ll need to take better care of the ball and cut down on our turnovers this year. It’s important that we stay patient and get the shot we want, rather than take what’s given to us. That’s the main thing for us on the offensive end; taking care of the ball and getting good shots.” There is also an opportunity for the Lady Cougars to improve at the free throw line. Only two players, Urschalitz and Delp, hit more than 51 percent of their freebies last season. Defensively, Kauffman said her team is likely to be toe-to-toe with most teams nearly all of the time. “I am definitely all about the man-to-man defense,” she said. “I know in the past LCA ran a lot of zone, but this year we’ve really been keying our practice on man-to-man,” she said. “We’re breaking down the principles of just playing good help-side defense together as a team. We’ve emphasized that defense is all about that communication, that teamwork, and being there to help your teammate if they get beat to the basket. “It’s all about protecting the lane and we’ve been working on that since our first practice. That’s what our go-to defense will be this year. Obviously some teams will require a zone or some mixing up of the defenses, but for the most part we’re definitely looking to play more man-to-man this year.” The Lady Cougars open their season Tuesday at home against the Caston Comets, who have already split their first two games of the season. Caston lost 46-17 at Argos Thursday and won 78-20 at South Bend Career Academy Friday. Tip-off Tuesday is 7:30 p.m.
