One more challenge: SA girls focused entering Overall State tournament

February 27, 2013

Starkville Academy girls coach Glenn Schmidt directs her team during an earlier game this season. (Photo by Kim Murrell, SDN)

Overall State champions.

Those are three simple words that describe Starkville Academy’s goal for the 2012-2013 season.

The Lady Volunteers begin the journey toward that status today as they face Prairie View in a 3 p.m.
matchup at Mississippi College.

As game time nears, enthusiasm is sweeping throughout the Starkville Academy team and its coach.
“The excitement of playing in Overall is always fun,” SA girls coach Glenn Schmidt said.

While this afternoon’s game is the beginning of the road to Overall champion, the Lady Vols have already journeyed long and hard in route to a 40-0 record and an AAA State championship.

Hailing from Bastrop, La., the Lady Spartans (30-7) enter today’s clash after knocking off Mt. Salus on Tuesday. Prairie View finished third in Class AA behind State champion Bowling Green and runner-up Leake Academy.

Having followed basketball all season, Schmidt knows the Lady Spartans will be no pushover; describing the team as “well-rounded” and featuring “good size.”

When Starkville Academy takes the court, it will not be looking to one specific player to lead the way, instead the Lady Vols will focus on winning as a team, just as they have done all season long.

Maggie Proffitt leads the team in scoring as she averages 17.4 points per game, while Sallie Kate Richardson averages 7.1 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per contest to lead the team in multiple categories. A third player leads the team in assists as point guard Tiffany Huddleston has shared the wealth 128 times thus far in the season.

The variety in team leadership is clear evidence of the strength of the entire Lady Vols squad, a characteristic that makes the team hard to defend, to play with and to defeat, as evidenced by the undefeated season to this point.

Schmidt is confident in her team’s ability to compete on the hardwood, but when looking at what it takes to win an overall title, the coach knows it will all come down to focus.

“We need to close off all outside distraction,” Schmidt said. “At this point in the season, we just have to take it one game at a time.”

A win today would advance SA to a 1 p.m.,Friday contest with the winner of Bowling Green (La.) and Tri-Country Academy.