By TYLER HENRY
Lead Sportswriter - Salina Post
After a disappointing 4-17 season, the Wabaunsee girl’s basketball team will look to flip the script ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.
Head coach Trevor Keller returns for his fifth season at the helm to lead the Lady Chargers.
This year’s Wabaunsee squad will return several veteran pieces, including three starters from last year, culminating in a rotation that should look like this come tip-off.
G- Karli Meseke (Sr)
G- Taryn Maike (Sr)
G Harley Ridder (Jr)
G Reese Michaelis (So)
G/F Alexus Ford (Sr)
F- Kaci Meseke (Sr)
The Lady Chargers will also receive some reinforcements in the form of the freshmen trio of Grace Zeller, Talen Orton, and Edan Perrin.
Ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, we had a chance to catch up with Coach Keller and get his thoughts on this year’s squad.
Q: When you had a chance to look back on it, what were your overall thoughts on last season?
A: Inconsistency. We had several games throughout the year where we were good and several where weren’t up to the standard of what we expect. With how good our league is, if you don’t have your "A" game each night it will be rough and unfortunately we had some of those.
Q: Entering this year, what would you say are the biggest known strengths of your team?
A: Depth. We return a lot of girls who received quality minutes last season. Along with our strong incoming freshman class, I am excited about the potential of our team this season.
Q: What are the biggest looming questions or challenges that you’ll look to sort out in these first few weeks?
A: With our depth and competition for minutes, I’m excited to see who separates themselves and earns playing time in the rotation. We have the ability to mix and match different lineups so seeing which ones work better is something we are hoping to answer.
Q: What are the biggest goals and expectations for this group heading into the new season?
A: Playing our brand of basketball each night and being more consistent will help us accomplish our goals. Every day at the end of practice we break it down with the goal and expectation of going to state, so with everyone’s continued effort and hard work, we are hoping we will be in Dodge City come March.
The Lady Chargers open their season in Alma with a home game against Manhattan Chief on Tuesday, December 5th.