Mahomet-Seymour girls basketball looks forward to improvement after Monday loss
By FRED KRONER
Girls’ basketball was the first Mahomet-Seymour High School athletic team to return to action following the easing of restrictions from the 11-month-old coronavirus pandemic.
The game also marked the debut as head coach of Garret Risley, who was hired in the off-season.
His memories will focus on the uniqueness of the evening on Monday (Feb. 1) at Charleston as well as areas to improve upon following M-S’ 60-45 loss to the Trojans in an Apollo Conference contest.
“After the sideline out-of-bounds to start the game (instead of a jump ball), our girls were excited to be playing,” Risley said. “Once you get past the masks, no fans and no one behind the bench, it’s more of the same.”
It was basketball.
The Bulldogs had a sluggish start, falling behind 21-6 after one quarter. During the final three quarters, the teams played evenly.
“After the 21-6 start, then we started playing,” Risley said, “and running our game.
“The initial shock of getting down was a little gut-check time. I was proud of the way we responded. We made a couple of adjustments and settled everyone down.”
Junior Cayla Koerner led M-S with 21 points and four steals. Koerner hit two three-point shots. She scored all six of M-S’ points in the opening quarter.
Sophomore Savannah Orgeron, the squad’s tallest member at 5-foot-11, demonstrated her range. Orgeron nailed three three-point shots and chipped in with 15 points.
“She definitely has that (range) in her game,” Risley said. “I’d expect her to do that more.”
Three other M-S sophomores accounted for the remainder of the team’s points. Durbin Thomas had four points, Abigail Bunting had three points and Chloe Pruitt made both of her points from the free throw line.
Pruitt also grabbed a team-high four rebounds. Bunting collected two steals.
Risley said regardless of who was in the game and who was on the bench, one aspect never wavered.
“I was encouraged by our bench and the enthusiasm they brought,” he said. “You couldn’t tell we didn’t have fans.”
He also liked the tenacity that was shown during the final three quarters, two of which ended with the Bulldogs scoring the most points in the quarter.
“I liked the way we battled back,” Risley said. “We got to see some of their character and a no-quit attitude.”
M-S opens the season with three consecutive road games before returning home for three scheduled games in a row.
The Bulldogs return to action on Thursday (Feb. 4) at Mattoon. The home-opener will be on Feb. 11 against Taylorville.
For Risley, there is still work to be done. He expects to see continued improvement as more practice time takes place.
“We rushed to get our skeleton (plan) put in, now we’ll try to fill things in,” he said.
