Conference: 2A-5
Coach: Chris Kordsmeier (year at school: 21st)
Assistant coach: Brent Bruich
2010-11 record: 15-15 overall (fifth in conference)
Returning starters: Heather Moix (5-10 senior forward, 14 points per game, 6 rebounds per game); Jennifer Hegeman (5-7 senior guard, 4 ppg); Courtney Briggler (6-1 senior center, 6 ppg, 3 blocks per game)
Best inside players: Moix and Briggler will be counted on heavily. Savannah Cooper, a 6-foot senior, got some experience last year and will be counted on more this season.
Best outside players: Graduation hit the St. Joe outside game heavily. Hegeman returns with the most experience. Kordsmeier said he would count on several newcomers, including Briggler’s sophomore sisters, the 5-3 Rachel and 5-6 Meagan; as well as 5-6 junior Morgan Kordsmeier.
How will you match/exceed/fall short of your success from last year? After finishing runner-up in the state tournament in 2009 and ’10, the Lady Bulldogs failed to reach the state tournament last year. But Kordsmeier said just getting to the regional was a big accomplishment after graduating several key cogs. “I think we’re going to have an improved team,” he said. “We have good senior leadership, a good senior class. I can see that we’re going to do a better job handling the ball this year. That was one of our suspect areas last year.”
Strengths of the team: St. Joseph will have good size, and Kordsmeier said he liked the team’s chemistry. “That’s always an untold factor, but they like each other and work hard together and play well together,” he said. “Experience at the post will help, too.”
Weaknesses of the team: The Lady Bulldogs will be inexperienced at the guard positions. “That’s an area we’ve been working hard on,” Kordsmeier said. “For us to succeed, we’ve got to improve there because people will attack us on that. We do have good potential, though. When we get a few games at the high school level, that will help.”
Games to watch: England, the defending Class 2A state champion, is a St. Joseph conference foe, and Kordsmeier said the Lady Lions have everybody back. “It’s a tough conference,” he said. “And Conway Christian is always a game to watch.”
Toughest opponent: England, Poyen, Magnet Cove and Conway Christian. Poyen reached the regional last year.
College prospects: Kordsmeier said he had not yet heard from college coaches. “We’ll see how the season goes,” he said. “That could change.
In a nutshell: It had been a long time since St. Joseph missed the state tournament. Under Kordsmeier, the Lady Bulldogs finished runner-up in 1997, won in ’98 and finished runner-up in ’99, ’09 and ’10. “We’ve been blessed with good players,” he said. “It’s been a good run here. A big goal of ours is to get to the state tournament. We have a real tough conference and region, so if we can get through, we’ll be battle-tested. We’re playing a good schedule and have some good nonconference games.”