Girls BKB Preview | Expectations same for Stewart & Company

A year ago, Jake Stewart had a team that was ranked No. 1 in the AP Class 2A girls' basketball poll all year long. The dream of a state championship was cut short by Breese Mater Dei in the Sectional semifinals at Hamilton County High School. The Bulldogs went 31-1 and lost 80 percent of their scoring to graduation.

That was then ‑ this is now.

Stewart, who enters his 8th year as head coach at Harrisburg may not have the flashy scoring this year or the gaudy record to go with it, but that doesn't mean many of the expectations won't remain the same.

Back are returning starters Madeline Rider and Karsyn Davis, along with Stewart's sixth man off the bench, Brooke Meylor.

The emphasis in the early going for Stewart is to define the roles that will fill the void left behind by Lotte Miller, Jess Hopson and Matty Hawkins.

"We're going to have to look for Karsyn to score, even more so than last year," Stewart said. We're going to have to find her more in the offense this year and she's probably going to have to assume a role of being more of an inside player first and an outside player second.

Davis, along with Rider, have both signed scholarship papers already as Davis is going to Southeast Missouri State to play softball, while Rider is going to Western Kentucky University to play softball.

Stewart said he wants Rider to take more shots than she did last year, asking his senior to double her shot total.

"We need her to be more offensive minded and look to score more. Last year, she may have scored four or five points a game; we're going to need her to double that and look at creating better shots."

Stewart feels having Meylor running point and having the summer she did, leading the Bulldogs in scoring will help free up Davis in the post.

"She's an outside threat," Stewart said. "It should help free up Karsyn on the inside and we're working on making her more comfortable running the offense. It's pretty much the same offense from a year ago, we're just switching Karsyn from outside to inside."

Joining Davis, Rider and Meylor in the senior class are Alli Ferrell and Ivy Brown. Juniors include, Essence Sanders, Summer Sanders, Mya King, Gabby Adams and Lauren McDaniel. The lone sophomore on the team is Lauryn Gribble.

Stewart, who hoped to have Lydia Miller back this season is out until after the first of the year when she suffered an ankle injury and McDaniels is playing the first three games of the season and then will be out for the remainder of the year to undergo ACL surgery.

Spyder Dann covers prep and college sports for the Southern Illinois Local Media News Group. Follow him on Twitter: @spydieshooter.