Winter Preview: Oak Harbor girls loaded
Published 6:05 pm Friday, April 25, 2008
With 10 varsity letter winners returning to the roster, Oak Harbor High School head girls basketball coach Brett McLeod begins his sixth year at the helm with a big smile on his face.
Last year, the Wildcats won 15 games and advanced to the district tournament as the WesCo North’s No. 4 seed.
The Wildcats had a tough go in the tournament. They lost to Jackson in the opening round and then fell 52-44 to Mountlake Terrace in a loser-out consolation game.
“Our players got tournament experience last year and I think we can really come after it again this season,” McLeod said. “I’m looking for us to have a good season. All we have to do is think about the team first and play with a lot of confidence.”
Returning to the roster are seniors Mietra Smollack, who was a first-team all-league player last year, Clair Thiel, Danica Russell and Janay Baeyen.
At 6-2, Thiel is the big player at the post position and is joined by junior Jennifer Jansen, who matches Thiel’s height.
Other returning juniors are Jasmine Chong, Roshanda Smith and Cori Henricksen.
Sophomore Jessica Denmon is back at point guard after a successful year starting at the position as a freshman.
New faces on the roster are juniors Cheyenne Tubo, Brianna Brothers and senior Tamiko Smith. All played on the junior varsity team last year.
Despite having a plethora of talent and experience, Oak Harbor plays in a tough league against the likes of Snohomish and Lake Stevens.
“Some people are talking about Snohomish not only winning the league championship, but how they might also be a contender for the state title,” McLeod said.
Oak Harbor is a top tier team and McLeod said the Wildcats should be right in the playoff mix.
“The thing we have to understand is that we’re not going to surprise people this season,” he said. “We had a good season last year and we have all these letter winners returning. What we have to do is come out, work hard, stay together and play as a team. If we’re able to do that, we’ll be successful and maybe we can give it another shot at the district with a more experienced team.”
Oak Harbor opened the season with a 50-35 victory Nov. 28 at Shorewood and hosts Lynnwood for a 7:30 p.m. varsity tipoff Wednesday, Dec. 5.
