A banner season hinges on Lady Eagles’ performance this week

Players and coach cite team chemistry as reason for team’s success By the time you read these words, the Seymour Lady Eagles (7-1, 16-5) may have all but wrapped up what a school official said is their first outright 3-AA championship in school history. Or in a worst-case scenario they will be going over the TSSAA rules on tiebreakers to see where they stand in the coming district tournament because of a logjam at first place. The Lady Eagles, winners of nine of their last 10 by an average margin of 17 points, will have a chance to cap a great run through the regular season with games scheduled at Heritage Monday night, a crucial home district match against Alcoa on Tuesday, and their final regular season district game at Gibbs on Friday. The Lady Tornadoes (6-1, 14-6) have the tough task of winning at Seymour Tuesday and at Austin-East in a rescheduled game on Saturday in order to stay alive for a regular season championship. After getting off to an 11-1 start, Alcoa went into a slump, losing four consecutive games before knocking off Gibbs last week. Austin-East (7-2, 14-6) lost to Alcoa in the first week of the season on the road, and saw their scheduled rematch postponed because of weather conditions. They plan to make that game up Saturday in a contest could decide the regular season outcomes for all three teams. The Lady Eagles, however, are in the driver’s seat, and wins over Alcoa and Gibbs would seal the deal. Seymour blew by Gibbs 57-36 and handed the Lady Tornadoes their first district loss 59-56 in an overtime tilt at Alcoa High School the last week of January. Seymour avenged their only district loss of the season three nights later when they got by Austin-East on a buzzer beater. In his first season coaching the Lady Eagles, Randy Moore points to a good team chemistry as the key ingredient for the late season run. “The girls have a chance to win the district outright,” said Moore, “And we’re trying to make it a group effort with contributions from more than one girl. Brooke Johnson is a great nucleus to build around but we need to continue to get other players to step up. “They’re great girls though. They really enjoy life and they all get along well. That’s one of the things that you have to deal with when you have a group of nice girls like we do. You have to work to keep their mental focus at times but I’m proud of how they’ve responded so far.” Johnson, a junior, is having another All-Star caliber season, but in a more refined role. At just under 17-points per game, she is still the team’s leading scorer and the third leading 2A scorer in the area. She has had the opportunity to display her polished passing and mid-range game under Moore, freeing up shots for teammates. Danielle Wolfe, a senior leader on the team, is a weapon from behind the arc, connecting on 42.9 percent of her attempts while averaging 12-points per game. Wolfe cites the coaching philosophy of Moore as one of the chief reasons the team is playing for a title in the last week of the regular season. “At first it was tough,” Wolfe commented. “But now we’re starting to play up to our potential, and what he says our potential is. I think he’s an excellent coach. If you listen to him, he’ll get you to your highest level.” Wolfe was also a top contributor to last year’s team that made a run to the region semi-finals before falling in overtime to Oliver Springs and missing a chance at the state tournament. She feels that this year’s team compares favorably to last year’s squad. “I think the whole team is better,” she said. “One thing is we’re quicker, and that makes us a lot better. Coach Moore instills a lot of confidence, and our goal is to make it to the state tournament. I think we’re going in the right direction.” Junior guard Ashley Murphy also remembers last season’s heartbreaking loss to the Lady Bobcats and would welcome another shot at the region tournament. “I think this year’s team is better because we hustle more,” Murphy said. “I think this year’s team would definitely have a better chance of beating a team like Oliver Springs, but first we have to bust our butts to win the region and hope we get a chance.” Junior point guard Heather Wright had what was perhaps her breakout game against Oliver Springs and their dynamo junior point guard Laura Hall last season. She’s worked to improve her game since then and has seen the team come together simultaneously. She has her sights set on the tournament while the team continues to improve and mesh as a unit. “We’ve come a long way since the beginning of the year,” said Wright, who hit the game winning shot two weeks ago against Austin-East. “We started out with not very much confidence but Coach Moore had faith in us. When we thought he was yelling at us, he was really strengthening our hearts for the game. Every game is a step toward our dream of going to the state. “Last year we lost in the region, but this year we’ve built our confidence. We think we can go all the way. I think our team unity has been great this year. We’re friends on and off the court, and that spills over to how we work together on the court—especially in big games.” Of Seymour’s five losses through Monday, the only one that came against another 2A team was the Austin-East setback in December, in which the Lady Eagles had a double-digit lead going into the fourth quarter. The other four teams to get a victory over the Lady Eagles (Heritage twice, Campbell County and Sevier County) are all 3A teams.