Slammer girls teams tip off season
• Slammers 4th grade girls
The 4th grade girls Sandpoint Slammers team, coached by Kim Kaul, opened its season against a very experienced North Idaho Wildcat team. The polished offense and intense pressure of the North Idaho Wildcats was too much for the rookie Slammers to overcome.
Despite their defeat, the Slammers coach was very proud of her team and their determined and positive attitude. For the majority of the Slammer players, this was their first exposure to a fast-paced, competitive basketball game and even though they were surprised by the intensity and pace of the game, they kept their heads and never gave up.
By the last quarter of the game the Slammers were breaking the Wildcats press and gaining access to the basket. Now that they know what to expect, the Slammers look forward to improving upon their opener in their future games by working on their ball handling skills, defense and play execution.
In their next game, the team fell to the Coeur d’Alene Panthers 15-7. The Panthers abilities were more equally matched to the Slammers, which gave the girls an opportunity to execute their offense and apply some defensive pressure.
The Slammers had good rebounding and post play from Cameron Fahsholtz, Katherine Kaul and Taylor Jimerson. At the wing position Hadley Marshall, Danika Tomazich and Chloe Edwards showed good ball handling skills and perimeter defense. Also at wing, Marina Breuner and Audrey Gordon are improving their court awareness and defensive skills.
Last Saturday, team faced the highly-skilled Coeur d’Alene Reign. The Reign handily defeated the Slammers with their anticipation defense, fast break skills and polished offense.
• Slammers 5th grade girls
The Sandpoint Slammers girls 5th grade team, coached by Keith Kirscher, lost to the Cd’A Tribal Wariors in the opener but kept it fairly close until the 4th quarter. The girls continue to work hard at the fundamentals, getting rebounds and being more aggressive on defense. They played much better as a team on defense and offense Saturday than they did the previous week and continue to challenge themselves and improve their skills..
Last Saturday, The team lost a closely-fought, exciting game 30-25 to the N. Idaho Lady Tarheels. The girls brought it all game long, led by Annika Bruce with 11 points.
• Slammers 6th grade girls
Will report next week.
• Slammers 7th grade girls
Will report next week.
• Slammers 8th grade girls
The 8th grade team coached by, Patsy Olin, started its season where it left off last year. The team is undefeated through its first four games, dominating N. Idaho Christian and the Post Fall Blaze by a combined margin of more than 80 points. In their doubleheader Nov. 21 they were tested but won both games by six points, beating the North Idaho Elite 35-29 and the N. Idaho Storm 36-30. The coach feels the girls learn more when challenged by the stronger teams.