By Bryan Bloodworth
NORMAL – The return of eight letter winners, including six who started at various times throughout last season, have things looking up for Normal Community High School’s girls basketball team this season.
“We’re looking for good things from the young ladies,” said fifth-year coach Marcus Mann. “We had a successful season last year, so we’re hoping to pick up where we left off and have a successful season this year. We want to play hard on the court and continue to be quality individuals off the court.”
PODCAST: Listen to Coach Mann’s complete interview here.
The Iron, who open play tonight at 6 against Central Catholic at Bloomington High School, posted a 19-12 overall mark and won the Big 12 Conference with a 9-1 record.
“Depth is definitely a strength,” added Mann. “The girls really played well together and they like playing with one another, so we have great chemistry within our depth. Having the ability to go eight to 10 deep on our bench and have all those girls play interchangeable parts should be a huge asset for us.
“I think we’re in a great place right now. The girls are eager and excited about putting the work in and have the ability to prove they belong at the top of the league and one of the better teams in Central Illinois.”
NCHS will rely on its two senior guards – Summer Stoewer and Kendall Sosa – for leadership and scoring. Stoewer was the team’s leading scorer at 14.2 to earn all-Big 12 first-team honors, while Sosa added 11.6 points per game.
“We’re not great in size,” said Mann. “We’re a little bit small and guard oriented, but again what we don’t have with the size, we make up for with our heart. The girls really play hard. We are going to have to find a way to handle bigger girls down low, but I think if we play hard we should be able to overcome those weaknesses.”
All of the Intercity coaches rate NCHS as a slight favorite to take home the Intercity crown.
“That’s nice to hear from them and hopefully we can live up to that billing,” said Mann.
“Hopefully they feel that way afterward, but we know there’s a lot of talent in the Intercity. It’s going to be a tough one. I think all the teams have a chance to win it. I wouldn’t say anybody is a true standout that they could run away with it, but any team on any given night could win any game.”
Bryan Bloodworth can be reached at [email protected]
