Pope Basketball Off to a Great Start
| Courtesy of: | The Greyhound Tracks Newspaper |
By: Jessica Hale
Pope High School’s 2009-2010 basketball season got off to a promising start for both the Varsity girls and boys in their consecutive scrimmage matches against Kennesaw Mountain Friday. The girls’ game commenced at 6:00 in Pope’s gym, and the boys’ game followed shortly after at 7:30.
The Lady Greyhounds began the first quarter of the game with a strong sweep, scoring 14 points to the Mustangs’ 11. Pope kept its lead throughout the next two quarters, with an 18-14 and 16-14 score for the respective second and third quarters. The Lady Mustangs made a huge comeback fourth quarter, scoring 17 to Pope’s 11 points, yet their efforts were not enough to even the score, and the final box score turned out 59 to 56.
One notable player was senior Ally Hangartner, who led all the girls in scoring 15 points out of the 59.
“[Ally] is a leader and an extremely hard worker,” junior player Michelle Skinner said. “She is such a great player and well liked by everyone on the team.”
Other players who scored include freshman Laura Beall, senior Maggie Barber, senior Jade Harris, junior Claire White, junior Taylor Schwann, junior Brady Boggs, and senior Imani Mason.
However, the most memorable moment for the Lady Greyhounds came down to the final ten seconds of the fourth quarter, when the Mustangs’ comeback evened the score 56-56. In these last few seconds of the game, senior captain Maggie Barber stole the ball from the opposing team and hit the final free-throw to secure Pope’s three point lead.
“[When] Maggie stole the ball, the crowd started chanting ‘Maggie Barber!’” senior player Jade Harris said. “I could tell that made her happy and I love when Maggie’s happy. That was the best part of the night.”
This year, the girls’ varsity team is unique in that it consists of four seniors, seven juniors, and two freshmen: Andrea Brown and Laura Beall.
“I think it’s great having two freshmen on our varsity team this year,” Harris said. “They bring so much energy to our practices that it makes the rest of us want to work that much harder which also makes the team better as a whole.”
Players hope that playing together over the summer and adding the upcoming talent of the freshmen will help pull the team to greater heights.
The Pope varsity boys carried out their game in much the same manner, leading the first three quarters with scores of 17-13, 15-14, and 15-8, before the Mustangs rose for a brief comeback of 28-25 in the final quarter, making the final score 72-63.
These greyhounds were led by junior Garrett Brown who scored over a third of the team’s points: a total of 25 points. Other players who scored were junior Tyler Cummings, sophomore Matt Polyne, senior Bill Truss, and senior Matt Porter.
At 5 feet 9 inches, Brown stands as the shortest member on a team made up of five seniors, five juniors, and two sophomores who otherwise range from 5 feet 11 inches to 6 feet 6 inches. However, his height gives him no difficulty in any sport. Brown has been a varsity player on Pope’s football, basketball, and track teams since freshman year: the only one to do so. As wide receiver, he recently helped bring the Greyhounds to victory against Walton at the season’s last football game for the first time since the year 2000.
For basketball, he brings the same sense of dedication and skill.
“He is the main focus of our offense but he is our captain on the court,” senior player Bill Truss said. “[Garrett] is a great leader in spirit and he passes the ball well to get other teammates involved. He is a valued member to this team.”
Already by his sophomore year, Brown had set three records for Pope Basketball. He ranks in the top ten for most points scored in a single game (32 points), top three for most steals in a single game (8 steals), and possesses the all-time record for most steals in a season with a total of 94 steals during the 2008-2009 season! Now a junior, his teammates hope his promising talent will aid them in a successful season.
With expertise like Brown’s as well as upcoming talent from newer varsity players, the greyhounds hope that they will have more success than in recent years. Some aspects contributing to this positive outlook are the summer bonding programs and the fact that the majority of the team has played together for several years.
“I feel confident that we will have a good season because of how long we have been playing together as a team,” Truss said. “We bond well on and off the court [because] we have good leadership and team spirit after playing together over the summer. We will show improvement this year because we only look to get better.”
Related Posts:
- Volleyball 5A Championship: Pope over Walton
- Despite Furious Finish, Pope Misses the Playoffs
- Cross Country: 6AAAAA Region Turnout with Two State Qualifiers from Pope
- Pope’s Victory Over Milton Eagles May Pull Them Into Playoffs
- Volleyball Coaches Name All-State Awards
This entry was posted on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 4:05 pm and is filed under Boys Basketball, Georgia, Girls Basketball . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.