The girls basketball team dominated the North Central Panthers in their first sectional game on Tuesday evening, in a score of 77-58.
The Warriors will face Arsenal Tech on Feb. 2 in the next round of sectionals. That winner will then move on to the sectional championship game on Feb. 3.
The players and coaches have been preparing for this postseason run all season.
Junior Laila Mathis says she prepares for games like these ones by reviewing film of past games against her opponents and by practicing hard.
“I just think about the outcome,” she said. “Like at the end of the day it is something I want to fight for.”
Mathis said she chose to play basketball over any other sport because of her father.
“My dad is definitely my biggest inspiration because he couldn't make it far because of his height, so I'm trying to make it far for him,” she said.
Senior Teleah Davidson is also preparing for the sectionals along with her peers.
“We get up and down, make sure we're in condition, go over plays, make sure we do plays shooting the ball,” she said.
According to Davidson, she pushes forward because of her sister, the biggest influence in her life who has given her a “higher standard” to look up to.
“I decided to do basketball in the sixth grade because I used to be a bad little kid and when I started to do basketball it really got my mind focused, and I mean it really kept me straight and made me get good grades and work hard for everything I earn,” she said.
The players could not reach their highest success without the help of coaches, though. Head coach Stacy Mitchell said he became a coach because of his own coaches throughout elementary school all the way to college.
“I got into coaching because I had such good coaches growing up,” he said.
Mitchell also said that going into education and coaching was his way of paying forward the kindnesses that were given to him growing up.
“Teaching and coaching kind of go hand in hand, and I want to give back, you know, a little bit of what was given to me in my upbringing.” said Mitchell
As for what Mitchell does to prepare the girls for games, like the sectionals and other games alike, they gather film of their last games and see their tendencies, look at statistics and make a game plan for what they would like to do.
As for now, Mitchell, Mathis and Davidson’s sights are all set on the next sectional game and beyond.
“Life is tough,” Davidson said. “It is never easy. Always give your hardest.”