Lady Gators Basketball: Gator News

Coming back from a well deserved and needed haitus,  the Lady Gators are back and holding tryouts on August 10th and 12th at the South End Community Centre from 7-9 p.m. Any and all high school girls are welcome to tryout, however we will only be accepting 12 girls on our roster. Contact Todd McCoy with any questions or concerns at 253-988-9516.

I will update the website with the new roster and schedules as soon as I am able. Thank you for your patience!

                     -Lady Gators Program

   Sadly, our coach of six months, Maurice Powell, is leaving us for a year-long tour in Iraq. We will miss him dearly, but have already found someone to fill his place, thanks to the Sheehan family!

   Coach Charles was introduced to us by the Sheehans, and was invited to come to a scrimmage, players vs. parents, on wednesday night and instantly fell in love with the girls and saw how much raw talent and tremendous ability all the girls have. 

   With only four full practices under his belt with the girls, we entered the Auburn Riverside Last Chance TOC Qualifier and went two and two, which was unexpected by Coach Charles. "Honestly, I didn't know what to expect," says Coach Charles between games during the tournament, "I did not expect us to do as well as we did."

   Along with the new coach, we are blessed with two new players who have meshed well with the other girls, Charlie and Kammesha! "They [Charlie and Kammesha] have a lot to bring to the team," says Andre Johnson, a father and board member of the Lady Gators. He goes on, "The most exciting thing they bring is their confidence and passion for the game."

   The future of the Gators is very bright. 

   In the recent WTA 4th Annual Sweet Shot Girl's Varsity Tournament, the Lady Gators had a great turnout, despite the scoreboard. In their first game, early Saturday morning, the girls played a close game with Shock, and came out with a loss by only eight poingts. Regardless of the score, the girls played hard with good teamwork and determination. The second game on saturday was a fill in game which the Lady Gators had the opportunity to play Seattle Rotary Lady Style and although the score was discouraging, Coach Charles was pleased with the defense in the first half and was eager to play again. On Sunday, the Lady Gators faced Kagerz, a team they had never played before, but came out with a loss. The game was a rough one, agreed by the parents and plaers; however the girls had one other game to finish off the tournament. In their last game, the Lady Gators played Total Package, a game where the players as well as the parents were excited to participate in, as they had previously been beaten badly and wanted a re-match. The Lady Gators are proud to say they played tough defense and ran whatever Coach Charles drew up on the clipboard, but again came out with a loss.

    The new coaching staff of the Lady gators is thrilled to have the opportunity to coach this talented group of girls. "We are very excited about our new coach," says Todd McCoy, the President of the Lady Gators Program, "Charles brings a wealth of experience and success that we look forward to him instilling in our girls."

   Although their girls played up this tournament, they had a great result, apart from the scores. Coach Charles says at the end of each game with a smile on his face, "We have a lot of work to do."

     In their very first tournament with the new coaching staff, the Lady Gators participated in the Auburn Riverside last Chance TOC Qualifier. Ultimately, the girls went two and two, with two very disappointing losses. Their first opponent was South Sound Havoc, late Friday night, which was an easy victory for the girls and also boosted their confidence. Next, the girls played Advantage basketball which was a tougher game, but in the end, the girls prevailed and went home with the feeling that nothing could stand in their way. Sunday afternoon, the girls were scheduled to play Bellevue, and if the girls won they would be in the championship game. With great defense, the girls loss because they kept their opponent on the foul line. Disappointed, the girls still had one last game to take third place, which was also a loss, a game where the girls came out flat, and came across as if they had given up. Although the girls were dissatisfied with their efforts, Coach Charles was the farthest thing from upset, because he had the chance to see the girls play for the first time and was overjoyed with the overwhelming talent and natural ability of the girls. See you at practice on Monday girls!

The Lady Gators recently took 2nd place in the WTA 4th Annual Holiday Classic Tournament. Lady Gators vs. Pressure was the first game on Saturday afternoon and the girls pulled out with a win. Next, Lady Gators played Lake Washington Force. Without our very own Kara Starr, the Lady Gators easily won. Arriving at the gym on Sunday, the girls were to play Total Package which came out as a win. Then, Lady Gators played Eastlake. A tight game from start to finish, the girls won by 2 points in double overtime thanks to JaMesha Holland, who hit the winning bucket. The whole Lady Gators team and fans rushed out onto the court to congratulate her. Finally came the Championship against Inglemoor. Coming into the game, both teams were undefeated in the tournament thus far. Ultimately, Lady Gators lost by only 3 points to a team that had previously beaten them by much more. The girls recieved only finalist t-shirts, but were very proud of themselves for going 4-1 the whole tournament. Congratulations ladies!

We now have the games on DVDs. We owe a big thanks to Mike Starr for recording them and Alex for getting them on DVDs. We have five copies of both tournaments (WTA Tournament and Auburn Riverside Tournament), so please contact Todd for more information on how you can recieve a copy. Thanks for all your patience.

              -Rowdy Reptiles

We have officially recieved our uniforms! In order to pass them out to the players, we need everyone to turn in their RAM Card fundraising money. Please contact either our Treasurer Andre Johnson, or our President Todd McCoy. Thanks!

Also: With the holiday season going on and the schools being closed, we will not have practice. Always remember if you would like to work out, just contact Coach Moe to set up something. The captains will notify the girls when practices will start up again. Have a safe and happy holidays and see you next year!

                        - Rowdy Reptiles

The Lady Gators participated in their first WTA tournament this past October. The girls' first game was against TCBA Fusion, which was a game that was requested. The girls came out hard and finished tough, winning the game easily. The next game was not so easy. The girls wrestled, but lost. Our first game on Sunday was against Total Package. The girls again, battled, but came out flat and lost. Our fourth and last game was against the PBS Drifters. We came out hard, and were ahead, but ended up losing by only a few points. Another tough loss, as we were ahead in the first half.