From the sidelines
The second half of the season has been fun to watch.
At 6-7, the Marion High School girls' basketball team isn't turning heads statewide.
But after a 1-5 start to the season the Warriors have gone 5-2, including a 3-1 record in league play.
What makes this team fun is the fact that you can see the maturation process taking place.
With only a total of three juniors and seniors on the team, head coach Randy Savage has to have at least two underclassmen on the court at all times.
The good thing is sophomores Julia Zeiner, Kayley Heerey, and Lindsay Hett have been playing since their first game as freshmen.
Fellow sophomores Bridget Lundy, Kristen Steinborn, and Emmali Kelsey (before being sidelined by an injury) have seen playing time on varsity this year as well.
Throw in seniors Kimber Hardey and Lauren Helmer, who have stuck with the program since freshman year, and junior Amanda Richmond, and this team has an interesting mix of chemistry.
"We haven't all played together very much," Hardey said, "but we are now starting to find each other's strengths."
Helmer agreed.
"We're learning more about each other," she said.
The Warriors play in a tough league, and still have some talented teams to play down the stretch.
It will be interesting to watch them as sub-state time nears, and see if they can keep up their winning ways.
Their victory at Hillsboro Friday was impressive, even to Trojans' first-year head coach Nathan Hiebert.
He said the Warriors played the game with a ton of heart and confidence.
"It's tough, the ball that they play," Hiebert said. "They put their heads down and go until they run into somebody or get a layup."
"We're playing with more intensity," Helmer said of the recent 5-2 streak. "Things are starting to come together now."
Like I said, they've been fun to watch.
