Sports > Schools
Poteet girls showing signs of life
By DEVIN HASSON, dhasson@starlocalnews.com
Poteet head coach Rick Westfall had a pretty good assessment of his team heading into the district season.
The Pirates, coming off a 15-15 season, set high goals for themselves, but knew that they would have to do some growing up along the way.
Poteet got off to a rough start in 10-4A play with four consecutive losses, but has since bounced back with back-to-back victories to climb back into the playoff race.
"(We have) young players that are learning the speed of varsity basketball," Westfall said. "I think we will improve as the season moves forward on the offensive end and have more comfort in regards to the speed of the game."
The Pirates have a go-to player in junior Shyari Cheathem, who is one of the top scorers in the district.
Cheathem is averaging 15.3 points per game and leads the team with three assists per game, as well as 26 3-pointers.
The Pirates do not have a lot of veterans, but seniors Raehgan Shaw and Brooke Bush have played key roles thus far.
Poteet has also gotten contributions from a number of newcomers, including freshmen Victoria George and Brittnye Loewen and sophomore Kyla Nelson.
The Pirates know they still have a ways to go. District 10-4A is shaping up to be one of the toughest in the area and the road will only get tougher, starting with Friday's game against crosstown rival West Mesquite.
But if the team continues to make strides like it has of late, there is no reason they cannot fulfill their top goal on the year.
"We would love to make the playoffs," Westfall said.
The Pirates, coming off a 15-15 season, set high goals for themselves, but knew that they would have to do some growing up along the way.
Poteet got off to a rough start in 10-4A play with four consecutive losses, but has since bounced back with back-to-back victories to climb back into the playoff race.
"(We have) young players that are learning the speed of varsity basketball," Westfall said. "I think we will improve as the season moves forward on the offensive end and have more comfort in regards to the speed of the game."
The Pirates have a go-to player in junior Shyari Cheathem, who is one of the top scorers in the district.
Cheathem is averaging 15.3 points per game and leads the team with three assists per game, as well as 26 3-pointers.
The Pirates do not have a lot of veterans, but seniors Raehgan Shaw and Brooke Bush have played key roles thus far.
Poteet has also gotten contributions from a number of newcomers, including freshmen Victoria George and Brittnye Loewen and sophomore Kyla Nelson.
The Pirates know they still have a ways to go. District 10-4A is shaping up to be one of the toughest in the area and the road will only get tougher, starting with Friday's game against crosstown rival West Mesquite.
But if the team continues to make strides like it has of late, there is no reason they cannot fulfill their top goal on the year.
"We would love to make the playoffs," Westfall said.
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