Cavs have plenty of options

HILLSVILLE –– Carroll County girls’ basketball coach Marc Motley has a problem. Fortunately, it’s a problem a lot of coaches would like to be faced with. The poor guy can’t put but five bodies on the floor at one time. Stocked with about as much depth as he’s ever had during his tenure at CCHS, Motley is having a tough time figuring out who his best players are. “Take Kayla [Goins] and Cydnie [Cornell] out of the mix and it’s hard to tell who the next best three are,” he said. “One day it’ll be one group and one day it’ll be another group.” Needless to say, that’s a good thing. Competition creates strength, and whoever eventually fills the first five spots is going to be practicing against some pretty good basketball players on a daily basis. And it’s not like those first five will have a monopoly in the minutes played column. “I honestly think on a nightly basis we could go 11 or 12 deep,” Motley said. “We want the ball to go up and down the court as fast as it can go. We don’t care if we get tired. We’ll give it all we’ve got and run some fresh ones in. I don’t like the five-in, five-out strategy, but I’m not opposed to doing it. We’ve got kids who can come in and play.” The Cavaliers must cope with the loss of two-time Southwest District player of the year Jessi Watts and 6-foot post Hailey Lineberry. Watts’ scoring and floor leadership will be missed, just as will Lineberry’s presence in the paint. Seven players return, including six who saw significant minutes on a regular basis. Because of that, Motley feels his team is ahead of where it was at the same point a year ago. Goins, a 5-7 junior guard, headlines the list of returners, averaging 13.4 points (led team), 6.2 rebounds (second) and 2.6 assists (third). Back at point is Cornell, a 5-5 junior guard who Motley hopes to see step up into more of a scoring role this year. Mary Alden Jones (5-3 sr. G) is one of the team’s top defenders, Kelsey Goad (5-7 sr. G/F) evolved into a solid outside shooter by the end of last year, and Kaitlin Jones (5-7 sr. F) worked hard over the summer months. Audrey Dickens (5-6 jr. G) is a good shooter and ball handler, Brittany Hill (5-7 sr. F) got a lot of minutes last year, and a lot hinges on Kaitlin Viars, a 5-10 senior center. “She’s probably our most improved player from last year,” Motley said. “A lot of it has to do with the fact that she doesn’t have Emily Rippey or Hailey to defer to. It’s all hers now. She’s really starting to settle down and play basketball.” An energetic group of newcomers includes athletic Maleah Neely (5-8 soph. F/C), Cagney Ayers (5-8 jr. G/F), Jessica Easter (5-6 jr. F) and 5-6 freshman guards Rachel Dalton and Lindsey Martin. A lack of team size has Motley looking for more physical defensive play, but he is excited about the team’s overall quickness. “This may be one of the better offensive teams we’ve had in a while,” he said. Having won the last two SWD season titles, Carroll is expecting a battle from Graham in the district, but with the divisional playoff system in place for Group AA this year, Carroll only needs to finish in the top five to reach the regionals. It should happen. “I’ve been pleasantly surprised,” Motley said. “The kids are catching on real quick and the young kids coming up are bringing a lot of energy to our team, so I’m pretty excited about the year.”

Craig Worrell

Kayla Goins finished last year among the team’s top three in scoring, rebounding and assists.

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