Change is good on Lady Cyclones’ journey

By KEVIN WEAKS
Press Sports
Next girl up.
That has been Elizabethton’s motto this season, and it has worked pretty well for the Lady Cyclones.
Three injuries during the 2012-13 season forced head coach Len Dugger to make on-the-fly adjustments to his team’s rotation and style of play and also caused the players to change their mental approach as the year moved on.
Players moved up, and the team moved on — right though the regular season to a District 1AA Tournament championship and then a Region 1AA tourney title, the seventh in 10 years for the Cyclones.
On their road to Murfreesboro, the Lady Cyclones knocked No. 1-ranked Grainger from the unbeaten ranks in the regional finals and then fought off Alcoa in the sectionals.
All in all, its been a very trying — and rewarding — season for Dugger and his E’ton squad.
“Our girls have been very resilient,” he told The Press earlier this week. “I admire the way they’ve regrouped. It’s been a lot like starting over. Role players have had to step up and become starters, while some who had played very little have moved up to fill roles for us. They have really rallied around each other.”
The Lady Cyclones suffered season-ending injuries to three key players that were expected to lead the team. Instead, injuries took them from the lineup and forced other players to make the step up.
The injuries started before the regular season when junior post player Caley Hodge was lost for the season on the team’s last play day of the preseason on Nov. 10 with a broken tibia. A strong defender and the team’s best rebounder, she was coming off a strong summer camp.
Lauren McCurry, the team’s top outside shooting threat could never fully heal from a foot stress fracture and was finally benched for the season after Christmas.
Finally, point guard Morgan Depew went down with a torn ACL in late January.
In their places, a pair of seniors and freshman twins have quickly stepped up their games.
Reazyn DeMoss leads a balanced scoring attack as the only player in double figures with 12 points a game. She’s connecting on 40 percent from the floor and is also grabbing eight boards a game.
Her eight points in the fourth quarter of Elizabethton’s sectional game against Alcoa were critical in sending the Lady Cyclones to the state tournament. DeMoss exploded for 22 points and 14 rebounds as Elizabethton handed Grainger its first loss of the season in the Region 1AA title game.
Whitney Roberts averages nine points and nine rebounds a game and has been big in the team’s biggest games so far, scoring 17 points and grabbing 13 boards against Alcoa after going for 12 points and 12 rebounds against Grainger.
“Whitney has picked a great time to start playing well,” Dugger said. “If you’’re successful at the end of the year, it’s usually because of your seniors.”
The Marosites twins, Kayla and Kelci, have shown flashes of offensive outbursts, Kelci scoring 23 points against Grainger and Kayle knocking down three 3-pointers against Alcoa.
Junior Sarah Bradley has been solid filling in at the point, while senior Savannah Madgett has provided solid minutes.
Published in The WCP 3.5.13

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