At the beginning of every season, teams across the country establish a set of goals. Whether it be obtaining a championship or finishing with a winning record, each team’s set of goals is important to them.
For the Alcovy Lady Tigers, however, they’ve established one simple goal for 2021: make a playoff appearance. And, while others may doubt the likelihood of accomplishing this feat, they have the full faith of their head coach.
“We want to compete every single game,” head coach Miranda Lamb said. “I hope we can make a playoff run. I’ve said it in years past, but I think this is the group that could do it. Overall, we look good.”
The biggest obstacle standing in the way of earning a state playoff spot will be the overall youth of this year’s squad. But, as the season progresses, it could also be an asset.
After not graduating a single player from last year’s team, every player is a year older with another year of experience. That could pay dividends for the Lady Tigers, especially during the early stages of the season.
“We’re going to be young,” Lamb said, “but young means getting that experience early and hopefully it’ll pay off in the future.”
The Lady Tigers have four seniors on this year’s squad and welcome five freshmen to the varsity team.
Another bump in the road is the lack of hitting. Lamb highlighted how it was a slow-go that gradually became more consistent for her team in 2020. With that, the Lady Tigers plan to lean on defense for the first weeks of 2021.
According to Lamb, she has full confidence in the defensive play of her players in their respective position. That hasn’t been the case in years past.
Normally, Lamb feels she is one or two players shy of a complete attack on the field. For this year, though, Lamb said that she’s noticed a maturity and growth in each of her players as a result of receiving substantial playing time a year ago.
All of their experience, albeit limited, should help the Lady Tigers reach their ultimate of earning a state playoff berth. In fact, Lamb wholeheartedly believes that, once her team earns their inaugural appearance, the players will be more motivated to get there for future years.
“I think once we’re there, we’ll go back-to-back-to-back, because they’ll realize what it takes to get [to the playoffs],” Lamb said. “Then, they’ll realize how awesome it feels to be there.”
