Arlee has lots of returning talent; Mission loses seniors

Craig Moore - Leader Staff

ARLEE- Boys head coach Cole Maxwell lost two seniors to graduation but is expecting a strong class this year.

With the loss of Clay Thomas, a 6-foot-6-inch honorable mention all-conference player, the Warriors will have to find other ways to play hard.

"We have a fairly old team with five seniors … a group of kids who have been playing together for the last couple years," said Maxwell.

Danny Miles returns for the Warriors. A 6-foot-3-inch player, Miles can play inside and outside.

"Miles is a terrific shooter and a very smart player," said Maxwell.

Maxwell is excited to have Buddy Heitala returning this year.

"He is very athletic and could be a high-impact player," said Maxwell.

Arlee won't have as much ability to out-score other teams, so they will have to play good on defense to win, according to Maxwell.

"We are going to use what we have and exploit their weakness," he said.

The Warriors will open against Mission at home on Dec. 6.

"You have to make them (Mission) make mistakes, because they are coached well," said Maxwell.

The Scarlets only lost two seniors to graduation and hope to build on last season's 14-9 overall record.

Alyssa O'Neil returns this year after averaging 11 points and 10.5 rebounds.

"She is a great help on the inside and a hard worker," said head coach Shawn Orr.

Gwen BigSam a 5-foot-8-inch post player will be helping out on the inside with O'Neil. It helps having BigSam and O'Neil on the inside, said Orr.

Coach Orr will have Annie Rice bringing the ball down the court for the Scarlets.

"She gets the ball down the court and is a good shooter from the outside," said Orr.

The Scarlets also have Amanda Henderen and Whitney Tameler playing at guard. Orr is looking for Henderen to be a good all around player.

"Whitney is my speed and defense," said Orr.

Coach Orr hopes to improve by playing better team basketball over the next two weeks, in time for the season opener.

The Scarlets will open at Mission Dec. 7.

"It's always a big one (game) because it's Mission," Orr said.