The future looks bright for the Salisbury girls basketball team, but coach Jennifer Shoaf isn’t peering too far down the road.
Shoaf’s depending on her talented trio of freshmen to contribute to the Hornets’ immediate improvement.
Salisbury lost three seniors, including Rowan County player of theYear Ke-Ke
Chunn, from last season’s 6-16 squad. Shoaf has plugged those holes with three freshmen who will be asked to play like veterans.
“I have high expectations. I want us to succeed,” Shoaf said. “I want us to make the playoffs. I’m hoping that in the county, we won’t be looked at as the worst team — we would like to be one of the best teams in the county.”
A movement to the upper echelon might be a few years away, but Shoaf has a solid foundation to build from.
Freshman Shayla Fields provided a glimpse of her potential by scoring 17 points in Salisbury’s heartbreaking two-point loss to South Rowan in the opener.
Fields, who has played for the AAU Carolina Classics, was all over the court against the Raiders. She penetrates and dishes, rebounds and even blocks a shot every now and then. Fields can also score, although that’s not always her first priority.
“She’s been a leader for us already. I think the older kids even look up to her ability a lot,”Shoaf said. “She’s so unselfish, trying to get her to shoot more than she’s doing already is going to be hard.”
Fields looked more like a savvy senior than a fragile freshman in her first varsity contest. It doesn’t hurt that’s she’s been preparing for this step for the last two years.
“It’s a big goal I always wanted to do,”Fields said. “I wanted to be on the varsity as a seventh-grader. I thought I had the talent.”
Fields has been joined on the varsity this season by former Knox Middle stars Tasha Gillespie and Krystal Connor.
Gillespie is a 5-foot-9 forward, and Connor is a 5-8 guard. The success of the Knox program in recent years has made for a smoother adjustment to the varsity level.
“They come in here with a lot of confidence,”Shoaf said.
Connor will have a big backcourt role in the future, but this year’s team will rely on sophomore Ashton Hanrahan and junior small forward Jamie
Seay.
Hanrahan played for Salisbury for the first six games of last season and averaged 5.0 points a game.
Seay, Salisbury’s designated jump-shooter, will help the Hornets against zone defenses.
Shoaf said her guards are the clear strength of the team even though they include three sophomores and two freshmen.
“Some people think that’s funny because I don’t have a single guard that’s an upperclassmen,”Shoaf said. “That just happens to be where most of the talent is.”
The Hornets have experience in the post in seniors Amber Wingerson and Anita Edwards and junior Terri Charleston.
Wingerson, who kicked for the football team, and Edwards, a standout tennis player, joined the squad a little late but have been key contributors so far.
“What I’m expecting out of them is their leadership,”Shoaf said. “I know they’re both going to be key players at different times of the season, especially early, because they have been here.
“It’s imperative that they help me bring these younger kids along.”
Fields will no doubt carry the offensive load for the Hornets, but Shoaf doesn’t want her other players standing around watching the talented freshman.
The Hornets plan to spread the ball around on offense and have their guards get it back later in the possession by moving well without the ball.
“I think (Fields) realizes you can’t be successful with just one person,”Shoaf said. “I’ve had a lot of great players come through here since I’ve been here, and we’ve had a lot of teams where one person has scored all the points. Not a whole lot came with it.
“We’re trying to instill that into the kids — we need more than one big-time threat.”
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