Scouting Westminster Christian girls basketball

Westminster Christian Warriors

Coach: Ken Flickinger (6th season, 31-88)

Conference: Northeast Athletic

2009-2010 record: 11-16 (4-6 Northeast Athletic)

Top returning players: Seniors Emily Bickford (6-1, C), Hannah Graves (5-9, F), Ellie Fink (5-5, G), junior Whitney VandenBos (5-6, G)

Key newcomers: Junior Lacey Graziano (5-6, G), freshmen Claire Spewiek (5-9, G-F), McKaila Hays (5-9, G), Liz Meschewski (5-9, F)

Outlook: Westminster is coming off its best record in nine years. The Warriors were eliminated in the regional semifinals by eventual Class 1A state champion Hinckley-Big Rock. "We have a lot of experience with eight seniors," said Flickinger. "They know what their responsibilities are and they know what we are running." Flickinger also welcomed the biggest freshmen class in the history of the program.

"The youngsters that came in are pretty athletic and have a lot of length and quickness. We've got a nice mix of players here." Flickinger cautioned that the team, because it is gelling a new mix of players together, will be a work in progress the first few weeks of the season. "We graduated three seniors last year and they carried a lot of the weight for us," he said. "The first few weeks are going to be a feeling out process to see where the leadership comes from and where the points are coming from. It could be a different kid leading us in scoring every night. But we've got a good group here.

We've got big numbers, which has made practice really competitive." Flickinger said the team has potential to score on the blocks. "We have the potential to get scoring inside," he said. "On the outside is still a work in progress. We will look to get a lot of baskets in transition and turn other teams over with our defense. We've got a smart group of girls. We're in real good shape with our fitness and we've got a good team that is athletic and has some length. Defensively we could be real solid. Ultimately we have to start the season out by being good on defense and limit opportunities for the other team to get rebounds and create some baskets." Flickinger said Rockford Christian is probably the favorite right now in the Northeastern Athletic Conference.

"After that there are four or five of us that are all pretty close. On any give night whoever plays the best is probably going to win. The conference is good. There is a nice mix of teams and there is a lot of parity."